Why intersectionality and data collection are key to inclusion
A statement I’ve heard from too many groups at the beginning of their equity, diversity, and inclusion journey:
“We’re just starting with women for now.”
This often comes with an implication of “we’ll get to other identities later,” and a hint of “this seems like the easiest and least work-intensive path.” It’s followed by the addition of a few white, cisgender, heterosexual, non-disabled women on boards and panels, analysis of pay inequity that groups all women together, and a one-time / one-size-fits-all sexual harassment training session. These actions won’t lead to the large-scale change that is needed to create fully inclusive spaces. To bring about this change, we’ll need to consider everyone and all our multiple, intersecting identities.
In this article, you’ll explore:
How initiatives focusing only on a single identity can lead to disproportionate benefits among individuals in that group.
The value of prioritizing action areas identified through data collection, and considering everyone in those actions.
The downfalls of “just starting with” one group
Let’s continue with the example of “just starting with women for now.” Inequity, underrepresentation, harassment, and discrimination against women are highly prevalent. Action towards equity (e.g., in pay and promotion), representation, harassment-free spaces, and belonging for women is an integral component of any inclusion strategy. But if that’s the only consideration, issues arise due to:
Exclusion of trans and non-binary folks who experience marginalization related to gender identity and expression that is different from the experiences of cisgender women.
Lack of action against racism, ableism, ageism, heteronormativity, religious intolerance, and additional forms of inequity, discrimination, and exclusion. Individuals of all genders can experience these forms of marginalization.
Failure to consider intersectionality and multiple identities. The experiences of a woman who identifies as white, cisgender, heterosexual, a citizen of their country of residence, non-disabled, and neurotypical are different from the experiences of a woman who identifies as a person of colour, Indigenous, 2SLGBTQIA+, an immigrant to their country of residence, disabled, and/or neurodivergent.
The importance of intersectionality is demonstrated by data on pay inequities. While women overall earn less money than men, the wage gap is even larger for certain subgroups such as Black and Latina women. Differences in barriers arise in situations other than pay as well - for example, a recruitment procedure reviewed for gender inclusion but not accessibility can exclude women (and people of all genders) with disabilities. Focusing equity and inclusion initiatives only on women as one group without considering other identities can lead to actions that disproportionately benefit the women who already have relatively greater privilege.
Similar issues can arise in any situation where only one identity is considered. For example, neurodiversity hiring initiatives that don’t consider other identities such as gender can disproportionately benefit neurodivergent men over neurodivergent women. Similarly, think about who is likely to be disproportionately benefited and who would be further underserved by initiatives to address promotion inequities that focus only on race and don’t consider concurrent identities such as gender, 2SLGBTQIA+, disability, or neurodiversity.
You can’t do everything at once, but you can consider everyone in your actions
When I’ve questioned groups on why only one identity is being considered, the justification is often “well, we can’t do everything at once”. And that’s 100% true. You can’t rebuild your recruitment and promotion procedures, improve inclusivity and accessibility of your communications and events, develop and implement meaningful training in inclusive leadership, build mentorship programs, develop a supplier diversity program, and more all at the same time.
But you can prioritize actions - and consider everyone, with all intersecting identities, in those actions. For example, if recruitment is a priority, remove bias related to gender, race, immigration status, and different types of experience and ways of thinking. Ensure that every step of the process is accessible for neurodivergent individuals and people with disabilities. If events and communications are a priority, ensure representation of a range of identities (including gender, race, Indigeneity, disability, nationality, and more) among speakers, writers, featured professionals, and organizers - and that the activities and content are fully accessible.
Focusing on one identity at a time means you’ll have to repeatedly revisit the same action areas to improve them for different groups. Focusing on priority action areas, and considering everyone in those actions, provides a foundation of comprehensive inclusion that can be efficiently adapted and expanded across areas of your organization. For example, how can the inclusive evaluation procedures you develop for recruitment be transferred to promotion-related evaluations? How can the inclusive procedures you develop for speaker selection be transferred to supplier selection?
Collect data to identify priorities
So how do you identify these priority areas? Start by collecting data using:
Organization-wide surveys.
Focus groups, discussions, and interviews.
Audits of policies and procedures.
Resources on the history of your organization, its practices, and its location(s).
Records of recruitment, retention, pay, and promotion.
“Considering everyone” applies to data collection as well. Ensure all team members have an equitable opportunity to share their experiences, opinions, and ideas if they would like. Disaggregate your data (as much as possible based on organization size) in order to consider subgroups and intersectional identities in the data analysis.
For example, beyond looking at differences in experiences between people who do and do not identify as 2SLGBTQIA+, also examine differences among 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals between age groups and racial identities. Don’t just compare data between people who identify as white versus people with any non-white racial identity - look at how the experiences of Black and Asian team members, for instance, may be different from each other and from those of white colleagues.
Statistics and data visualization can then be used to determine the areas of your organizational systems and structure most in need of work towards equity, diversity, and inclusion - and what actions in these areas would most benefit current and future team members.
Re-assess regularly to determine how priorities evolve based on actions implemented, shifts in tasks and projects, and changes in team composition. Continue to grow and expand your actions over time.
What if a particular identity group is a priority?
In addition to priority areas of your organizational systems and structure, data collection may show that one or more identity groups is particularly underrepresented and/or underserved. Considering everyone doesn’t mean taking identical action for everyone. Targeted initiatives designed specifically to address inequities experienced by a particular identity group can (and should, where needed) be implemented as part of an inclusion action plan that considers everyone, as long as:
The data collection and analysis procedures that guided priority selection actively invited contributions from individuals of all identities, steps were taken to minimize bias, and perspectives of groups underrepresented within the organization were sought out elsewhere (e.g., industry or national data) to ensure they were not missed.
The targeted initiative is inclusive of intersectional identities (for example, an initiative focused on recruiting Black talent also considers gender inclusion and accessibility).
Complementary actions to maximize success of the initiative are taken with individuals who don’t identify in the target group. For instance, what needs to be done within the existing team to ensure an inclusive environment for new members recruited through an identity-focused initiative?
By combining comprehensive data collection, intersectionality, and considerations of the unique needs, barriers, and strengths of all identity groups, we can build spaces where everyone is set up to succeed.
Let’s create spaces where everyone can thrive
Looking to collect data and determine priority areas? Ready to develop and implement an action plan that considers everyone? Get in touch to discover how we can work together.
