When I heard about what this assignment was about, I had the same reaction as every other person in the room, a groan. I had never really given much thought to power or “”the matrix of domination” in my life, much less even understood what any of that meant. It is interesting however, that when one does start to examine and understand these concepts as they relate to one’s own life, how surprising the results are. I have found that although I only saw privilege in my daily life, there is an undermining sense of oppression that will affect the entirety of my life, no matter how much I achieve or accomplish. Although I do not have any literal examples of my oppression, such as bell hooks’ “railroad tracks” conceptual map, I will use standpoint theory, marked and unmarked categories, and the matrix of domination to examine where the power and oppression lies in my own life.

            I want to define my understanding of marked and unmarked categories so that my following analysis is clear. Marked categories, in my understanding, mean, “to be part of the whole but outside the main body” (hooks, Feminist Theory). This is, to be taken out of the whole when being talked about or dealt with, being distinctive and quite literally “marked” by race, gender, religion, age, and even social class. For example, in books when characters are being introduced, if the character’s race is not mentioned s/he is assumed to be white unless it is explicitly stated that s/he is black or Hispanic. Unmarked categories are those that hold the power and privilege because of their inclusion in the “whole”, as they are usually understood to be “the whole” and are therefore invisible or unseen because they are assumed to be the standard (hooks, Feminist Theory)(Weber 87-88). So within the matrix of domination through marked categories, I am a Hispanic female raised in a Spanish-speaking Roman Catholic home. In the matrix of domination through unmarked categories I am a young, middle class U.S Citizen who speaks Standard English and is temporarily able-bodied.

First and foremost, I am a Hispanic female raised in a semi-Catholic, semi-Agnostic home. I say semi-Catholic, semi-Agnostic because although my father and I regularly attend church, he has never denied nor confirmed his belief in God, he has always been kind of non-chalant about this. My mother claims to be a devout believer in our Roman Catholic Church, but she does not even attend mass (so I’ll listen to her demands for me to be a good Catholic and never question God when she practices what she preaches). Anyways, I have attended private schools ever since first grade, which has left me kind of jaded about the Catholic Church and its practices.

            In the matrix of domination or marked categories, I am most notably a female. As a woman, I experience simultaneous instances of privilege and oppression in my daily life. I have two jobs, one in which I work in a restaurant as a hostess and the other working in a general store as a cashier, stocker, security guard, and pricing things as well. In the first environment my privilege stems from the fact that I was hired mainly because I was a female, as the hostessing job is usually considered more suitable for females because they tend to be more congenial and more trusting reactions from customers than men. In my second job, I was hired because it seems that people tend to have a warmer and more open reaction to women than with men when they are buying personal items for themselves or friends/family. Although this is somewhat flattering, being valued because customers find me warm and relatable, is also a form of oppression.

            Since I am a woman, men also find it easier to berate me or insult me because they perceive me as weaker and subordinate. In one instance, a fellow hostess of mine from my first job (who is female) was just starting out at the restaurant and was still getting into the swing of things and there was a party of about 5 college aged people, some of whom were still intoxicated from the previous night. They were making requests that we could not accommodate and were getting very annoyed with my co-worker. She has an accent, as she is Eastern-European, and they had a hard time comprehending her as they were in a hung over state and although she was getting a bit agitated, she maintained her composure. They finally sat and ate their meal and come time to pay, one of the young men leaving called her slanderous names, making sure I could hear (not racist, as they were both white). I know that had she been a man with no accent, not only would that customer have not called her those names, but he would not have even begun to behave the way he did with her. If she were a man, the customer would probably have taken the time to understand her and come to an agreement to avoid a confrontation because men are perceived as being more confrontational than women. This young man knew that he could say things to her, and he would not have to worry about getting in a physical altercation with her or I as he assumed that because we are women, we will not fight back.

            At home, my oppression stemming from my gender is also obvious. Even though I am the oldest of two and I am far more responsible and mature than my brother, who is 2 years younger, he is allowed to do pretty much whatever he pleases. Even though my parents protest, they let him get away with almost everything, such as bringing friends over whenever, coming home at unusual hours of the night, and all he will get is an argument and some door slamming. However, if I were to do something that my parents forbid me to do, I get threatened with being sent to community college and being kicked out, the more extreme tactics my parents use to try to keep me in line. Since a young age, this has been occurring because they perceive me as being weaker than my younger brother, whom they perceive as capable and strong enough to take care of himself. They also put more pressure on me to learn to cook, do laundry and clean than my brother because of traditional values passed on to them through our culture. They do not ever say that it is because I am female that I must learn to do these things, but I know that it is buried so deep in their subconscious that they assume that I must take on these duties so that when I have a family of my own, I will be able take care of them because as the mother and wife, I am to already know how to keep the house clean and the meals cooked while simultaneously bringing in a steady income.

