Feminism constantly works to eliminate oppression, inequality and discrimination. A highly important tool used by feminists to do this that assesses differences among individuals in society which the author of “Feminisms Matters”, Victoria Bromley critiques is called intersectionality. Intersectionality enables one’s critical thinking about a person’s interconnected multiple identities and also goes into a deep investigation about how these identities are interwoven into society’s power structures as to discover the roots of inequality. This is accomplished by embarking into an in-depth analysis of the concepts of power, such as zero-sum, empowerment and hierarchies of privilege. As Bromley has thoroughly supported and emphasized, intersectionality
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First, Bromley dissects the common notion of power which falsely follows the principle of zero-sum, meaning power is limited (Bromley 49). It is this type of structure of power that uses multiple identities as a basis to selectively choose which persons are to more easily achieve power than others, creating barriers between privilege and unprivileged (Bromley 50). These barriers are based off identity markers that society has unjustifiably categorized to be more “accepted”, making them more desirable to social constructions within the world. For instance, it is commonly known that a white, heterosexual male is more likely to be promoted as the head of a law firm than a white heterosexual female. The reason for this is what feminists are working to solve so they can get closer to eliminating the roots of discrimination. An example to elaborate on zero-sum, given by Bromley in “Feminisms Matter” says “we are socialized to imagine that money is power and that more money or a bigger piece of the pie equals more power” (Bromley 49). Bromley effectively uses this analogy as to disapprove of this idea of power, when in the contrary, Bromley declares that power is more about empowerment and how it can be shared with all (Bromley …show more content…
Within our social constructions some individuals are more disadvantaged or advantaged than others. This is a direct outcome of the wrongful belief that some identities are considered more “normal” and desirable than others, creating boundaries (Bromley 52). In result, by not questioning these barriers, hierarchies of privilege are born which enforces hegemony and groups of undeserved privilege, leading feminists to inferences about inclusions and exclusions in terms of power (Bromley 53). “Like all hierarchies, power is embedded into the dividing line between the two binaries” (Bromley 51). An example of unearned privilege in “Feminisms Matter” due to unfair assumptions about identity is job employment. For instance, “the unearned privilege of whiteness could mean that an applicant gets the job based on their perceived skin colour” (Bromley 52). Bromley concluded that in order for these hierarchies of privilege to continue to thrive and exist, society must be following a set of guidelines which have been imbedded into societies customs and systems of power throughout time. These rules are the unlawful discrimination of chosen identity markers which is how multiple identities, power and hierarchies of privilege unite to establish inequality. Bromley recognizes that coming to this realization by using intersectionality is the
First, Bromley dissects the common notion of power which falsely follows the principle of zero-sum, meaning power is limited (Bromley 49). It is this type of structure of power that uses multiple identities as a basis to selectively choose which persons are to more easily achieve power than others, creating barriers between privilege and unprivileged (Bromley 50). These barriers are based off identity markers that society has unjustifiably categorized to be more “accepted”, making them more desirable to social constructions within the world. For instance, it is commonly known that a white, heterosexual male is more likely to be promoted as the head of a law firm than a white heterosexual female. The reason for this is what feminists are working to solve so they can get closer to eliminating the roots of discrimination. An example to elaborate on zero-sum, given by Bromley in “Feminisms Matter” says “we are socialized to imagine that money is power and that more money or a bigger piece of the pie equals more power” (Bromley 49). Bromley effectively uses this analogy as to disapprove of this idea of power, when in the contrary, Bromley declares that power is more about empowerment and how it can be shared with all (Bromley …show more content…
Within our social constructions some individuals are more disadvantaged or advantaged than others. This is a direct outcome of the wrongful belief that some identities are considered more “normal” and desirable than others, creating boundaries (Bromley 52). In result, by not questioning these barriers, hierarchies of privilege are born which enforces hegemony and groups of undeserved privilege, leading feminists to inferences about inclusions and exclusions in terms of power (Bromley 53). “Like all hierarchies, power is embedded into the dividing line between the two binaries” (Bromley 51). An example of unearned privilege in “Feminisms Matter” due to unfair assumptions about identity is job employment. For instance, “the unearned privilege of whiteness could mean that an applicant gets the job based on their perceived skin colour” (Bromley 52). Bromley concluded that in order for these hierarchies of privilege to continue to thrive and exist, society must be following a set of guidelines which have been imbedded into societies customs and systems of power throughout time. These rules are the unlawful discrimination of chosen identity markers which is how multiple identities, power and hierarchies of privilege unite to establish inequality. Bromley recognizes that coming to this realization by using intersectionality is the