Inclusivity - Social Justice

So we have been talking a lot about various theories of leadership, theories about groups and followership, and we have even been talking about being inclusive and incorporating another’s culture into a leadership style. What has not been talked about though is privilege and oppression relating to difference. Now, in contemporary American society, I feel there is very little explicit racism, sexism, classism, what have you (at least with those I associate with) but those “isms” still exist. And a lot of how advantage and disadvantage is doled out is not random, but by groups a person identifies or is identified with. Groups that regularly receive advantages are those who identify as white, male and right-handed. Groups that are commonly at a disadvantage are minorities, females, and left-handed people. So the problem rests in classifying people, or favoring certain groups to the exclusion of others. And identity isn’t necessarily self-chosen, but can instead be ascribed. Ascribed identity is how others see you or what society may impose on you (which may or may not be how one sees oneself). I have seen this concept of ascribed identity played out in my own life. For instance, I self-identify as female and an out-doors type. However, I’m also very good at school, but I wouldn’t exactly identify as a particularly studious person or a book-worm. But I had been identified by the people at my high school in that way, whether I agreed with it or not.

Sometimes, being ascribed an identity can place you into a social group membership. Social group membership is being a part of a group in society that receives or does not receive certain benefits; can be privileged or oppressed just by being a member and often cannot change to be or not to be a member. Going back to my book-worm identity crisis, I was given advantages, but also denied them. As an advantage, teachers trusted me far more than they trusted other students. So, I was given lee-way when it came to school work, and I was allowed to work under conditions other students were not. For instance, I was allowed to work on tests by myself, they didn’t need to be proctored. But at the same time, I was disadvantaged in some ways. For instance, everyone assumed that as a “bookworm” I spent every moment of my free time with my nose in a book, or that I was shy, or something. These assumptions about my personality made people act differently toward me, as in if there was a project, I would be automatically assigned the task that didn’t involve speaking in front of class, because as a bookworm, I was shy and therefore wouldn’t really want or be able to speak in class. On the surface they were looking out for me, but it is bothersome that the assumptions that they made about me (not ones I told them) would dictate what I could and could not do. By being labeled in such a way, it denied me certain options. That was a terrible example of privilege and oppression, but it illustrates to a certain degree that being a part of group can be both beneficial and harmful.