Monday's Opening Thought: September 6, 2021

This week’s opening thought: you can have intersectional identities or struggle with the weights of intersectionality and still be an oppressor.

Let me say that again, just in case anyone thinks they read that wrong.

You can have intersectional identities or struggle with the weights of intersectionality and still be an oppressor.

You can be a gay white male and subscribe to classist ideologies while reaping the benefits of white supremacy and racism.

You can be a Black affluent lesbian and be openly anti-Asian.

You can be a straight Korean cis male and be openly anti-Black.

You can be a white woman who identifies as a feminist who does not practice intersectional feminism.

You can be a non-binary Indigenous person and be an ableist.

You can be a Black cis-hetero male and be loudly homophobic and transphobic.

You can be a Jewish man and be openly xenophobic.

You can be a Chinese trans woman with a disability and be anti-Semitic.

Just because you are facing oppression due to your identities being linked to one or more oppressive states does not mean that you can’t be an oppressor too and contribute to the oppressive states of others. Your personal oppressions do not exempt you from levying out oppression and hate.