What does it mean to be intersectional within our feminism? How can we be better allies to others without dominating the conversation? And exactly how might identifying the overlapping forms of discrimination progress our understanding of inclusivity and allyship?

In this fascinating and accessible two-part lecture with Professor Akwugo Emejulu and Aamna Mohdin, you will discover the roots of intersectionality within the feminist canon, and how these roots continue to influence our thinking today.

First Emejulu, who is a professor of sociology at the University of Warwick, will take you through the history of intersectionality through a political activist lens, including how the term ‘intersectionality’ came to be coined by Professor Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989 – and why ‘intersectional feminism’ is a misnomer.

After a short break, you will be joined by Mohdin, the Guardian’s community affairs correspondent. She will deliver a lecture on how intersectional feminism plays a role in society as we know it today, from the challenges it faces to where our thinking around equality could be heading.

Course Content

• Professor Akwugo Emejulu on the history of intersectional feminism
• Aamna Mohdin on the fight for equality today
• Audience Q&A

This course is for…

• Anyone interested in learning more about the history of feminism, intersectionality and how our thinking around these issues was formed
• Anyone who wants to deepen their understanding of the current state of feminism and discrimination

Explore the radical ideas that have upturned history and shaped the way we think now – and learn how we can use these progressive ideas to build a better future – in our interactive lecture series, Ideas in Progress, taught by leading Guardian writers and academics making waves in the intellectual world. Each event will also include a suggested set text selected by our speakers for you to continue your learning journey to be purchased as a ticket add-on. This session’s book is To Exist is to Resist: Black Feminism in Europe edited by Francesca Sobande and Akwugo Emejulu. Please note, books can only be dispatched to UK addresses.

Tutor Profiles

Professor Akwugo Emejulu

Akwugo Emejulu is Professor of Sociology at the University of Warwick. Her research interests include the political sociology of race, class and gender and women of colour’s grassroots activism in Europe and the United States. She is the author of several books including Fugitive Feminism (Silver Press, 2021) and Minority Women and Austerity: Survival and Resistance in France and Britain (Policy Press, 2017). She is co-editor of To Exist is to Resist: Black Feminism in Europe (Pluto Press, 2019).

Aamna Mohdin is the Guardian’s community affairs correspondent, reporting on the social, political and economic experiences of the UK’s diverse communities, with a particular focus on black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. She was previously a general reporter at the Guardian national news team, covering everything from homelessness to sport. Before she joined the Guardian in 2018, Aamna worked as a general assignment reporter at Quartz, an online business news site, for four years. She led the publication’s coverage of Europe refugee crisis, with notable dispatches from refugee camps in France.

Register and book your tickets here

Event times: 6pm BST | 7.30pm CEST | 10.30am PDT | 1.30pm EDT

If you are ordering a book with your ticket, you should receive your book in 10 working days. If the book is on pre-sale you will receive your book 3-5 working days after the release date. We are currently only able to deliver books within the UK.

This masterclass is available globally. If you are joining us from outside the United Kingdom, please use this time zone converter to check your local live streaming time.

You will be sent a link to the webinar two hrs before the start time. Please email masterclasses@theguardian.com if you have not received the access link within one hour of the scheduled start time.

All Guardian Masterclasses are fully accessible but please contact us at masterclasses@theguardian.com if you have any queries or concerns.

Header Image: The Star