Figure 4.2. “Strong female protagonist.” Would we need such mugs and such sayings if strong female protagonists in literature were the norm, or at least fairly common?

Systems of power are socially constructed beliefs, practices, and cultural norms that produce and normalize arrangements of power in social institutions. Systems of power are rooted in socially constructed ideas such as race, gender and class. They are embedded in present-day policies and practices and can be found throughout history. Systems of power define relationships between subaltern communities and the dominant culture surrounding them.

Subaltern describes groups of people who have been excluded from full civic participation or otherwise disempowered within stratified societies. The term generally describes the socio-political status of indigenous or native residents in colonized territory. Systems of power can best be understood by considering their intersectionality. Recall from Chapter 1 that intersectionality describes how systems of power work together to produce compounded impacts based on individual or collective social location.

Figure 4.3. Let’s watch Understanding Systems of Power [Youtube] to understand through an analogy of a tree (3:22 minutes). Standard YouTube license.

4.2.1 Privilege and Oppression

Privilege is generally defined as advantages exclusively available to one group, often to the detriment of other groups. This is in contrast to oppression, or the social act of placing severe restrictions on an individual, group, or institution. It is important to study both of these concepts, as they interact to create dominance and control in a society. One cannot exist without the other (Hoffman, 2018).

Considering the issues of privilege and oppression are important when looking at the experiences of people trying to express their internal view of themselves in a public setting. Gender is not just a simple matter of personal identity: gender is also embedded, or “baked in” to our social institutions in fundamental ways that make it difficult, if not impossible, to interact positively with these institutions (religion, health care, criminal justice, ect.) without conforming to gendered norms, resulting in different experiences and opportunities for men, women, and non-binary individuals.

One way people navigate privilege and oppression in their daily lives is by performing a more privileged identity, or passing. For LGBTQ+ people, passing privilege is the privilege granted to trans and non-binary people whose gender expression aligns with socially constructed gender norms. Requiring trans and non-binary people to pass for any gender is harmful. In figure 4.4 a 2-minute video breaks down the problems of having to pass. Cisgender people carry the most privilege regarding gender expression, as they rarely have to justify their gender expression to others, or to the social institutions they need to interact with. This privilege allows cisgender people to access social spaces, like bathrooms, without fear of being misgendered, questioned, harassed, or assaulted.

Figure 4.4. Requiring trans and non-binary people to pass for any gender is harmful. Why ‘Passing Privilege’ Is A Problem In The Trans Community [Youtube]. Standard YouTube license.

Social norms regulate and normalize the behavior of group members. Social control is the enforcement of conformity on the members of society, either by law or by social pressure. Sanctions (penalties for disobeying a law or rule) are essential to social control processes. Sanctions for transgressing law or unwritten social rules can then be imposed upon offending individuals and groups. An example of this can be seen in things said to young boys when they cry or are upset -”Don’t be a girl, only girls cry.” Boys have been historically taught from a young age that if they exhibit behaviors that are seen as “feminine”, they can be shamed, bullied and even physically attacked.

Norms and sanctions provide the behavioral expectations and standards that make social interaction possible. Privileging normative gender expression is a form of social control. This can lead to oppression of those who are not able or willing to perform to society’s standards. We’ll discuss the power of cultural norms and influence later in the chapter.