Intersectionality is a term that describes the relationships between social categories and the people and concepts that can fall into more than one. Learn about Intersectionality with this starter Qstream microlearning course
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Intersectionality
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1. Origins of Intersectionality >
2. Defining Intersectionality >
3. Concept of Intersectionality >
4. We Are Not a Monolith >
5. Type of Dimensions >
6. Other Dimensions >
7. Organizational Diversity >
8. What is Privilege? >
9. Stereotype Examples >
10. Generalized Beliefs >
11. LGBTQIA >
12. Types of Privileges >
13. Identify Intersectionality >
14. Women and Intersectionality >
15. Employee Affinity Groups >
Follow the interactions on each screen to answer Qstream questions as a Participant.
Who among the following is credited for coining the term intersectionality?
Answer explanation:
Coined in 1989 by civil rights activist and scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw, intersectionality occurs when race, class, gender, and other individual characteristics “intersect” with one another and overlap and can cause double discrimination. For example, in Crenshaw’s article “Mapping the Margins,” she explained how people who are “both women and people of color” are marginalized by “discourses that are shaped to respond to one or the other” rather than both.
Learn more:
Kimberlé Crenshaw (1991), Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence against Women of Color, Stanford Law Review
https://blogs.law.columbia.edu/critique1313/files/2020/02/1229039.pdf
Intersectionality is defined as which of the following?
Answer explanation:
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, intersectionality is "the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage; a theoretical approach based on such a premise."
In other words, intersectionality is a term that describes the relationships between social categories and the people and concepts that can fall into more than one.
Learn more about what Intersectionality means by listening to this 45-minute NPR talk with Kimberlé Crenshaw. Treva Lindsey and Juliana Hu Pegues: https://www.npr.org/2021/03/29/982357959/what-does-intersectionality-mean
True or False? Intersectionality can identify a person’s privileges and advantages.
Answer explanation:
When the concept was introduced, intersectionality focused on discrimination and disadvantages. However, intersectionality can also reveal someone’s advantages and privileges. For example, a marginalized community member can have certain privileges over others who belong to the same community.
As an example, two Black men belong to a marginalized community based on race. Still, specific characteristics of one may give them privileges over the other, such as height, socioeconomics, education, or physical appearance.
Tony is a global diversity manager for an international organization with employees in 25 countries and three continents, including North America, Africa, and Europe. Tony is Black American. For February, he wanted to celebrate Black History Month and show appreciation for the company’s employees. So, Tony arranged for a catered “soul food” meal of macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, and collard greens from a Black-owned restaurant. He also asked two local poets to present Black history-related poems via Zoom for global and remote employees.
Tony received immense backlash from many of the Black employees.
Which of the following should Tony have done instead?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, Tony had the right intentions. He wanted to recognize the Black employees in his organization. Unfortunately, Tony did not consider that the Black employees are not a monolith. Though they belong to the same race or ethnic group, there are many differences between them. For example, some Black employees are from other parts of the world, so the notion of Black History Month is not the same as it is for those in the United States. Similarly, Black employees may eat different things, so Tony’s menu choice was not very inclusive.
To remedy the situation, Tony should listen to the interests and needs of all Black employees and consider that people from the same group may think, act, feel, and want different things.
Which of the following are examples of internal dimensions?
Answer explanation:
Internal dimensions, also known as primary dimensions, are characteristics we typically have no control over. However, there are times when these characteristics can change or be altered. These characteristics are race, age, gender, physical ability, and sexual orientation.
Unfortunately, these dimensions are also the first things people notice about us and where many biases start.
Which of the following dimensions includes aspects of our lives that we have some control over, that might change over time, and that usually form the basis for our decisions about careers and work styles?
Answer explanation:
External dimensions, also known as secondary dimensions, are things we are not born with but are associated with influences and decisions we have made. These things change and develop throughout our lives.
These areas include:
• Spiritual / Religion
• Relationship Status
• Socioeconomic Status
• National Origin
• Experiences
• Appearance
• Citizenship
• Interests
• Education
• Geographic Location
• Family Status
Shelton is a 32-year-old Turkish immigrant who is married with three young children. Shelton has a master’s in accounting, works in accounts receivable, and prefers to work solo. He lives in Lancaster, Michigan, but works out of the Dallas office.
