Racialized Women's Experiences of Sexual Violence and Harassment in Canadian Higher Education: An Intersectional Analysis
Abstract
Conducted through a qualitative case study, this dissertation focuses on 15 racialized women’s experiences of sexual violence and harassment while attending a post-secondary institution in Ontario, Canada. Drawing on the notion of intersectionality as a conceptual and theoretical framework, this study investigates how the intersections of their identities shaped their experiences. Findings revealed a number of critical insights with respect to the racialized dimensions of sexual violence and harassment. The behaviours, comments, and actions participants received from men in inter-racial contexts illuminates the simultaneous experience of racialization, sexism, and fetishization which makes racialized women vulnerable to sexual violence and harassment. Although few participants in this study experienced intra-racial sexual violence and harassment, this study’s focus on both inter-racial and intra-racial contexts provides important insight into the qualitatively different ways in which sexual violence and harassment is experienced by racialized women; demonstrating how the intersections of social identity shapes the behaviours and comments of perpetrators as well as how women interpret their experiences vis-à-vis the racial and gendered identities of their perpetrators. Findings of this study also revealed that women often drew upon the intersections of their identities when contemplating disclosure to informal support systems, such as family and peers. With regards to family, the issue of ‘culture’ as a barrier to disclosure and shaping feelings of self-blame were discussed. While I problematize the overemphasis on culture as the sole reason for why women choose to remain silent, I argue that it is not helpful to ignore culture. Instead, it is necessary to consider how cultural norms and values, as well as structural inequities, simultaneously impede upon women’s disclosure decisions. Although few participants in this study disclosed to an on-campus sexual violence service, the experiences of the few who did provides insight into the implications of disclosing for racialized women vis-à-vis structural inequities within post-secondary institutions.This dissertation thus challenges one-size-fits-all narratives with regards to sexual violence and harassment as solely an issue of gender inequality, and critiques the limitations of existing government and post-secondary policies. This study thus has significant implications for sexual violence policies and services in higher education.