What is Minoritized

To be minoritized means to be pushed to the margins often by means out of your own control ( Paniagua, 2015 ). The authors choose to use this word intentionally in lieu of the term “minority” as it is not due to the lack of representative numbers that disenfranchises people of marginalized experiences, rather the socio-cultural hierarchies and policies that negatively impact them. For example, white billionaire women who independently gained their financial success are a minority within the United States. However, their experience in the world is not minoritized nor disenfranchised given that their race and economic status holds power. However, using this term is not a perfect perspective as it centers the power of white culture instead of honoring the identities of these communities.

Used in place of minority (noun) to highlight the social oppression that minoritizes individuals.

Minoritized groups in any society are those defined as “minorities’ by a dominant group that is numerically larger than the ethnic group. This involves a power relationship between dominant and minoritized groups who often prefer not to be labelled as a ‘minority’ because of the suggestion that they are somehow subordinate to the larger dominant group.

A term which denotes the socially constructed nature of underrepresentation and subordination within the social fabric of the United States.

Term used instead of minority (noun) to highlight the social oppression that minoritizes individuals.

Describes groups or identities that are viewed as “other.” This term emphasizes the reality that “othered” groups are not necessarily the numerical minority, but minoritized by the dominant group to maintain their social power.