Which of the following characteristics about Shelton are areas of organizational dimension?
Answer explanation:
Organizational dimensions focus on areas within a workplace setting. Many organizations pay great attention to internal and external dimensions because they help determine demographic information. Organizational dimensions take demographic information to the next level because they align with a sense of belonging within the organization. Organizational dimensions highlight the need for mentoring programs, succession planning, and other areas of the employee experience.
Organizational dimensions include:
• Management Status
• Union Affiliation
• Work Location
• Seniority
• Division/Department/Unit
• Work Content/Field
• Functional Level/Classification
Privilege is unearned access to resources (social power) that are only readily available to some people because of their social group membership; an advantage, or immunity, granted to or enjoyed by one societal group above and beyond the common advantage of all other groups. Privilege is often _________ to those who have it.
Answer explanation:
Privilege is unearned access to resources (social power) that are only readily available to some people because of their social group membership; an advantage or immunity granted to or enjoyed by one societal group above and beyond the common benefit of all other groups. Privilege is often invisible to those who have it.
When most think about privilege, especially in the United States, they consider one privilege: white privilege. However, there are many other types of privileges; anyone from any group can have some kind of privilege.
Below are the types of privileges:
• Class
• Socioeconomic
• Education
• Gender
• Gender Identity
• Passing
• Racial
• Religion
• Sexual Orientation
Which of the following are examples of a stereotype?
Answer explanation:
A stereotype is a belief that group members generally function and behave in the same manner and have the same interests.
A stereotype can be positive or negative.
Some stereotypes derive from overgeneralizations in media, pictures, or images of groups of people.
Some women taking off work to care for their children is not a stereotype because it does not generalize all women. However, it does speak to some women.
Jordan, an American of Korean descent, recently had lunch with a coworker, Angie, an American of African descent. To get to know Jordan better, Angie asked when he moved to America and learned English. Jordan responded, “My family has lived in America for generations and only speaks English.”
Which of the following can help eliminate Angie’s stereotype of Jordan?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, Angie is stereotyping Jordan based on his ethnic and racial background. She believes all Asians who reside in the United States migrated to the country and speak English as a second language. Angie’s stereotype is based on her experiences and filter.
A stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular group or class.
If Angie would like to continue to build a relationship with Jordan, she must first consider Jordan as an individual, not as a representative of a particular community. Jordan is an American of Korean descent who speaks English and does not speak or communicate in any other language. These are only just a few of the characteristics that define Jordan. These characteristics intersect with other areas of Jordan’s background, and no one is just like him.
Gerald, a gay employee, has worked with the organization for five years. He aspires to join the senior leadership team in the next three years and is under the impression that all senior leaders are straight. Though the company is LGBTQIA friendly and open, Gerald has decided to hide his sexuality and present himself as straight to fit the senior leadership role. No one is aware of Greg’s sexuality.
This scenario describes which of the following types of privilege?
Answer explanation:
In the scenario, Greg is a gay man hiding his sexuality from the senior leadership team to fit in. Though the company is LGBTQIA friendly, open, and accepting, Greg believes there is a privilege to being straight and wants to experience the same advantage, so he pretends to be straight. In doing so, Greg is passing. Passing is the ability to pretend to belong to another group. When someone can successfully pass, that is a privilege. The person passing also gains the same advantages as the privileged group.
Unlike some colleagues who must work overtime or pick up shifts for extra money, Carson’s husband is a nurse anesthetist, and Carson works part-time.
Carson has which of the following type of privilege?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, Carson’s coworkers must work extra hours for additional money. Though Carson works only part-time, he is advantaged because of his husband’s profession. This affords Carson privileges. In this case, Carson has both socioeconomic and class privileges.
According to classism.org, class privilege is “tangible or intangible unearned advantages of higher-class status, such as personal contacts with employers, good childhood health care, inherited money, speaking with the same dialect/accent as people with institutional power.”
Socioeconomic privilege benefits from economic factors and access to diverse forms of capital. Both class and socioeconomic privileges can lead to education privilege as well.
Methods used to identify intersectionality in an organization include which of the following?
