Critical Response Paper 1

Identity, Intersectionality and

Oppression

Course title:

Gender, Ethnicity and Class in the Caribbean: Issues

Of Identity, Nation and Citizenship

Course code:

GEND 3038

Lecturer

Dr. Angelique V. Nixon,

Student ID

813005415

Identity/Identities, Intersectionality and Oppression are terms that have been

constantly reoccurring in this course and have created my foundation of
understanding for future concepts and terms. As a result Ive decided to focus my 1 st
critical response paper on these concepts and the following readings: - there is no
hierarchy of oppression, from week one (introduction to course) intersectionality: a tool
for economic and gender justice and age race class and sex: women redefining difference
from week 4 (key concepts in gender, race and ethnic Studies) as these they best define
and explain how these three terms work together and how it can and has impacted
feminist work.
Ill start off with There is no Hierarchy of Oppression in this reading audre
lorde states that like herself we all have of multiple identities and face multiple forms of
oppression and discrimination that we have to deal with because of these identities.
However that does not mean that one form of oppression or discrimination trumps the
other. In fact Mrs Lorde suggests that if we are to overcome oppression and
discrimination on a whole then we must identify and deal with all forms as they present
themselves. However acknowledging some else difference or even our own difference to
the implied norm is not always easy. Why? Because in most cases being different
means being othered and that in most just compounds the discrimination that
individual will face . She goes on to elaborate this theory in her other article age race

class and sex: women redefining difference. In this article she states that people have
come to define difference in terms of opposite e.g. inferior /superior, leading people to
believe that you cannot be both and dividing people into distinct categories. Over the
years this understanding of difference has led people to focus on one part of their
identity and to identify one way in which we are different, and we assume that to be
the primary cause of all oppression, forgetting other distortions around difference, some
of which we ourselves may be practicing (Lorde 1984). This type of tunnel vision that
ignores difference only serves to stunt the potential of the feminist movement and
growth for all women as it also ensures that possible solutions and creative insight from
these women are also ignored. It also places the burden of change on the oppressed,
they must now not only bear the burden of oppression but they must also teach and
educate their oppressors about their errors and they must also try fix to the problem
too. Not to mention that they must also learn the language and attitudes of their
oppressors if they are to survive in that society. As a result surplus energy is expended
on the oppressors that should have be used to help better the situation of the oppressed.
This section of the reading reminded me of the situation with Haiti, Haiti could have
and should have been one of the most profitable & flourishing islands in the Caribbean.
Instead they were forced to expend time and money on their oppressors after they had
revolted in order to be recognized as independent. Haiti could have flourished after the
Haitian revolt but the island was refused that future and was deemed an other even to

its own sister island of the Dominican republic and as result the island and its people,
were oppressed and discriminated against. And it is often found that when people
speak up about difference and the oppression they face because of it that they are met
with push back. However it is very important especially in the feminist movement that
we are able to relate across our differences, that we are able to see the intersections
between gender and issues of race, culture, age, class, ethnicity etc. and the oppressions
and privileges that come with each. This type of analysis is known as intersectionality
and it is the only way that we will accomplish change. Intersectionality is an analytical
tool for studying and understanding and responding to the ways in which gender
intersects with other identities and how these intersections contribute to unique
experiences of oppression and privileged (AWID, 2004). Using this tool feminist
understand that each individuals experience of discrimination is unique (but not
compounded) because of their multiple identities and that creating policies or solution
for these women require a bottom up approach. Where we learn about the individuals
and their situation 1st then creating and tailoring a solution that will fit their experience
this way no ones experience is made inferior or ignored.
This marks the end of my 1st critical response paper and my understanding of
intersectionality, identity and oppression from the readings, what they are, how the

interact with each other and the importance of understanding and acknowledging this
interaction in feminist scholarship.

References
AWID, Intersectionality: A Tool for Gender and Economic Justice. AWID Facts and
Issues, Womens Rights and Economic Change, No. 9 August 2004.
Lorde, Audre. 1984. Sister Outsider. Trumansburg, NY: Crossing Press.
Lorde, Audre, Rudolph P Byrd, Johnnetta B Cole, and Beverly Guy-Sheftall. 2009. I Am
Your Sister. Oxford: Oxford University Press.