We are all intersectional
The concept of positionality had me thinking:
As a white privileged person, of Christian faith, I have been brought up to respect others and be charitable to the less fortunate. They are the values from my upbringing that I draw on when considering how to be inclusive. It may sound jarring, as faith is often judging, but I have certainly grown up in a tollerant (if a little uncomfortable) household, when it comes to others’ predicaments or lifestyle choices.
Apart from the fact that I have abandoned my faith (I am now agnostic), as a grown up (almost old!) I look at myself under a different light: I am a woman, I am 50, I am an immigrant (I moved from Italy to the UK at 24), I am neuro-divergent (ADHD and Dyslexia) and have mental health grumbles. I have my own predicaments that I could lament, but still feel privileged and, at the same time, I don’t. To me it feels like a matter of attitude: you can either be grateful for the blessings you have received and make the most of them, or you can settle for the lot you’ve been given.
We are all intersectional. We can all think of a few attributes that overlap and make our lives less than perfect – as in what we perceive as perfect because we are influenced by society, and truly what makes a difference, is the way these characteristics affect us in society.
If we lived in a equal world, being a POC wouldn’t be any different than being white. Just like being neuro-divergent wouldn’t be any different than being neuro-typical, etc. We all have something abut us, that makes us different from others, but that doesn’t mean less than or wrong. But we live in a society that values certain characteristics over others and turns differences into toxic disparity.
To me incusivity means valueing differences. Not being blind to them.
One of our challenges as tutors is to empowere BAME students to achieve their best, as they often come from a life that has tought them they can’t, or that their best isn’t good enough. I have BAME students who expect an easy ride because of that, and students who are genuinely interested in breaking the barriers that have been set for them.
- Paralimpic video – do we only recognise the value of difference when they excel?