Linking Constitutive and Substantive Representation: An Intersectional Approach

• In Event: Linking Descriptive and Substantive Representation

Abstract

Using an original dataset drawn from UK House of Commons debates 1997-2017, and a combination of automated and manual textual analysis, this paper addresses two interrelated sets of questions. Firstly, under what conditions are minoritized women constitutively and substantively represented? Which representatives make racially minoritised women as well as racially minoritised women’s interests and perspectives present in parliamentary debates, when, and how? Secondly, how do the relationships between representatives and representations of racially minoritised women vary depending on the nature of the representation? For example, are those representatives who most frequently speak about minoritized women also those who most frequently speak on behalf of minoritized women? I draw on an intersectional theoretical framework and existing literatures on race, gender and political representation in to address these questions. In doing so, I make three key arguments. Firstly, we must approach political representation intersectionally to avoid making claims about ‘women’ or ‘minorities’ which centre the most privileged among these groups and further marginalise those who are least privileged. Secondly, when researching the intersections of race and gender in this context, we must meet the methodological challenge of treating identities as contextual and dynamic rather than static and deterministic. Thirdly, given the unique positioning of minoritized women (rendered symbolic of causes far beyond, and frequently in conflict with, their own interests and perspectives) explicit claims to represent members of this group must be handled with caution.

Author

• Orly Siow, Newcastle University