Kimberle Crenshaw Idea Of Intersectionality

Intersectionality This reading is centered around Kimberle Crenshaw’s idea of intersectionality and how we often are a part of multiple social identities at one time. Her idea of these multiple identities contribute to her argument that society often treats people according to a specific social group versus all the groups in which they belong. Crenshaw gave the example of the Hispanic mother that was a victim of domestic violence and was not able to adequately convey her claims because of the language barrier between her and her crisis counselor. The son of the woman would have been able to translate but the counselor declined saying that would further disempower her. The claim of the counselor was valid but what mattered more at the time? The feeling of empowerment by the mother or the safety of that mother and her son? The author argues that this is how many of us go about helping one another. Instead of helping because it is right, we often try help people based on their positions and social identities which in-turn often places this help on a conditional bases.

This is intriguing because it suggests that we as a society are very narrow-minded. When we see a Spanish speaking person we think Hispanic. We do not think mother or woman or man or son. We put people in one box and expect that is this is the only group in which they are a part of, and that is not true. For this reason the idea of intersectionality also confuses me. If we all are a part of multiple groups at the same time, how do we get people to address one another according to all of their