Answer explanation:
Because many organizations focus on the internal dimensions of an individual, many miss the opportunity to learn more about their employees. There are several methods to identify intersectionality.
1. Listening to your employees is key. Creative methods can help make sharing details much more manageable. Remember, when employees are sharing, there must be psychological safety. Without this, employees may be reluctant to share.
2. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is an excellent source of quantitative data.
Under federal law, businesses with at least 100 employees, federal contractors with at least 50 employees, and a contract of $50,000 or more with the federal government must file the EEO-1 form each year. The EEOC uses information about the number of women, and minority companies employ to support civil rights enforcement and analyze employment patterns, according to the agency.
This data includes race/ethnicity, gender, and job categories.
In addition to EEO-1 data, use your pre-employment questionnaire data to analyze any potential intersections your current or potential employees may have.
For example, an organization may find out that 5% of their applicants are Black female veterans.
An organization is focused on engaging and attracting more women. In doing so, they have implemented programs such as paid maternity leave, onsite lactation rooms, and discounted childcare.
Which of the following best describe how the organization can ensure that the intersectionality of all women is considered?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, an organization wants to engage and attract more women to its organization. Implementing programs such as onsite lactation rooms, maternity leave, and discounted childcare are great ideas but do not speak to all women who are with or may join the organization.
The organization needs to think about intersectionality for women. For example, the scenario seems to suggest that the benefits and programs are just for cisgender women. Trans women may need additional help to meet their needs. Also, women with no children do not benefit from these initiatives.
To engage and attract more women, the organization needs to consider the needs of all women in various situations and scenarios.
An organization created affinity groups to increase a sense of belonging for employees. However, within a few months, the affinity groups started to become siloed.
Which of the following would best describe how the organization can use affinity groups to increase intersectionality and eliminate silos?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, the organization wanted to create a sense of belonging for its employee. This is always done with great intentions but can quickly become siloed without the proper guidance.
Affinity groups do not interact and do not work together. Furthermore, affinity groups may have difficulty engaging members or recruiting new members. Because of this, organizations and affinity group leaders need to explore the intersections of their employees. Recruit members who may belong to different affinity groups versus focusing on one internal dimension.
An individual may not belong to a particular group but may be an ally. Being an ally is also a characteristic and is part of someone’s intersections. Therefore, limiting leaders from joining affinity groups will only serve to have the opposite desired impact. Remember, like employees at all levels, leaders have intersections and characteristics and belong to many groups.
Who among the following is credited for coining the term intersectionality?
Answer explanation:
Coined in 1989 by civil rights activist and scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw, intersectionality occurs when race, class, gender, and other individual characteristics “intersect” with one another and overlap and can cause double discrimination. For example, in Crenshaw’s article “Mapping the Margins,” she explained how people who are “both women and people of color” are marginalized by “discourses that are shaped to respond to one or the other” rather than both.
Learn more:
Kimberlé Crenshaw (1991), Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence against Women of Color, Stanford Law Review
https://blogs.law.columbia.edu/critique1313/files/2020/02/1229039.pdf
Intersectionality is defined as which of the following?
Answer explanation:
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, intersectionality is "the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage; a theoretical approach based on such a premise."
In other words, intersectionality is a term that describes the relationships between social categories and the people and concepts that can fall into more than one.
Learn more about what Intersectionality means by listening to this 45-minute NPR talk with Kimberlé Crenshaw. Treva Lindsey and Juliana Hu Pegues: https://www.npr.org/2021/03/29/982357959/what-does-intersectionality-mean
True or False? Intersectionality can identify a person’s privileges and advantages.
Answer explanation:
When the concept was introduced, intersectionality focused on discrimination and disadvantages. However, intersectionality can also reveal someone’s advantages and privileges. For example, a marginalized community member can have certain privileges over others who belong to the same community.
As an example, two Black men belong to a marginalized community based on race. Still, specific characteristics of one may give them privileges over the other, such as height, socioeconomics, education, or physical appearance.
Tony is a global diversity manager for an international organization with employees in 25 countries and three continents, including North America, Africa, and Europe. Tony is Black American. For February, he wanted to celebrate Black History Month and show appreciation for the company’s employees. So, Tony arranged for a catered “soul food” meal of macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, and collard greens from a Black-owned restaurant. He also asked two local poets to present Black history-related poems via Zoom for global and remote employees.
