Intersectionality and shaping meaning about ourselves

Intersectionality is complex. It’s not just about the interaction between factors of identity such as gender or race and its contribution to social inequality, but also the intricacies that exist within individual factors of identity (Crenshaw 2013). Take race, the advantage of an intercultural world along with the expansion of global technology means that ethnicity is not confined or easily identifiable leaving the construction of identity to the self.

As a result of the Pearling influence in the Northwest of Western Australia I have the privilege of belonging to many racial identities including Malay, Islander, Scottish and Indigenous heritage. Culturally within my family and community I strongly identify with my Malay and Indigenous heritage. I am the youngest child of thirteen siblings which means that essentially everyone else is my senior and out of respect for that seniority my role is to do what I am told. It’s important to note that this is not a question of power imbalance or inequality; it is simply my role within my own family and community.

There is a long-standing relationship between communication, media, and discourses of identity. Theorists argue that communication and media are responsible for shaping narratives around identity, meaning that membership to a social identity comes with a predetermined status or position in society based on public perception (Sanders and Banjo 2013). The political and poor social standing of Indigenous people in Australia is etched into our social fabric and negative stereotypes are largely reinforced by the lack of informed coverage in the media (Korff 2022). Sanders and Banjo (2013) argue that the media provides an opportunity to discuss matters of intersectionality as the social status or class of a group’s identity in society is made clear in the way they are reflected in the mass media.

In the workplace my mixed physical features allow me to pick and choose my identity which based on the audience’s perception can either authenticate or invalidate my belonging to that identity. Georgiou (2013) states that the media “manage spaces of belonging within and across physical boundaries”. I have at times hid my Indigenous identity at the sacrifice of belonging for fear of the negative perceptions often held about Indigenous Australians.

The negative framing has also infiltrated government policy and agenda leading to deficit-based programs such as income management which see many Indigenous people as the recipients and targets of injustice with little input from themselves focused on addressing disadvantage (Maddison, 2012). Indigenous people sit on the periphery with the current social structures excluding them from participating and seeing even less positive representation of themselves more broadly (Ní Bhroin et al. 2021). Ní Bhroin and co-authors (2021) advocate for the media as vehicle for increasing Indigenous political participation with a caveat that it also has the ability to reinforce existing power structures.

On the chance that I reveal my Indigenous identity I am often labeled as the exception to the rule, immediately removing my membership from my identity. Should my membership be validated and accepted then often I am referred to as the poster child for that chosen identity meaning that I am used as an example of and can speak for that identity group. This is in direct conflict to my role within my family and community and leads to challenges about representation and belonging. This is also followed up with the assumption that any personal or professional achievement could have only been possible due to some kind of positive discrimination to fill quotas or as a result of receiving financial benefit.

So, before I walk in the door of my workplace, I need to decide whether I will sacrifice my belonging by both exposing or hiding my identity or whether to act in the interest of self-preservation. This suggests that there is choice about adopting a social identity. In reality, there is no separation of culture and your identity, denial would see you be labeled as the other. This is supported by evidence that states that your identity is so intrinsically linked with social and emotional wellbeing with no separation from family and community for Indigenous Australians that any disruption would be detrimental (Dudgeoun et al. 2017).

This assault on your identity is not limited to those outside your membership group. The concept of lateral violence is a familiar term within colonised groups of people. Stemming from oppression the negative views reinforced from the oppressor became internalised over generations leading to a negative view of self and others resulting in violence directed at each other (Whyman et al. 2022). This violence is frequently presented by the questioning of one’s identity or authenticity to the membership group. In the workplace this can be manifested by singling out individuals and making them feel psychologically unsafe through the use of derogatory or negative language. It can also look like ignoring the existence of someone’s membership to an identity group.

This lateral violence is not confined to the workplace. My standing in my family and community means that it is not my place to talk on behalf of or about potentially contentious issues. Any behaviour that is seen to disrupt the balance of harmony leads to shaming or threats to your membership by using terms like coconut meaning you are black on the outside and white on the inside. This implies that you are trying to be like the coloniser. Behaviour that can lead to shaming or questioning of identity can be anything from receiving an accolade to wanting to engage with education. As a person who has sought out opportunities for education, I have been called a coconut many times or implied that I think I am better than others because I have received a Western education. My own personal challenge in this is being able to engage in work that excites me whilst working hard to maintain my family and community connections. I have seen many others in my position disengage from the workplace for fear of losing their connection to their identity. This demonstrates some of the complexities within just one factor of identity and its impact in the workplace without touching on the intersecting challenges that my age or gender bring to a male dominated industry.

This is the challenge that intersectionality brings. It’s not enough to say that we support intersectionality because as a bystander we understand the intersection of race and gender can lead to social inequality. We need to actively work to break down systems and structures that create non diverse workplaces and institutions that allow inequality to occur.