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After reflecting on the wheel of power/privileges, I see that many of my identities—such as being a white, cisgender, heterosexual man with post-secondary education—place me close to the center of the wheel, giving me significant societal privilege. These aspects provide me advantages in areas like job opportunities and social acceptance. However, factors such as being middle class, renting, and learning English as a second language place me further from the center in contexts where wealth or native language fluency are more highly valued.

The concept of shifting power becomes clear when I consider how my level of privilege changes depending on which category I focus on. For example, while my race and gender afford me societal privileges, my middle-class status might limit my financial power compared to wealthier individuals.

The pandemic, particularly COVID, highlighted the importance of certain privileges like wealth, healthcare access, and housing stability. Before the pandemic, these factors may have felt less urgent. Now, I understand how fragile certain privileges can be and how quickly societal structures can shift. This reflection deepened my awareness of both my advantages and the importance of supporting others who face different challenges.

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The Wheel of Power illustrates the complex dynamics of privilege and oppression in society, highlighting how various identities intersect to shape individual experiences. As a white Latina woman, I navigate this wheel with a unique perspective. My fluency in English, coupled with my middle-class background, affords me certain privileges that influence my access to opportunities and resources. However, my gender and ethnicity also expose me to specific challenges, reminding me that privilege is not absolute.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly shifted the Wheel of Power, bringing attention to systemic inequalities. The crisis exacerbated disparities, revealing how marginalized communities faced the brunt of health and economic impacts. This situation has sparked greater awareness of social justice issues, prompting discussions around equity and inclusion. As a result, the conversation surrounding power dynamics has evolved, encouraging individuals from various backgrounds to advocate for change.

While I benefit from certain privileges, I recognize the importance of using my voice and position to support marginalized groups. The pandemic has highlighted the necessity for solidarity and collective action, challenging those of us within the wheel to contribute to a more equitable society.

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Looking at the wheel of privilege, I know that for the most part I am at the middle or close to the center, I understand this is helpful to understand and respect people that find themselves in different categories. However as i grow up seeing people treat differently my parents because of their skin color, body size or even our religion, I had to learn the difficult way as a kid. Still, I think i have privilege, because the diversity in Brazil makes easier to blend in and have acceptance. It's also interesting to see how people around here have gone softer after COVID, respecting other people's difficulties and actually developing empathy.

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When examining the wheel of power/privilege, I often fall into the middle categories in circumstances such as skin color, physical ability, language, education and housing. However, there are some categories where I fall towards the outside, such as sexuality, neurodiversity and mental stability. I feel as though these factors, all though extremely impactful towards my life, don't take away the privilege that I have as a white woman in a stable living situation. I've always felt extremely grateful towards the circumstances that I was given, it has 100% made my life easier. I've struggled the most with "fitting in" in the mental stability and neurodiversity categories. I am neurotypical and have been diagnosed with a few mental illnesses, so it's hard for me to feel generally accepted especially as a teenager in such a judgmental moment of life.

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After examining the wheel of privilege, I found I had a deeper understanding of my own power and privilege within the world--as an American, as a white man, as in many other identities. I find myself very close to the center of the wheel in many of my identities, and those that I am not close with are still in the middle tiers of the wheel; I think that most of the people I know would fall in a similar position on the wheel just by virtue of living in Chicago (and living in the US, at least from a global perspective) but also because I am simply more likely to gravitate to people of similar standing on the wheel as a result of social norms and hierarchies within our culture. This can create "negative feedback loops" and reinforce seperation between different peoples.

My perception of the wheel would definitely have changed as a result of COVID. The pandemic demonstrated the class, racial, and social divides that permeate the entire country, and the gaps between who was able to seek healthcare for the virus (who were privileged enough to do so) and those who were not were very obvious.

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Looking at the wheel, I would say I feel the closest with almost all of the categories. If I had to choose I would say I am closest with my language, mental health and abilities. I would say I feel the farthest away from my skin color which could go both ways. Being Mexican-American I am much lighter which can work in my favor here in America, but can sway when in Mexico. My level of power shifts depending on the specific category. As already mentioned I do feel close to most categories, but looking at housing per se since I still live at home with my family I don't feel as powerful as I would when looking at gender. Based on my given identity, I would rank myself pretty powerful. I understand I have grown in a more privileged lifestyle than much of my family and even friends. I do think COVID helped me feel closer to a lot of categories that makeup my identity. This time allowed for a lot of self reflection, especially during quarantine, ultimately allowing me to spend more time discovering who I am.

