Oppression is a mixture of all the things we discussed previously. Oppression is “the combination of prejudice that discriminates against some groups (often called “target groups”) and benefit other groups (often called “dominate groups) (Vanderbilt University). There are many examples of oppression, such as racism, sexism, and classism. These systems enable dominant groups to exert control over target groups by limiting their rights, freedom, and access to basic resources such as health care, education, employment, and housing” (Vanderbilt University).
Levels of Oppression
There are four levels of oppression: personal (values, beliefs, feelings), interpersonal (actions, behaviours, language), institutional (rules, policies, procedures), and cultural (beauty, truth, right). “Examples of these systems are racism, sexism, heterosexism, ableism, classism, ageism, and anti-Semitism” (Vanderbilt University).
Personal Level
Oppression at the personal level “is associated with our values, beliefs and feelings about individuals different from us and ourselves” (Pizaña). As we grow up, we are taught, directly and indirectly what our “value” is in the world (Pizaña). For those who are in dominant groups (ex. a dominant racial group, which in Canada is white people), are also fed “subtle and not so subtle messages of superiority” that make them believe that they are somehow above certain groups of people (Pizaña). And while those in the dominant groups may never outwardly express their beliefs, their prejudice still seeps into their interactions with those people they believe are under them.
Examples
- Racism
- Believing that one racial group is smarter than another
- Assuming that one race of people are thieves or unclean.
- Gender Binary/Transphobia
- Believing that boys shouldn’t cry and that girls shouldn’t get dirty
- Capitalism
- “An individual believing that poor and low income people don’t want to eat healthy” (Solar Community Housing Association).
Interpersonal Level
The word “interpersonal” means “relating to relationships or communication between people” (Oxford Dictionaries). Oppression at the interpersonal level focuses on “our actions, behavior and language as we interact with individuals different from us” (Pizaña).
Examples:
- Racism
- Someone walking across the street when they see Black man coming towards them.
- Someone getting defensive and taking it personally when a racialized person calls out a racist act as it is happening.
- Racist jokes, the use of racial slurs, harassment, stereotyping.
- Gender Binary/Transphobia
- “Individual refusing to call a trans or genderqueer person by the pronoun they have said they use” (Solar Community Housing Association).
- Refusing to let a boy play with a doll, or letting a girl play with a toy truck.
- Capitalism
- Attempting to convince a poor person that they are poor because they chose to be and choose not to take care of themselves.
Institutional Level
Oppression at the institutional level “includes the rules, policies, procedures and practices, which are written and unwritten, within an institution that define who…can fully participate or those that may be excluded” from “full participation” (Pizaña).
Examples
- Racism
- A company refusing to hire someone because of their hairstyle (ex. afro, dreadlocks) or religious clothing (ex., turban, scarf).
- Indigenous adults accounted for 29% of inmates in federal custody even though they only represent 4.5% of the Canadian adult population (Statistics Canada).
- Ableism
- “People with disabilities have higher rates of unemployment, poverty, and homelessness” (Solar Community Housing Association).
- Gender Binary/Transphobia
- “You need a diagnosis (need to be pathologized) in order to receive trans health care” (Solar Community Housing Association).
Cultural Level
Oppression at the cultural level is “how we define what is right, normal, the truth or beautiful” (Pizaña). Media and politics have a way of presenting certain beliefs, like the belief that lighter-skinned people are more beautiful, as the truth. “These cultural messages and norms can be direct and indirect and serve to maintain power and privilege for those in dominant groups” (Pizaña).
Examples
- Racism
- “The cultural narrative that white folks are safer, less violent, and better citizens (prominently communicated through main stream media)” (Solar Community Housing Association).
- “Cultural and historical narratives that teach us to associate white European cultures with ‘civilization’…and people of color cultures with ‘primitive’” (Solar Community Housing Association).
- Ableism
- “Cultural stories that associate disability with sad, scary, undesirable” (Solar Community Housing Association).
- Patriarchy/Sexism
- “Cultural stories that portray men as more competent, “natural” leaders, emotionally stunted, invulnerable, easy to anger, and more deserving of power” (Solar Community Housing Association).
Targets of Oppression
“Targets of oppression are members of social identity groups that are” denied the right to vote, “exploited, and victimized…by agents of oppression (the dominant social groups) and the agent’s systems or institutions” (Vanderbilt University). “Targets of oppression are subject to…having their choices and movements restricted and…are seen and treated as…replaceable, without an individual identity apart from their group” (Vanderbilt University). Unlike agents of oppression, targets of oppression do not get the benefits in life because of their social group.
Examples (Vanderbilt University)
- Racialized groups like Black and Indigenous people are more likely to be incarcerated.
- Men tend to get a higher pay than women.
- There is higher chance that a person using a wheelchair will have less chance of getting a job than an able-bodied person.
Agents of Oppression
“Agents of oppression are members of the dominant social groups” that are privileged and harbour the unfair advantages over people who are targets of oppression (Vanderbilt University). They may or may not be aware that they are doing so.
Examples:
- A white person getting to go through customs without having to worry about being racially profiled and stopped at the boarder because of their race.
- An able-bodied person going to a store without having to wonder if it is wheelchair accessible.
Internalized Oppression
Is the process in which “people in the target group make oppression…personal” by believing the “lies, prejudices, and stereotypes” to be the truth (Vanderbilt University). When oppression becomes internalized, those people’s “attitudes, behaviors, speech, and self-confidence” being “to reflect the stereotypes” set by the dominant group (Vanderbilt University).
Effects of Internalized racism (Vanderbilt University):
- Low self-esteem
- Self-doubt
- Self-loathing
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