Intersectionality is a powerful analytic tool that can be used to better understand the role that oppression plays in society and how it shapes the way people affected by multiple systems of oppression interact with society. Recently, the unit of analysis for intersectionality has started to shift from intersecting systems of oppression to overlapping identities, which has changed intersectionality from being a tool used to analyze systemic oppression to individual’s experiences. This work explores the implications this shift has on academic research and the practice of several disciplines. Using a lens of epistemic injustice through theories of hermeneutical bastardization (Drury, 2024), linguistic hijacking (Anderson, 2020), testimonial injustice (Fraser, 2007; Medina, 2013), and willful hermeneutical ignorance (Pohlhaus, 2012) with theories of silencing provided by Langton (1993) and Dotson (2011) the impacts of operationalizing and reifying a shifted version of intersectionality will be explored.
