Two University of Toledo employees will be panelists for “HerStory: Intersectional Feminism,” a discussion that will take place Saturday, March 9, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Sanger Branch Library, 3030 Central Ave.
Dr. Monita Mungo, assistant professor of sociology, and Veralucia Mendoza, secretary in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, were selected as two of the panelists for the event, which will examine intersectional feminism and the ways women’s overlapping identities — including race, class, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation — impact the way they experience oppression and discrimination.
Held by the Toledo Lucas County Public Library in honor of Women’s History Month, the discussion also will cover how the feminist movement can be more diverse and inclusive.
Mungo will share her experience regarding feminism from the margins of an African-American woman. Mendoza will speak about her work in political praxis and organizing.
“It is my hope that when the program is over, audience members understand or at the very least recognize that the experiences of women of color are often overlooked or conflated with the white female experience,” Mungo said.
Mendoza wants people to sit with that uncomfortable feeling. “In this cultural and sociopolitical climate, we don’t have time to only hold hands and agree to disagree; we are called to action. The stakes are too high to sit in a neutral place of negative peace,” she said.
“For me, intersectional feminism means exactly what Kimberle Crenshaw meant ― we cannot use this term loosely and take it to mean what is comfortable for us,” Mendoza said. “It means some of us are systemically and culturally overlooked, and sometimes downright excluded, in the name of progress.”
For more information on the free, public event, go to the Toledo Lucas County Public Library website.
