Entangled Inequalities as Intersectionalities: Towards an Epistemic Sensibilization

Abstract

This paper examines the ways in which the concept discussed under the term “intersectionality” can provide a productive framing for entangled inequalities, as both concepts have a lot in common. The paper argues that an intersectional sensibilization to conceptualizations of inequalities helps capture inequalities in their entangled historical, micro and macro level dimensions and avoid one-dimensional reductions. However, this concept which is itself deeply Euro- and U.S.-centric must be improved for use in transnational contexts and for other locations of knowledge production. As such, an intersectional epistemic sensibilization can prove useful for contextualizing and situating multiple knowledges and modes of knowledge production and provide a frame for an implicit critique of hegemony. This conceptual work is a necessary step towards developing ways to overcome asymmetrical social power structures as expressed in unequal circulations of knowledge.