Intersections of Oppression

I am white, have a college education, a full-time job that pays the bills. I am heterosexual, cisgendered, and I am a woman who feels her highest calling is to be a mother. I am a Christian.

What’s more, my parents and grandparents went to college. While they worked hard, my ancestors immigrated to the United States at a time when it was easy and relatively welcoming.

I never have to worry about where my next meal is coming from, I have a home that is quite nice, my children have their own warm beds to sleep in.

Truly, I am a woman who is blessed and very privileged.

However, as a woman I can expect to earn significantly less than my male counterparts for equal work over my lifetime. This is due to a wide range of social and socioeconomic circumstances, many of which are difficult to quantify.

As a woman, my thoughts and opinions are often shoved to the sidelines. My presence is considered to be obtrusive.

Despite strides in gender parity at home and in the office, I can still expect to come home and do “the second shift.”

And finally, I am a survivor of partner violence.

Truly, I am also a woman who is marginalized.

Here in this space, what academics call the intersection of oppression, I exist. I am an ally and one that needs allies.

I can speak out against oppression and fight against tyranny, but I need people to speak on my behalf as well.

In my heart of hearts, I yearn for peace. Each Christmas season I sing with all my heart “Peace on earth, goodwill toward men.”

When I express my longing for peace, those groups that I strive to be an ally for say that peace is a silencing tactic. I want to scream, “I am one of you! The marginalized!” And while I know it’s true, I know there are people who are more marginalized than I. There are those who do not have my skin, my education, who are housing insecure or homeless.

One word cannot express the conflict that I feel. I long for the peace that will come from tenaciously working together to ensure that all our views are consistently represented. I want those who are my allies to work toward this kind of lasting peace, as I am working toward this type of peace for those I am allied with.