CR#5 On Oppression

What? How do Iris Marion Young and Ada Isasi-Diaz define and explain the concept of Oppression? What does Diaz mean when she identifies herself as “oppressed and impoverished”?

Iris Marion Young sees oppression to be the “injustice in our society”, however many people, especially those who don’t know they are oppressed, cannot see how they are underserved in their communities (Young). Oppression has been a structural issue that has existed throughout history. Minorities use this word to describe their place in society. Dominants use this word to describe societies that are different from their own (Young). They interpret oppression differently, believing that their society is so great that the dominant way of life is the way a society is supposed to be functioning. Young states that the five faces of oppression are exploitation, marginalization, powerlessness, cultural imperialism, and violence. Much of oppression has to do with a power imbalance where the oppressed population does not have access to the same rights or opportunities as their oppressors or dominant identity counterparts. Isasi-Diaz sees the “oppressed and the impoverished” as people who realize they are living in oppression and “struggle for their liberation, taking into consideration their communities (Isasi-Diaz). This is a rather different take on the concept of oppression. Though Isasi-Diaz’s point makes sense, it is possible for oppression to exist even if people do not realize it, however the idea would have never existed in the first place if no one questioned the gap between the oppressed and the oppressors.

So What? What is the significance of observing and articulating of the day-to-day, what Diaz calls lo cotidiano experiences? Share a moment or seemingly mundane pattern that has larger implications of the larger structure of things. (Use textual evidence and cite from the Theater of the Oppressed workshop or videos to make connection to your personal and community experiences)

Observing the everyday experiences are important observations that reflect the values and behaviors of the present society. For people of a certain skin color or of a different religion, their lives today are completely different of that 100 years ago. There are many underlying meanings when it comes to people’s reactions or behaviors that may play into systemic issues affecting our nation today. For example, refusing to sell wedding cakes to a homosexual couple has homophobic underlying meanings or police officers pulling over African-American men for ‘suspicious’ behavior has racist intentions. These patterns of inhibiting on people’s privacy and not offering the same opportunities to serve both individuals and communities of subordinate identities is oppression. It all stems from historical discrimination and outdated ‘moral’ values. It also stems from the government itself. “All of them (the forms of oppression) are interconnected, creating institutions, organizations, laws, and customs that reinforce one another and create structural oppression” (Isasi-Diaz). All forms of oppression go hand-in-hand and it has a lot to do with power. Humans have this natural hunger for power and that may come in the form of money, political positions, or oppressing others so that they can elevate themselves. If we lean away from whites being oppressors, we start seeing that even minorities or subordinate groups have the ability to oppress others as well. In the end, they want power too.

Now What? What are 2–3 ways you could start to observe lo cotidiano experiences in the lives of people you work with in the community? Cite ideas from readings, and consider the particular context of your community partner’s program. Be concrete and specific when you list and explain the strategies — more than just “paying more attention.”

One of the ways that we are currently observing lo cotidiano, or day-to-day experiences, in the lives of the Canal community is taking field notes and entering our experiences and observations onto GivePulse. Actively looking for new things to write about is a difficult task, especially when the only shift available that would fit in with my class schedule was to set up for the Health Hubs food distribution. However, there are many things that I can start to notice by helping set up like where the food comes from and meet the community members who come first in line every Wednesday. By constantly looking for something new to add to my GivePulse submission, I find myself exploring the small details that I would have never noticed before. I found myself engaging with other volunteers and understanding why Health Hub does this or that by asking questions. Another way to start observing my community more closely is to learn a new language, or perhaps pick up a few phrases here and there in order to better communicate with the population. Calderon’s teacher that he mentions in his piece “Perspective-Taking as a Tool for Building Democratic Societies” had taught him English while he taught her Spanish. I feel like refreshing my Spanish, though it is merely high school level, would be a great way to make more additions to my observations. By understanding even the slightest of things, I may be able to pick up on a few more things that I wouldn’t have been able to before.