Topics in Gender and Sexuality Studies (390-0-20)
Topic
Key Words in GSS: Intersectionality
Instructors
Amy Partridge
847.491.5872
Meeting Info
Kresge Centennial Hall 2-343: Mon, Wed 3:30PM - 4:50PM
Overview of class
What does it mean to describe race, gender, sexuality and class as "intersecting" identities or categories? What new forms of knowledge and ways of knowing, political tools and ways of doing politics does this insight make possible? And how can we use these to make sense of and respond to the urgencies of the present moment? In this seminar we will focus on "intersectionality" as a mode of feminist critical inquiry and activist practice (or "critical praxis") forged by Black feminists. As Patricia Hill Collins explains, "The term intersectionality references the critical insight that race, class, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, nation, ability, and age operate not as unitary, mutually exclusive entities, but as reciprocally constructing phenomena that in turn shape complex social inequalities." Together we will read foundational texts by Collins and other Black feminist scholars and activists to understand and explore this critical insight and the coalition politics that an intersectional analysis both demands and makes possible. We will pair this work with collective research into recent and ongoing projects that engage this form of feminist "critical praxis" to respond to the complex social inequalities exposed and exacerbated in and by this political moment, such as the undocuqueer movement, #BlackLivesMatter, the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, the SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, and the Poor People's Campaign.
Learning Objectives
1) Learn foundational concept ("intersectionality") & practice 'putting it to use' as an analytic
2) Analysis of recent and ongoing social movements and cultural texts
3) Critical thinking skills
Teaching Method
seminar discussion, case studies
Evaluation Method
Attendance, 3 short papers, final paper
Class Materials (Required)
in Canvas