Women of Color on the European Labor Market
This piece is part of a ︎︎︎collection of data essays at the intersection of editorial design and information visualization. I'm glad having had the chance to work on this with ︎︎︎Giang Pham and Dennis Ostendorf. The project was conducted in cooperation with the ︎︎︎Center for Intersectional Justice (CIJ).
If a headscarf decides on the invitation to a job interview or women with immigration background are more than twice as likely to be overqualified in their current employment than the white majority society, then at latest the question of structural problems must be asked. Through a selection of lawsuits, studies and testimonials, we try to outline the complex dynamics and multiple jeopardy that especially Women of Color face in the European labor market.
This is a ︎︎︎visual data essay to explore the ways in which various axes of power/privilege and disadvantage such as race, ethnicity, religion, gender, class, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity overlap to create unique dynamics and effects, also known as intersectionality.
Systemic oppression, marginalization and inequalities are invisible, incomprehensible, and intangible for the privileged—especially, because they are not part of their lived experience. Structural discrimination and marginalization can be demonstrated and explained through concrete examples. Just think of the impact socioeconomic background has on educational aspirations, of the very low percentage of women* in political or business leadership positions, and of the rampant labor exploitation in the care sector.
The term Intersectionality was coined in 1989 by Kimberlé Crenshaw. Professor of Law at UCLA and Professor of Law at Columbia Law School. A leading authority on Civil Rights, Black Feminist legal theory, and race, racism and the law.