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Essay / Racial and Gender Identity and Their Negative Impacts on Minorities
There are many different aspects of identity and they have varying impacts on our lived experiences. Often, society judges us simply by our appearance. It is rare that we are judged on our character when we are first introduced to a person. It is not our intention to judge someone just at first glance, it is a natural thing, we do it simply because we can. Our identity does not only come from our environmental surroundings and the way we were raised since childhood. It's how we choose to distinguish ourselves from others. We learn from our parents, teachers, and others as we grow up, but the decision is entirely up to us how we choose to identify ourselves. Two aspects assigned to identities that interconnect are race and gender. Both of these aspects of identity tend to impact minorities negatively. However, race and gender identity have also been used to defend white supremacy and patriarchy. In our society, being a woman indicates that you are inferior to your male counterpart. Being a black woman makes you inferior not only to men but also to white women, literally at the bottom of the totem pole. Malcolm X once said, “The most despised woman in America is the black woman.” The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected woman in America is the black woman” (Who Taught You to Hate Yourself?). Black women are not treated simply because of our gender and race, things that were not chosen for us but given to us at birth. There is absolutely no way to change who we are, so instead of allowing ourselves to be treated like the ultimate minority, we can stand up for ourselves. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay First and foremost, gender stereotypes make people lose their personal identity. In the media, men are usually the breadwinners and they are the ones who provide for their families, while women are forced to take care of the house and take care of the children. These stereotypes mimic what women are supposed to do, making us appear weak. While women of color are looked down upon by their female counterparts. In the article “Women of Color and Feminism: A History Lesson and a Way Forward” by Anthea Butler, she talks about the “tension between white feminists and feminists of color.” Although feminists want essentially the same things, white feminists struggle to “embrace, celebrate, and associate with their sisters of color” (Butler). She believes that racism threatens feminism. She wants to shed light on the situation and hopefully put race aside so that the feminist movement has a better future. Butler wants all women to move in a positive direction, color should not play a role in this movement. Ultimately, all feminists want the same thing, so they should join forces and ideas for the advancement of women, regardless of the color of their skin. The entire feminist movement is based on the idea that women and men are equal and that we should be treated as such. Butler's argument should show that white feminists feel better than WOC. What prompted her to speak out on the topic was the fact that in a PowerPoint at a feminist conference, there was only one woman of color representing WOC in the feminist movement. Thatmade her angry because since the beginning of the feminist movement, she says, “Women of color have never had the luxury of just focusing on women's issues. » They always had to take their race into account when dealing with issues. The feminist movement began with women wanting to have the right to vote and be able to work instead of being stuck at home taking care of the house and raising the children. I personally don't identify as a feminist, I agree with some of their ideas and believe that men and women should be considered equal, but nothing else. The way I present myself, I could be considered a feminist because I am not easily intimidated by men and I have no problem speaking out about something that I consider unfair to a group of people. I'm not sure what it is about the movement that I don't want to be a part of, but it just doesn't intrigue me. I don't see the movement as being negative, but due to their lack of representation for WOC, it seems like we have no connection to the program itself. Mainly, since men are seen as superior to women, we tend to be okay with that and stay silent. In an essay called Speaking While Female by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant, the two talk about "two young female writers who were always silent in story meetings" for a hit television series called The Shield. When asked why they remained silent during meetings, they told Grant to watch what happened when they tried to present their ideas during meetings. The result was that "almost every time they began to speak, they were shot down or interrupted before finishing their speech." When someone had a good idea, a writer would jump in and put it into practice before they could finish the thought. (Sandberg and Grant). Constantly dismissed, interrupted, and in some cases completely ignored, the two women sat down and kept their ideas for the series in mind. This happens all the time in our society, women walk a “tightrope” around men so as not to appear “aggressive”. This is very controversial because who knows what kind of great ideas or inventions could have been born without the intimidation of men. There are endless different ideas the two women could have had to make the show much better than it was, but due to their lack of confidence when surrounded by men, they stayed and watched the series unfold without their ideas. identity is intersectional. In our society, being a woman automatically makes you inferior to your male counterparts. To be a black woman is to be below the standards of a white woman. Being a black woman is considered the lowest of minorities. With this in mind, society never lets us forget that as black women, we should feel inferior to everyone else. For my part, I never believed this impression. I am a human being; my gender and race should have nothing to do with how I am treated. If I feel like I'm being treated less than I should be, I take matters into my own hands. I don't need others to defend me, I believe that I am divine feminine energy and absolutely nothing will stand in my way and make me feel unworthy of how I should be treated. A memory that makes me cringe when I think it's of my best friend. She had been with her boyfriend for about two years. I have the impression that she was sheltered from all the discreet racist and sexist comments he made towards her and sometimes.