In 1989, Kimberle Williams Crenshaw, a professor at Columbia and UCLA and a leading scholar of Critical Race Theory, coined the term Intersectionality to acknowledge an individual’s unique experiences with discrimination and oppression. Intersectionality can apply to a multitude of factors. The apparent forms are gender, sexuality, race, and class. We should also include weight, physical appearance, disabilities (visible and invisible), and religion. What used to be differences based on one factor has evolved into differences based on many.

We often look at someone and define them by our preconceptions. When a person attends a high-end university, we might assume that they are privileged. We jump to conclusions regardless of the truth. Many of us are quick to judge, and Intersectionality reminds us that we should take a step back. Everything we say or do has an effect. We must take care the best we can to avoid marginalizing people, whether it is intentional or not.