03.19 // Intros, Identity and Intersectionality

We introduced the course and worked on two exercises related to different aspects of what constitutes our identities. The first exercise was a modified version of the privilege walk touching on various aspects of intersectionality (a concept first introduced by scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw in the late 1980’s), such as class, race, faith, age, gender, etc. We discussed how these different aspects of our identity are interrelated but also contextually and situationally based, sparking critical conversations about the notions of identity and the exercise itself.

Moreover, we continued to further explore the different aspects of identity through the analysis of the intersectionality matrix worksheet and deepen our discussion on how perceived identities by others differ from what we think our personal identities are. Additionally, we talked about how some aspects of what constitute our identities are seen as “fixed” while others might change overtime, which took into a reflection on how norms change and evolve across time. We finalized our discussion by highlighting the importance of recognizing and accepting difference as a crucial component to the development of our careers as designers and design researchers.

The session ended by having an overview of the syllabus, the modules we’ll be covering, course calendar, and assignments.