What Is Intersectionality?

Sex trafficking is truly a disturbing and upsetting topic to think about, but at the same time, it is not something that we think about often. Whether or not we are aware of this horrendous trade, it is happening all around us. As I thought about it more and more, I realized that all the factors that go into why and how someone may end up in the “business” may have to do with the overall concept of intersectionality. As discussed extensively in our class lectures, the intersectionality of someone’s race, gender and socioeconomic class may contribute to the whatever current situation they may find themselves in. With that said, race, gender and socioeconomic class are the intersectionality characteristics that I decided to focus on in regards to the overall topic of sex trafficking. While thinking about this,
Her findings related to the idea of intersectionality really well, which is why I was able to correlate a lot of her study with this research paper.
Clayton’s (2013) study:
Commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking of minors are multiply determined with causes at several levels, ranging from individual characteristics to family, peer, and neighborhood factors. Community and societal norms and expectations about sexual behavior and coercion, as well as societal and cultural standards and expectations regarding minors, gender, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, and power, also contribute to commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking of minors (Clayton p. 77-78).
With this quote, Clayton completely captures the entire essence of what I am trying to portray with this research paper. With her research, there is a lot of evidential information that backs up the idea that intersectionality really does exist, even within sex