Another incredible woman that we would like to acknowledge this Women’s History month is Kimberle Crenshaw. She is a law professor, teaching at both Columbia Law School in New York and UCLA in Los Angeles. She is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the African American Policy Forum (AAPF), a think tank who engages in meaningful dialogue with advocates and policy makers to promote efforts to dismantle inequality in legislation and political systems. The AAPF is also responsible for launching the #SayHerName campaign in 2014 to “bring awareness to the often invisible names and stories of Black women and girls” who have been victims of police violence. Ms. Crenshaw has also been credited with being instrumental is the development of Critical Race Theory, which encourages people to consider “society and culture as they relate to categorizations of race, law, and power” and arguing that equality in race and gender are possible. She is also credited with coining the term “intersectionality,” which invites people to try to understand “how aspects of a person’s identity come together to create different modes of discrimination and privilege” (ie. gender, sex, race, class, sexuality, religion, disability, or physical appearance). This term has been extremely influential in the study, evaluation and understanding of social and political policies in recent years.
Ms. Crenshaw has been acknowledged by a number of publications for her efforts, influence and advocacy for the proper treatment of women in the African American community. She is active on social media platforms, and hosts a podcast entitled Intersectionality Matters, as she works to continue the incredibly important conversations about discrimination/privilege and dignity for women.
Though men play an important role in ending gender-based violence, acknowledging the contributions of incredible women in this effort is important to recognize and appreciate. Thank-you Kimberle Crenshaw for all of your efforts to address oppression in all its forms.
You can take your #firststepfirstchange towards ending gender-based violence by Become a Steel City Ally