            The marked category relating to my race probably has the most impact on my life, despite the fact that it is only one out of the various categories. I do not want to say that because I am Hispanic, “the Man” always oppresses me, because that is simply not true. However, there are ways in which oppression plays a part in my race, be it large or small, because of the fact that my skin color and my culture is foreign to most of those in the U.S. and many people are offended by or scared of what is different or foreign to them. My race and culture is a privilege because I am able to be a part of a culture that is full of diversity, where people come in all kinds of colors and sizes. I also speak two languages, which is a very useful skill in our ever-changing world. I am able to experience the world in two different aspects, that of a U.S. citizen and that of Latina. I get to experience the best of both worlds, being comprehensive enough in Spanish and English to communicate in both the American and Hispanic cultures. I can sympathize with immigrants, legal or illegal, because their struggle is not foreign to me, as many Hispanics are immigrants, but I can also see from the point of view of an American citizen.

            However, as much of an advantage it is for me to be Hispanic, it is also a struggle, subconsciously and consciously for acceptance in a country dominated by white and black races, who not always, but do share a common ground in their macro-level oppression of Hispanics and other foreign cultures. I have never been the victim of any racist diatribe, but I have known many who have. People however, do seem to assume just upon my appearance that my education is probably average and that my English is not very comprehensive, meaning that they assume I use slang and that I will have some sort of accent. I have often had a similar reaction from people when I open my mouth to speak, a reaction of surprise. I have had some people even ask my why I speak so “white” and I am beyond bewildered when I am asked this because I do not speak white, I speak correctly. This unassuming remark is one that is subconsciously embedded with stereotypes that Latina’s have little to no education and do not speak grammatically correct. Although this offends me often times, I tend to let it go as most people do not realize that they make these assumptions so quickly. I have had this reaction mostly from people of my race, which I assume is because in our cultures, although subconscious, again, it is the man that goes out, educates himself, finds a job and provides for his family. The woman is the vessel of life through which children and a steady home life is made. Although I reject this cultural value, I cannot change, and therefore I must change myself so that I do not become a standard example of what people see as the duty of Hispanic women (caretaker, housekeeper, cook, etc.).

The intersectionality of my race and gender creates a form of oppression that cannot be seen or understood unless one takes the time to really analyze and delve into the stereotypes and racism that exist for my particular category. I once had a lovely old woman come up to be and tell me I had the loveliest skin tone and then she asked me where I was from. Assuming she meant my background I started to say that my mother was Puerto Rican and my father was Salvadoran, but she cut me off before I could finish and said, “Oh, you’re from Puerto Rico! What a lovely place! How long is a flight there?” I was completely thrown off as at this point. I had never been to Puerto Rico and I did not say I was born there, in fact, I said my mother was Puerto Rican. This woman had not realized that I was an American born Latina. She only saw my skin tone and assumed that I was not of this country. Although minimal an example and instance, it shows how small and large assumptions can be about a person race. Also, had I been male, this woman would probably have not approached me at all, because interactions like these between women and men usually only occur when one of the parties is interested in the other.

Although race and gender are the two most distinct marked categories I am a part of, I was also raised by parents trying to practice the Roman Catholic faith. To be completely honest, going to Catholic school for 12 years has not done any wonders for my faith in the religion. I have taken from this religion a faith in God and an understanding of self-sacrifice. I think that my privilege from this religion comes from the fact that this religion has taught me many values that I hold dear, and a sense of appreciation for the education and life I was given. I also think that it has helped in that through this religion I have been given chances understanding the plight of others and the need for values to understand and help our fellow man.

However, going to an all-girls Catholic high school always felt like a sort of oppression by “the Man”, this person being the nuns who scolded us when our uniforms were deviant of the expected qualifications and strictly enforced rules with ridiculous punishments that were meant to keep us in line, but only further encouraged us to break them. We did not have religion forced upon us, as I did in elementary school, but our rules were much more explicit and we were expected to live up to these expectations uncompromisingly. We were not allowed to, what they called excessively decorate our uniforms. For example, we were not allowed to wear more than 4 bracelets, as any more than this was seen as excessive, and we were not allowed to have shoes that were anything other than black and rubber soled. In fact, this year they even enforced a rule that required all the girls to purchase the same shoe, so that everyone was in fact wearing identical uniforms, and no one stood out more than anyone else. Individuality was “encouraged” but also punished. They told us they want us to be individual, smart, independent women, but punished us if we did something that was seen as taking away from the uniformity of the school. This is a very explicit example of oppression in my life, which has left me ambivalent as to where I stand on the effect the school had on me and my future endeavors.

