Intersectionality Approach: Race, Class, And Gender

The term “Intersectionality” was coined in 1989 by American critical legal race scholar Kimberle Crenshaw. It is a concept which refers, interactions of multiple systems of oppression or discrimination. It promotes an understanding of human being how they can face multiple threats of discrimination because of their interaction of different social locations such as, race, ethnicity, indigeneity, gender, class, ability, sexuality, religion and migration status. These interaction occur within a context of connected systems and structures of power for example, laws, policies, state government and other political and economic union, media, religious institution (lecture notes: unit 9). I would like to emphasize the ideas about race, class and gender,
But we must transcend these barriers by moving toward race, class and gender as categories of connection, by building relationships and coalitions that will bring about social change” (Patricia Hill Collins 1993: pg 36). A white woman is dominant and a black woman is subordinate in this society but according to author, intersectionally they build a role in our society. Different type of races, classes, genders, ethnicity, ages and nation play a role in social construction and social organization. The “Intersectionality approach” acknowledged that there were important differences between men and women rather than simply between them. It focuses on the relationships between factors and mutually constructed process that create differences. According to Kimberle Crenshaw, “Many years ago, I began to use the term "intersectionality" to deal with the fact that many of our social justice problems like racism and sexism are often overlapping, creating multiple levels of social injustice” (4:53). She coined the term to express the individual problems that immigrant women have to face about their race,color and