Tony received immense backlash from many of the Black employees.
Which of the following should Tony have done instead?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, Tony had the right intentions. He wanted to recognize the Black employees in his organization. Unfortunately, Tony did not consider that the Black employees are not a monolith. Though they belong to the same race or ethnic group, there are many differences between them. For example, some Black employees are from other parts of the world, so the notion of Black History Month is not the same as it is for those in the United States. Similarly, Black employees may eat different things, so Tony’s menu choice was not very inclusive.
To remedy the situation, Tony should listen to the interests and needs of all Black employees and consider that people from the same group may think, act, feel, and want different things.
Which of the following are examples of internal dimensions?
Answer explanation:
Internal dimensions, also known as primary dimensions, are characteristics we typically have no control over. However, there are times when these characteristics can change or be altered. These characteristics are race, age, gender, physical ability, and sexual orientation.
Unfortunately, these dimensions are also the first things people notice about us and where many biases start.
Which of the following dimensions includes aspects of our lives that we have some control over, that might change over time, and that usually form the basis for our decisions about careers and work styles?
Answer explanation:
External dimensions, also known as secondary dimensions, are things we are not born with but are associated with influences and decisions we have made. These things change and develop throughout our lives.
These areas include:
• Spiritual / Religion
• Relationship Status
• Socioeconomic Status
• National Origin
• Experiences
• Appearance
• Citizenship
• Interests
• Education
• Geographic Location
• Family Status
Shelton is a 32-year-old Turkish immigrant who is married with three young children. Shelton has a master’s in accounting, works in accounts receivable, and prefers to work solo. He lives in Lancaster, Michigan, but works out of the Dallas office.
Which of the following characteristics about Shelton are areas of organizational dimension?
Answer explanation:
Organizational dimensions focus on areas within a workplace setting. Many organizations pay great attention to internal and external dimensions because they help determine demographic information. Organizational dimensions take demographic information to the next level because they align with a sense of belonging within the organization. Organizational dimensions highlight the need for mentoring programs, succession planning, and other areas of the employee experience.
Organizational dimensions include:
• Management Status
• Union Affiliation
• Work Location
• Seniority
• Division/Department/Unit
• Work Content/Field
• Functional Level/Classification
Privilege is unearned access to resources (social power) that are only readily available to some people because of their social group membership; an advantage, or immunity, granted to or enjoyed by one societal group above and beyond the common advantage of all other groups. Privilege is often _________ to those who have it.
Answer explanation:
Privilege is unearned access to resources (social power) that are only readily available to some people because of their social group membership; an advantage or immunity granted to or enjoyed by one societal group above and beyond the common benefit of all other groups. Privilege is often invisible to those who have it.
When most think about privilege, especially in the United States, they consider one privilege: white privilege. However, there are many other types of privileges; anyone from any group can have some kind of privilege.
Below are the types of privileges:
• Class
• Socioeconomic
• Education
• Gender
• Gender Identity
• Passing
• Racial
• Religion
• Sexual Orientation
Which of the following are examples of a stereotype?
Answer explanation:
A stereotype is a belief that group members generally function and behave in the same manner and have the same interests.
A stereotype can be positive or negative.
Some stereotypes derive from overgeneralizations in media, pictures, or images of groups of people.
Some women taking off work to care for their children is not a stereotype because it does not generalize all women. However, it does speak to some women.
Jordan, an American of Korean descent, recently had lunch with a coworker, Angie, an American of African descent. To get to know Jordan better, Angie asked when he moved to America and learned English. Jordan responded, “My family has lived in America for generations and only speaks English.”
Which of the following can help eliminate Angie’s stereotype of Jordan?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, Angie is stereotyping Jordan based on his ethnic and racial background. She believes all Asians who reside in the United States migrated to the country and speak English as a second language. Angie’s stereotype is based on her experiences and filter.
A stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular group or class.
If Angie would like to continue to build a relationship with Jordan, she must first consider Jordan as an individual, not as a representative of a particular community. Jordan is an American of Korean descent who speaks English and does not speak or communicate in any other language. These are only just a few of the characteristics that define Jordan. These characteristics intersect with other areas of Jordan’s background, and no one is just like him.