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From this reading, I was able to see how much power and privilege I have between all of the different social identities. The only times I was not in the inner circle was when talking about wealth and housing which I was right outside of. I always understood my privilege of being a white man from the suburbs and I take it for granted how easy it is for me to move through different avenues of life. While most people strayed away from the center during Covid I felt like I moved closer in with being able to have access to health care and be able to have housing during that time. I never worried once about my health during it which I think just reflects on the power/privilege I have. I find most of my peers with me in the center circle for the most part because as humans we tend to get along with what we know and I think that is represented here. From seeing this and thinking through it I can see a little about how people feel when they are not in the inside circle and that is the feeling of being "unincluded" in that you arent represented in the conversation about things because of one of these factors.

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After examining the wheel of power/privilege, I realize that in many aspects, I feel privileged. My skin tone, weight, and education place me in a favorable position, but I am aware that this reality is not universal. My level of power can shift depending on the identity I focus on; for example, while I recognize my privileges, I still face difficulties. I feel closer to the center, especially in a Brazilian context, where I am considered white and do not face ethnic labels that can bring disadvantages. The COVID-19 pandemic changed my perception of these privileges. I realized that conditions I considered normal are not shared by everyone, which broadened my awareness of inequalities. Additionally, the period prompted me to explore new languages and deepen my studies, even as I dealt with mental health challenges like anxiety. This reflection helps me understand how my identities interact with systems of power and oppression, emphasizing the importance of recognizing both privileges and struggles.

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After examining the wheel of power/privilege, I realize that in many aspects, I feel privileged. My skin tone, weight, and education place me in a favorable position, but I am aware that this reality is not universal. My level of power can shift depending on the identity I focus on; for example, while I recognize my privileges, I still face difficulties. I feel closer to the center, especially in a Brazilian context, where I am considered white and do not face ethnic labels that can bring disadvantages. The COVID-19 pandemic changed my perception of these privileges. I realized that conditions I considered normal are not shared by everyone, which broadened my awareness of inequalities. Additionally, the period prompted me to explore new languages and deepen my studies, even as I dealt with mental health challenges like anxiety. This reflection helps me understand how my identities interact with systems of power and oppression, emphasizing the importance of recognizing both privileges and struggles.

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In terms of the wheel of power/privilege, I, first off, find myself being in the inner circle when it comes to skin color (white), formal education (post-secondary education), citizenship (citizen of the U.S.), language (English), ability (able-bodied), body size (slim), and neurodiversity (neurotypical). Second, I find myself being in the middle of the circle when it comes to gender (cisgender woman), wealth (middle class), and mental health (mostly stable). This level of power doesn’t shift much for me, considering that there’s little to no hatred for those middle circle categories. Third, I find myself farther away from the circle when it comes to sexuality (I’m demiromantic, biromantic, asexual/part of the LGBTQ+ community). Even though there is a population of people who are LGBTQ+, there is no doubt that we face homophobia from time to time, even from some of our LGBTQ+ peers, not just those that are not LGBTQ+. Finally, in terms of housing..., it’s hard to say, considering that I currently live with my parents, and I don’t own a house yet. Though, if it were pre-COVID, I would have found myself more leaning towards the inner circle, but after COVID, I found that my sexuality has changed, and my mental health has slightly changed.

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Now that you have spent some time reflecting on equity, diversity, and inclusion, let's dive a bit deeper into how our social identities, positionality, and privilege(s) intersect.

Positionality

Positionality refers to the personal values, views, and location in time and space that influence how one engages with and understands the world. It is wrapped up in the dynamics of power and privilege. For example, your gender, race, class, and other aspects of your social identities influence and inform how you move through the world, what knowledge you produce and value, and the biases through which everything you say, think, and do, is filtered, intentionally or otherwise.

Moreover, positionality is experienced differently in different contexts, and can dictate how much access you have (to resources, support, etc.) in society (The University of British Columbia, n.d.). In this sense, we cannot ignore "the power inherent in . . . social positions" (Misawa, 2010, p. 26).

Intersectionality

In this video, What is Intersectionality? [1:54] by the National Association of Independent Schools (2018), Professor Kimberlé Crenshaw talks about the study of how overlapping or intersecting social identities relate to systems and structures of discrimination.

Related to positionality, intersectionality acknowledges the complex relationship between social identities, and systems of power and oppression. Given the fluid, relational, and social construction of identities, intersectional paradigms recognize that every person has multiple and diverse identities (e.g., race, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, dis/ability, beliefs, and worldview) that combine in unique ways to shape our perspectives, and experiences with oppression and privilege (Ontario Human Rights Commission, 2001). In this context, intersectionality recognizes that oppression does not exist within a vacuum, but rather intersecting oppressions work together in producing injustice (Collins, 2001).

