Understanding Intersectionality: Analyzing the Intersection of Social Inequalities

Explanation of Intersectionality

For those struggling with the concept of intersectionality, picture a standard traffic grid of roads.  In this assignment, you are discussing what is happening at a given intersection of roads, not about what has happened on each road leading up to the intersection.  If you were to say talk about wage gaps and the intersection of class and gender, the discussion should not be individually about class or gender, but about how both come together to create unique and challenging problems.

Part 1  - Discussion of the intersection

Discuss how the inequalities you chose intersect to lead to a specific social problem.  How do the chosen inequalities work together to create a challenging social problem that would not have otherwise existed in either of the original domains on their own?  You are ideally looking for an intersection that creates a unique social problem as a result of that particular intersection.  This should not be a social problem that is heavily weighted towards one of the inequalities (there will often be one more dominant inequality, but the assignment is about discussing how both work together).  Do not talk about a social problem through the lens of each inequality separately and then talk about how they intersect, but rather start the discussion at the intersection of the two inequalities that form a specific social problem. – Approximately 600-700 words.

Part 2 – Connection to Theory

Relate and discuss how the intersection of these inequalities is informed by one of the key theories discussed in the first lecture of the course.  In this section, explain the theory in your own words (briefly) and then argue why that particular theory is best suited to explain the intersection of your two chosen inequalities.  Make sure to draw tangible and clear connections between the theory and the social problem/intersection chosen, not simply the surface level of connecting to the domains in general.  – Approximately 300-400 words.

Marking Breakdown – General Idea (subject to minor changes)

Final mark will be out of 30.

5 marks – Style, writing, grammar, overall adherence to assignment details

· Areas for deduction

o assignment length (plus or minus about 100 words is within reason, but anything significantly beyond that would mean the assignment is too short or too long)

o APA issues – minor APA issues may be a deduction of a mark, significant APA issues may be 2-3 marks

o Significant spelling/grammar/writing issues – A singular mistake or a couple of minor mistakes are unlikely to be penalized.  If the paper has a multitude of errors or is difficult to read due to challenging writing, significant deductions may occur.

o Document title, title page, running header – If these assignment details are missed minor deductions will occur

15 marks – Discussion of the intersection of the two inequalities  

· Areas for deduction

o Did not focus on two inequalities

o Focused heavily on each of the inequalities individually, rather than on the intersection between them

o Did not support arguments and assertions using relevant, Canadian sources.  Paper cannot be based on anecdotal (your own opinion, perspective, or point of view) evidence, but rather should be based on academic supporting literature.

10 marks – Linking the intersection of the two inequalities to a foundational theory.

· Areas for deduction

o Did not pick a relevant theory

o Did not adequately describe/explain the theory chosen

o Did not sufficiently link the theory to the chosen intersection

4-5 double spaced pages (1000-1250 words), 12-point font, Standard 1 inch margins, APA style used for references both in text and reference list at the end, header (Name, Student Number, Page Number).

These responses should be in essay format with full sentences and paragraphs.  Use Canadian examples and references when possible.