The more we get together: Talking intersectionality in activism

Intersectionality. It's a big word, and it has to be, because it is the idea that we can unite our social justice struggles, that it is impossible and unwise to separating them into single-issue campaigns. For activists, intersectionality is both a gift and a challenge. Sharon Smith is a feminist socialist activist and the writer of Subterranean Fire: A History of Working-Class radicalism in the United States. She spoke about intersectionality at the Socialism 2013 Conference in Chicago, Illinois. rabble.ca's F-Word podcast was there to record it. Here's part of her address. Dalhousie University made the news this year for creating gender-neutral washrooms. That's just one example of success in activismthat seeks to create safe spaces for trans people on campus. It's part of an upswing in community activism around Halifax for gender justice, which uses a model that understands that work for social justice occurs on many intersecting levels such as race, class, sexuality, gender, ability, and more. Scott Neigh talked with Jude Ashburn, a queer and non-binary transperson who has worked for a number of inclusivity initiatives in Halifax. Ashburn has also been an organizer with Rad Pride Halifax, an alternative to the city's more mainstream Pride celebration. Scott started the interview by asking Jude about Gender justice. Well, no matter where you choose to focus your personal radical action, and who you are, you will probably end up paying taxes. And while politicians love to promise us lower tax rates, and comedians love to joke about the taxman, there are economists across Canada who want to tell you why taxes are great. They gathered together for a panel hosted by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and sponsored by rabble.ca. The panel  was excellent — I know because I was there. It featured economists Armine Yalnizyan, Trish Hennessey, Yves-Lynne Couturier, and Toby Sanger. You can hear the entire presentation over at the Needs No Introduction podcast at rabble.ca/podcasts, but we thought we'd bring you a little bit of it here. The special guest speaker that evening was former privy council clerk and the author of "Tax is not a four letter word" Alex Himelfarb. Here is part of his address.