The following graphic entitled "Intersectionality" visually displays how social identities intersect with one another and are wrapped in systems of power. For example, using the imagery of a spirograph, Duckworth (2020) colour-codes various social identities including race, ethnicity, gender identity, class, language, religion, ability, sexuality, mental health, age, education, and body size.

Social Identities, Privilege and Oppression

Critical social psychology describes identity as a social construction that is learned through interactions with others and the world, and that has a strong impact on who we become (Allen & Rosatto, as cited in Shah, 2018). Social privilege exists on the basis of complex and intersecting social identities, such as race, gender, ability, class, faith/religion, age and sexuality and the relative distance of these identities to dominant identities and power (Black & Stone, as cited in Shah, 2018).

Wheel of Power/Privilege

Sylvia Duckworth's "wheel of power/privilege" is another visual representation of how power, privilege, and social identities intersect. The graphic below uses the imagery of a wheel, sectioned off by the following social identities and respective categories:

Citizenship: citizen, documented, undocumented

Skin colour: white, different shades, dark

Formal education: post-secondary, high school, elementary

Ability: able-bodied, some disability, significant disability

Sexuality: heterosexual; gay men; lesbian, bi, pan, asexual

Neurodiversity: neurotypical, neuroatypical, significant neurodivergence

Mental health: robust, mostly stable, vulnerable

Body size: slim, average, large

Housing: owns property, sheltered/renting, homeless

Wealth: rich, middle class, poor

Language: English, Learned English, non-English monolingual

Gender: cisgender man; cisgender woman; trans, intersex, nonbinary

In this topic, we hope you learned about yourself, your salient social identities, and how they interact with the systems of power and oppression in our society. To conclude, we invite you to think about your social location and the intersecting identities which shape your interactions within the higher education system. How are these similar and different to your colleagues, students, and administrators? How has academia epistemically favoured scholarship and ways of knowing of those with identities closer to the centre of power? Which social identities do the systems of power historically (and currently) serve?

Referring back to the identities in the Wheel of Power/Privilege think about how you define yourself, and where your salient social identities are located on the wheel. Get curious about:

How close or far away from the centre are you?

How does your level of power shift as you place yourself in different identity categories?

Thinking about your institution, where do students, staff, administrators, and/or faculty reside?

You are invited to record your reflection in the way that works best for you, which may include writing, drawing, creating an audio or video file, mind map or any other method that will allow you to document your ideas and refine them at the end of this module.

Alternatively, a text-based note-taking space is provided below. Any notes you take here remain entirely confidential and visible only to you. Use this space as you wish to keep track of your thoughts, learning, and activity responses. Download a text copy of your notes before moving on to the next page of the module to ensure you don't lose any of your work!

References

Collins, P. H. (2001). Black feminist thought: Knowledge, consciousness, and the politics of empowerment. New York: Routledge.

Duckworth, S. (2020, Aug 19). Intersectionality [Infographic]. Flickr. https://flic.kr/p/2jy46K4.

Duckworth, S. (2020, Oct 18). Wheel of power/privilege [Infographic]. Flickr. https://flic.kr/p/2jWxeGG. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 .

Misawa, M. (2010). Queer race pedagogy for educators in higher education: Dealing with power dynamics and positionality of LGBTQ students of color. International Journal of Critical Pedagogy, 3(1), 26-35. http://libjournal.uncg.edu/ijcp/article/view/68

National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). (2018, Jun 22). Kimberlé Crenshaw: What is intersectionality? [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/ViDtnfQ9FHc

Ontario Human Rights Commission. (2001). An introduction to the intersectional approach. http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/intersectional-approach-discrimination-addressing-multiple-grounds-human-rights-claims/introduction-intersectional-approach

Shah, V. (2018). Leadership for social justice through the lens of self-identified, racially and other-privileged leaders. Journal of Global Citizenship & Equity Education, 6(1). https://journals.sfu.ca/jgcee/index.php/jgcee/article/view/168/399

The University of British Columbia. (n.d.). Positionality & Intersectionality. https://indigenousinitiatives.ctlt.ubc.ca/classroom-climate/positionality-and-intersectionality/

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Universal Design for Learning (UDL) for Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA)

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Now that you have spent some time reflecting on equity, diversity, and inclusion, let's dive a bit deeper into how our social identities, positionality, and privilege(s) intersect. Positionality refers to the personal values, views, and location in time and space that influence how one engages with and understands the world.