Post-Reading 6: Intersectional Theory

• Intersectional theory is when problems in the society about race, gender, sexual orientation, educational attainment, age, and ability intersects. For example, the activity that we did in class today about my gender, race, ability, class, and sexual orientation. As I fill it up with my own personality I ended up not having an disadvantage for my race because I’m Filipino; my gender because I’m a woman. In contrast to having disadvantages with those categories I also have some advantages like my class which is middle class, my ability which I’m temporarily able, and my sexual orientation because I’m straight. It’s different in other approaches because intersectional theory is not about one factor that can have an advantage or a disadvantage but it’s different for diverse people and it depends on their personal issues of what category they fit in.
• Audre Lorde is basically saying that we as a human being in the society is afraid of looking into the problems that’s why we can’t further investigate to change that. We might be afraid because it can take our opportunities away or our advantages in the society. We are reluctant to look at the differences in our society that’s why it’s hard for us to approach and change them.
• We need to look at the differences of each women in the society and we have to acknowledge those differences like what she said that “As women, we must root out internalized patterns of oppression within ourselves if we are to move beyond the most superficial aspects of social change”. So in that line that she wrote, she wants us to notice the problems and act upon those for the better and for the change of oppression with women, bisexual, or lesbian in the society.
• Moraga agrees with Lorde and in her argument she basically saying the same point of view with Lorde that if we didn’t look deeper into the importance of women of color, women, lesbians, and queer then we wouldn’t have a better understanding of the society. If white men are always with the structural privilege all the time then it’s a structural inequality for women, women of color, lesbians, and queers. She’s comparing the lesbians to being poor, being brown, and being women. I think she’s saying that might as well be women or brown or poor if I’m going to declare myself as lesbian. I agree with Moraga’s argument because I think all individuals should be given the right to work or have a professional job even though they’re different from “White Male”.
• The critiques for Occupy Movement are that they are committed to change the social issues confronting movement poor work income, sexual violence, and homelessness. Some are saying that “We should focus on blaming the white males , even though the majority of them not having to do with economic meltdown, instead of the 1%.” The agenda of Occupy movement is to make a change about women having low-paying jobs and having less opportunity than men. The agenda reflects mostly on women of color.
• Basically intersectional theory can help us understand the lives of men because we can see that GENDER is a big part of the society and while men and whites have all the privilege in the society. For example, before the Feminist movements, women are not allowed to have jobs and be in the work field except for women of color. They have to stay at home or either women of color have to work like men and have low-income. So in general, If we look at different spheres about Race, Gender, Ability, and Sexual Orientation, men are set on the easiest level when it comes to the game that we talked about in class.
• No more questions.

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