Intersectionality

Definition: A term which derives from Black feminist thought and broadly describes how social identities exist within ‘interlocking systems of oppression’ and structures of (in)equalities (Crenshaw, 1989). Intersectionality offers a perspective on the way multiple forms of inequality operate together to compound or exacerbate each other. Multiple concurrent forms of identity can have a multiplicative effect and are not merely the sum of the component elements. One implication is that identity cannot be adequately understood through examining a single axis (e.g., race, gender, sexual orientation, class) at a time in isolation, but requires simultaneous consideration of overlapping forms of identity.