Now getting to the marked categories I am a part of, I was raised in a middle class family living in the suburbs. There is an extreme advantage to being raised middle class, as you get to experience the world as it is for most Americans. You have resources available to you and are able to live in a comfortable environment. Middle class means that you are the average American consumer and worker, contributing to society and also being able to relish in your comfortable life, even if you are not living lavishly. This however, on a macro-level also oppresses the lower class. The more middle class people there are, the higher prices are to meet supply and demand and the more costly things such as homes, cars, and home utilities are. Because the majority of these things are directed at middle class consumers, it leaves little room for lower class citizens to afford to live comfortably. In our ever-changing economy, you either keep up, or you are left behind, with little sympathy for the left behind.

However, being middle class is not all about perks. Because my family is middle class, we are seen as being able to afford things such as tuition, which is not always the case. This means that when my family applies for tuition assistance, we are given less of a priority because or social standing indicates that although our money would be tight, we would be able to afford over someone or lower class status. This seems to make sense and be fair if it was not for the fact that many middle class families are just barely able to afford to live comfortably and pay for things such as their children’s education or even their mortgages.

Another unmarked category I belong to is the young and able-bodied. Being young and able-bodied means that I am capable of accomplishing tasks and goals I have set for myself. I am seen as responsible and eager to please. Priority is given to me over older citizens because my generation is seen as the future while the elderly are seen as the past, which is what most people tend to want to forget. This oppression of the elderly creates an underlying resentment of the young because of their youth and ability to actively participate in our society.

Being young, however, is not always a privilege. Because I am young people know I am capable, but they also see the possibility of me suddenly giving up and rebelling against society and its norms because I am unhappy. So older people do not tend to take my generation seriously until we reach certain ages. When they see us make mistakes, they tell us that it is alright because we are young and dumb. They take away from our competence because they assume that we are young and do not understand the world as it is and how it works.

An unmarked category I am apart of that seems to have no disadvantages is being a heterosexual. Because of my preference for the opposite sex, people do not view me as different or strange. People do not know about my sex and feel that what I am doing is wrong or even offended by my preferences. However, this is also an oppression of the homosexual population, because often times, people are judgmental and think that homosexuality is wrong, these people of course being older heterosexuals who cling on to their out-dated and old-fashioned morals. For instance, the Westboro Baptist church that teaches hate mongering and violence against homosexuals. Heterosexuals do not have people that are so hateful and unchanging in their beliefs because heterosexuals are seen as the norm. As a heterosexual, I do not have to worry about people will think because I have a different preference. Although our world is evolving in its mentality and people are becoming more open-minded, there is still a long way to go before everyone in the country will accept homosexuality, because it all comes down to people being afraid of what is different than they are.

It is not a marked or unmarked category, my geographic location also plays a role in my privilege and oppression. I live very close to the nations capital, Washington, D.C. Actually, it is just a 5-minute metro ride into the city and I am there. I am privileged to live here because I have many resources available to me that many people across the United States do not have. If I want to learn about the history of our world or see made by famous painters, all I have to do is take the metro down to the Smithsonian and go to whatever museum I desire, be it the Natural History Museum or the National Gallery of Art. This is an incredible privilege that most people do not get to share. The oppression from living so class to D.C. stems from not being able to get away from the city. If I had wanted to live in a quiet town and be raised where there are fields and farms everywhere, it would have been a very different experience because D.C. is a bustling city with no room for fields or farms. This is something that is so different than the city, but also something that I think would have been a nice alternative.

All of these things contribute to my oppression and privilege and as a result dictate the way I see and participate in the world. I am governed by my experiences and understandings of the way things are and I understand the world according to my categories of the marked and unmarked matrix of domination. My perspective is influenced by my marked categories because of the fact that although it is not always evident, they will always have some sort of way of oppressing me. My unmarked categories will always have an affect on me be it privilege or oppression, but they will also play a part in oppressing someone who is apart of the conjoining marked category. It is a cycle that we are all apart of, the way the world sees us is often times what the world uses to put us in these categories and to dictate where we fit in the world.