Question

Provide some reasons for why oppression is so difficult to see. Can you think of examples where you became aware of an oppressive practice that you originally did not see as oppressive?

Answer 1

We are often able to see the oppression of others by their behavior rather than their actions. By doing this however, we are not able to see underlying systems such as systemic racism and patriarchy and how these systems oppress and control people and systems. We can look at oppression as a form of abuse, but can view abuse as a form of oppression. We cannot see oppression by the victim, but we can see oppression by the oppressor. This allows us to look at oppressive practice and see it as oppression, even if it is not our direct experience.
One can identify a way our oppression causes harm, or at least an important way, but not the specific act of oppression. For example, some people might point out that black people in America can barely afford a bus pass and therefore can be denied access to higher education. They note that black people are forced to pay more for health care and thus are denied the quality of healthcare which comes at a significantly higher cost. They might note how the United States government forces women to be subservient, thus they are constantly told they need to be submissive. This is a form of oppression. Can we count upper-class women among the oppressed and lower class men among their oppressors, although this objection has a certain logic to it, it rest on a confusion between the position of women and men as groups and their experience as individuals.