intersectionality
/ɪntəsɛkʃəˈnalɪti/
noun
1. the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.
"through an awareness of intersectionality, we can better acknowledge and ground the differences among us"
(taken from Oxford Languages)
I, personally, am tired of hearing about Murakami and H. P. Lovecraft. I am tired of men dominating literary discourse, when women, especially trans women, and non-binary authors are producing works of divine quality that upset the patriarchal and white power imbalance, simultaneously making you cry, laugh, rage about and fall in love with the characters and the poetic language utilised. Therefore, this women’s week, we at Moyé are celebrating women and non-binary people who are writing from the intersection. I encourage to check out the amazing people mentioned below, if you have not already.
Roxane Gay
• Moyé Recommendation: Difficult Women
If you like a narrative that packs a punch, I encourage you to indulge in the works of the miraculous Roxane Gay. A name to headline feminist writers and critics, Gay has been listed as one of 50 heroes “leading the nation toward equality, acceptance, and dignity for all people” by Queerty magazine. From fem-crit essays to Marvel, Gay has done it all: It is impossible to list all that Gay has done for intersectional feminism, and her accolades of accomplishments arecontinuously expanding. Gay perfectly encapsulates the lived experience of trauma and the human experience in Break All The Way Down featured in Gay’s collection of short stories entitled Difficult Women.
Akwaeke Emeze
• Moyé Recommendation: The Death of Vivek Oji
The Time’s Next Generation Leader, Akwaeke Emeze, has risen to well-deserved prominence with their works Freshwater, Pet and The Death of Vivek Oji. Their works explore and force a rethinking of the Western conceptualisation of the gender binary while simultaneously paying homage to their Nigerian heritage. Emeze has been praised for their unforgettable stories that highlight familial relations and spotlight the LGBTQ+ experience, winning multiple awards along the way. The Death of Vivek Oji is a genre-bending bildungsroman and modern classic dedicated to love and loss, which leaves most readers sobbing and changedforever.
Jhumpa Lahiri
• Moyé Recommendation: A Temporary Matter
It is impossible not to fall helplessly in love with Lahiri’sperfect use of language. In a few words, Lahiri’s writing is; lush, abundant, decadent and divine. Lahiri paints, in incredible and perfect detail, stories that will have you reeling. Née Nilanjana Sudeshna Lahiri, Lahiri has gone on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the Hemingway Award, whilebeing shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the National Book Award for Fiction. In addition, her novel The Namesakehas been adapted for the screen. Her preference lies in the short story and the novel genre, while Lahiri adds elements of the post-colonial to her exquisite narratives. A Temporary Matter is a heartbreakingly beautiful story that will consume and spit you out in its few pages.
Shanice Ndlovu
• Moyé Recommendation: The Pride of Noonlay
Breaking the mould, Shanice Ndlovu enthrals the literary world with African fantastical epics. Ndlovu is a rising Zimbabwean-born, South African-raised author, who has risen to prominence in recent years. Known for her short stories, Ndlovu has been published in Botsotso and the K&L Prizeanthologies. In 2020, she published her first short story anthology, entitled The Pride of Noonlay. Combining sparkling prose with majestic narratives, The Pride of Noonlay is woven with elements of African fantasy that explore and unpack the human experience.
Casey Plett
• Moyé Recommendation: A Dream of a Woman
Plett, the Canadian author of Little Fish, A Safe Girl to Love, and Moyé’s Recommendation, A Dream of a Woman, has won and been nominated for multiple awards, including the Stonewall Book Award. A Dream of a Woman is an anthology of short stories that explore the often unspoken lives of trans women and their relationships with the world and one another. You will fall for the complex, perfectly imperfect characters and tender subject matters that pervade this anthology.
bell hooks
• Moyé Recommendation: The Will to Change
Referred to as a ‘trailblazing writer, activist and cultural theorist’ by the Guardian, bell hooks revolutionised feminism by making it more inclusive by heralding race and class into the term. hooks made space for those who had been pushed out of what is commonly termed ‘white feminism’ by introducing intersectional feminism. Her works remain incredibly relevant, perpetuating anti-sexist, anti-racist and anti-classist rhetoric and politics.
thank you for liberating our voices by talking back. rest in power.
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