Intersectionality As Experienced By Giovani Social Sciences

Intersectionality Experiences Along Race, Gender and Class
Name:
Course:
Date:
Intersectionality Experiences Along Race, Gender and Class
When race, gender and class are discussed in sociology, they mainly evaluated on a singularity point of view. However, it is important to understand and more importantly appreciate the complexity that impacts everyday life. This mostly is the case when referring to how complex life today has become, with quite a number of aspects affecting how every other person interacts with their environment. This is to mean that it is very rare that one aspects such as race is going to impact one’s life as a single entity. The element of perceptions that one has along with what the society holds are tied to the body. For the longest time the society is obsessed with what one’s body represents. There are social classes that are associated with elements such as the skin color, one’s gender and race. As a young Italian man the intersectionality of race, gender and class are crucial elements that are shaped by the body. As such it is crucial to understand how the body shapes certain aspects such as the gender, race and the class in the society that impact Italians in a society that dominantly white.[University of California Center for New Racial Studies, "Race/Gender/Class “Intersectionality”", Uccnrs.Ucsb.Edu, last modified 2017, accessed May 2, 2017, /intersectionality.]
‘Intersectionality theorists argue that our identities based on race, gender, class, and sexuality accompany us in every social interaction [7]. The principle of "simultaneity" maintains that all of the axes and their corresponding identities should be incorporated into social analyses. "Race, class and gender may all structure a situation but may not be equally visible and/or important in people's self-definitions... This recognition that one category may have salience over another for a given time and place does not minimize the theoretical importance of assuming that race, class and gender as categories of analysis structure all relationships" [7:560-1].’[Gerry Veenstra, "Race, Gender, Class, And Sexual Orientation: Intersecting Axes Of Inequality And Self-Rated Health In Canada", International Journal for Equity in Health 10, no. 1 (2011): 3.]
For persons that have a white skin color their body is on a platform leveled towards the highest level of social classes. For the longest time the society has been biased along the lines of the skin color. This is relative to the fact that there have been some significant white supremacy notions in the society. The white skin color is associated with higher social class. this is to mean that persons that are white are treated as first class citizens while the rest of the skin colors are relegated to lower class forms. As an Italian, educated middle class and heterosexual, there are aspects that in reference to my body, point to being of a lower-class form. However, it is crucial to note that, this means that I am a complex being and cannot be described from a single perspective. There are quite a number of aspects that bring out intersectionality with some subtle impacts such as, religion, education, citizenship, gender, class, race and in some of the cases even the geographical location. All these are factors that interact at one or the other and as thus describe the complexity of intersectionality.[Heidi Gottfried, Reflections On Intersectionality: Gender, Class, Race And Nation, ebook, 1st ed., 2008, accessed May 2, 2017, /url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwi42vO_v9HTAhXFEVAKHeAXDfAQFggpMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2F%2Figs%2FIGS_publication%2Fjournal%2F11%2Fjenda_2_heidi.pdf&usg=AFQjCNGe0P5Wcs6-seHZdlBuxFRS4Xsq2g&sig2=7DbXALcaMNMjjjrx8SRHPQ.]
It is however important that the complexity is broken down to better appreciate the impact of the body. One of the subtle aspects that reflective of the way that the body affects the way one interacts with their environment is race. Different races in the society are accorded different social status. In most of the cases the whites are considered to be superior in terms of race. this means that the rest of the races are mostly considered inferior. As an Italian from an Italian Caucasian and an Indian mother this is a quite a complex aspect. More importantly, I have the skin that is more relatable to Indians than it is to the Italians. The first complexity is associated with the issue of identity. It is very difficult when it comes to identifying my roots. I have to decide whether I want to be considered as an Italian or as an Indian. As such, when it comes to introducing myself, there is always a dilemma as to which parent I should identify with. This is complicated by the fact that, these are two cultures and races that completely different. As such, each and every race which is part of my gene is associated with a complex set of traditions that the people in the particular race identify with. If I choose to be an Indian there are those cultural aspects that are considered to be subtle to the culture in question. As such anyone that identifies as an Indian, they have to behave and act in a certain way. This is with reference to aspects such as religious believes and cultural practices among many others. This is the same case when it comes to identifying with the Italian side of my family. There are those aspects that I have to identify with to be considered Italian. The complexity of the two races as it is all combine to bring to the surface the impact that being a half cast of the two has on my life and the way that I interact with the rest of the society. This is not simply significant with reference with the way that I interact with the surrounding from my stand point. It is also significant when it comes to how others in the society are able to interact with me. They have to decide if they are going to choose my Italian roots or my Indian, from which they can identify with.[University of California Center for New Racial Studies, "Race/Gender/Class “Intersectionality”", Uccnrs.Ucsb.Edu, last modified 2017, accessed May 2, 2017, /intersectionality.]
There is also the fact that, I could choose to take on a different approach and identify as an independent and unique character. This is to mean that, I can take the two races and forge my own identity. I do not have to be tied to either one. However, while I may take this stand, the society will always...