Intersectionality

Teaching at the Intersection: Honor and Teach About Your Students Multiple Identities by Monita K. Bell (2016)

Intersectionality refers to the 'social, economic, and political ways in which identity-based systems of oppression and privilege connect, over-lap and influence one another'.

As I read this definition, I immediately thought about not falling prey to the single story of any one of my students.   Christina Torres goes on to state, " Everything in classroom is dictated by me. Everyday, kids enter our class, there is an opportunity for them to be empowered or oppressed".  As a kindergarten teacher, I truly have the power to squash the natural enthusiasm that children bring to the classroom.  Working in an urban district, with a diverse population, in which many families are at or below the poverty line, I must make a conscious effort to get to know my students beyond first impressions.  Many of my students from last year had the only two meals they would have each day at school.  If a child came to school late, there was a better than 90% chance that he or she would not have had breakfast.  Being hungry is a great detraction from being able to focus on the academics of learning.  

Torres goes on to state, "When I don't consider intersectionality and what they might need, I run the risk of oppressing my kids".  If I fall prey to the single story of any one of my students, I personally run the risk of not seeing why  a student is struggling.  When I was a child, I was fortunate enough to come from a home where my brothers and I had food on the table for breakfast. We never needed to worry about where or when our next meal was going to be.  I could focus on school and not worry about the clothes on my back or if my parents were going to take care of me.  Many of the children in my district not only live in poverty, many are newcomers; the majority are children of color. 

Finally, Torres goes on to say, "When we stop seeing our kids as whole people-as whole, nuanced people with context to gender and race and class-we stop seeing them as real people". WOW! What an eye-opening statement! Our students come with stories, with real life circumstances that children who are privileged seemingly never have to worry about!  The child of color and the white child, everything being equal except the race of the child, the child of color is already oppressed, simply because of the color of his/her skin.  If, as an educator, I fail to recognize this and not do everything I can to be an ally, then I am fully complicit in allowing racism to be a part of my classroom. 

The word ally is defined as, "to fight for the rights of a marginalized group that you are not a part of".  This is from the video, 5 Tips for Being a Good Ally.
The five tips as discussed in the video are: 
-Know your privilige
-Speak up, not over
-Apologize when you make a mistake
-Do your homework
-Ally is a verb; do the work

As an early childhood educator, I feel that not only is it my job to teach academics, it is more important to model and teach compassion, understanding, tolerance, and kindness.  It is not okay in my classroom to ridicule a child who makes mistakes in work and it is not okay to engage in racial, religious, or homophobic slurs.  By acknowledging that there are many overlapping layers to my students, I am able to recognize that academic ability and behavior are influenced by factors that include race, gender, and class.  How race, gender, and class affect each of my students, is the first step in seeing each as whole, real people...even at five years old!
https://www.care2.com/causes/what-is-intersectionality-and-why-is-it-important.html