In light of the recent events, I thought it would be appropriate to share a video of actress America Ferrera’s opening speech for the Women’s March on Washington.
In her speech, she addresses the refusal that a single politician can represent the great diversity of the United States, and highlights the necessity for unity across all levels of society. As the daughter of Honduras immigrants herself, Ferrera holds an acute awareness of how some of the policies can undermine the rights and safety of immigrants in the US, but her speech engagingly ties the issues surrounding religious discrimination, racism and white supremacy, LGBTQ rights, and women’s reproductive health and subsequent equality. It empowers individuals to face various issues as a collective, to inspect aspects of new policies with an evaluative eye.
I think this speech is a powerful call-to-action and demonstrates the recognition of intersectionality. In relation to the text “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex” by Kimberle Crenshaw, she expresses the concerns of race and gender spoken as separate entities, and that there is a need to acknowledge multiple facets of narratives of those that simply feminism and racism oversights. As Ferrera acknowledges, “it’s been a heart-wrenching time to be a woman and an immigrant in this country,” understanding that action needs to be taken with cohesion, urging citizens to stand in solidarity as she speaks out against forms of divisions and labels.