Gerald, a gay employee, has worked with the organization for five years. He aspires to join the senior leadership team in the next three years and is under the impression that all senior leaders are straight. Though the company is LGBTQIA friendly and open, Gerald has decided to hide his sexuality and present himself as straight to fit the senior leadership role. No one is aware of Greg’s sexuality.
This scenario describes which of the following types of privilege?
Answer explanation:
In the scenario, Greg is a gay man hiding his sexuality from the senior leadership team to fit in. Though the company is LGBTQIA friendly, open, and accepting, Greg believes there is a privilege to being straight and wants to experience the same advantage, so he pretends to be straight. In doing so, Greg is passing. Passing is the ability to pretend to belong to another group. When someone can successfully pass, that is a privilege. The person passing also gains the same advantages as the privileged group.
Unlike some colleagues who must work overtime or pick up shifts for extra money, Carson’s husband is a nurse anesthetist, and Carson works part-time.
Carson has which of the following type of privilege?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, Carson’s coworkers must work extra hours for additional money. Though Carson works only part-time, he is advantaged because of his husband’s profession. This affords Carson privileges. In this case, Carson has both socioeconomic and class privileges.
According to classism.org, class privilege is “tangible or intangible unearned advantages of higher-class status, such as personal contacts with employers, good childhood health care, inherited money, speaking with the same dialect/accent as people with institutional power.”
Socioeconomic privilege benefits from economic factors and access to diverse forms of capital. Both class and socioeconomic privileges can lead to education privilege as well.
Methods used to identify intersectionality in an organization include which of the following?
Answer explanation:
Because many organizations focus on the internal dimensions of an individual, many miss the opportunity to learn more about their employees. There are several methods to identify intersectionality.
1. Listening to your employees is key. Creative methods can help make sharing details much more manageable. Remember, when employees are sharing, there must be psychological safety. Without this, employees may be reluctant to share.
2. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is an excellent source of quantitative data.
Under federal law, businesses with at least 100 employees, federal contractors with at least 50 employees, and a contract of $50,000 or more with the federal government must file the EEO-1 form each year. The EEOC uses information about the number of women, and minority companies employ to support civil rights enforcement and analyze employment patterns, according to the agency.
This data includes race/ethnicity, gender, and job categories.
In addition to EEO-1 data, use your pre-employment questionnaire data to analyze any potential intersections your current or potential employees may have.
For example, an organization may find out that 5% of their applicants are Black female veterans.
An organization is focused on engaging and attracting more women. In doing so, they have implemented programs such as paid maternity leave, onsite lactation rooms, and discounted childcare.
Which of the following best describe how the organization can ensure that the intersectionality of all women is considered?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, an organization wants to engage and attract more women to its organization. Implementing programs such as onsite lactation rooms, maternity leave, and discounted childcare are great ideas but do not speak to all women who are with or may join the organization.
The organization needs to think about intersectionality for women. For example, the scenario seems to suggest that the benefits and programs are just for cisgender women. Trans women may need additional help to meet their needs. Also, women with no children do not benefit from these initiatives.
To engage and attract more women, the organization needs to consider the needs of all women in various situations and scenarios.
An organization created affinity groups to increase a sense of belonging for employees. However, within a few months, the affinity groups started to become siloed.
Which of the following would best describe how the organization can use affinity groups to increase intersectionality and eliminate silos?
Answer explanation:
In this scenario, the organization wanted to create a sense of belonging for its employee. This is always done with great intentions but can quickly become siloed without the proper guidance.
Affinity groups do not interact and do not work together. Furthermore, affinity groups may have difficulty engaging members or recruiting new members. Because of this, organizations and affinity group leaders need to explore the intersections of their employees. Recruit members who may belong to different affinity groups versus focusing on one internal dimension.
An individual may not belong to a particular group but may be an ally. Being an ally is also a characteristic and is part of someone’s intersections. Therefore, limiting leaders from joining affinity groups will only serve to have the opposite desired impact. Remember, like employees at all levels, leaders have intersections and characteristics and belong to many groups.