Jumping into the Messiness: Decolonising Allyship through Intersectional Reflexivity

We critically examine the intricate interplay of intersectionality and decolonizing allyship within settler colonial contexts, focusing on our experiences as first-generation migrants to Australia and our relationships with Indigenous peoples. By employing an intersectional framework, we illuminate how interlocking social categories—such as gender, ethnicity, and socio-economic status—shape both individual identities and broader societal structures, as articulated by scholars like Dhamoon (2011) and McIntosh (2012).

Central to our discussion is the concept of ‘Othering’ and its implications for cultural relations. We argue that prevailing models of assimilation inadvertently perpetuate colonial paradigms, reinforcing power dynamics that marginalise both non-Anglo migrants and Indigenous communities. Drawing on Racial Triangulation Theory (Kim, 1999), we explore how assimilation policies position non-Anglo migrants within the dominant settler group, complicating their relationships with Indigenous peoples and contributing to ongoing systems of domination.

We highlight the unique positionality of non-Anglo migrants, who navigate the dual pressures of rejecting the coloniser within alongside a desire to avoid being ‘Othered’ by the dominant group. This creates a push-pull dynamic: the push to reject internalised colonial mindsets contrasts with the pull to conform to the model migrant archetype, where owning one’s lands symbolises acceptance and belonging. We advocate for a both/and logic (Warner, Settles, & Shields, 2016) that recognises the complexity of identities and experiences in these intersecting discourses while holding the tensions inherent in this struggle.

To deepen our analysis, we apply intersectional reflexivity through contrasting personal vignettes that reflect our own journeys of enacted and inacted cultural identities (Armstrong, 1998). This approach, as advocated by Atewologun and Mahalingam (2018), enables a reflexive exploration of the internal transformations necessary for effective allyship, including confronting biases, privileges, and areas of marginalisation. Our exploration of cultural reflexivity emerges as a vital tool for decolonising allyship.

By examining our experiences, we aim to identify pathways toward new forms of orthogonal allyship that extend beyond linear white settler-Indigenous binaries. We also address the concept of ‘psychic retreat’ (Steiner, 1993), investigating how individuals and groups may withdraw from uncomfortable truths about their complicity in oppressive systems to ultimately negate our roles in perpetuating or challenging systemic injustices.

Through our voices as outsiders-within, we aspire to open up a way of thinking about the complexities involved in decolonising allyship with Indigenous Australians as non-Anglo migrants and, in doing so, emerge from our own spaces of psychic (dis)comfort.

References:

Armstrong, D (2009). Psychic retreats’: The organisational relevance of a psychoanalytic formulation. In Burkard Sievers (Ed), Psychoanalytic Studies of Organizations – Contributions from the International Society for the Psychoanalytic Study of Organizations (ISPSO). Taylor & Francis, Canada. 175-196.

Atewologun, D., & Mahalingam, R. (2018). Intersectional reflexivity: Methodological challenges and possibilities for qualitative equality, diversity, and inclusion research. In R. Bendl, L. Booysen, & Judith Pringle (Eds.), Handbook of Research Methods on Diversity Management, Equality, and Inclusion at Work. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.

Dhamoon, R. K. (2011). Considerations on mainstreaming intersectionality. Political Research Quarterly, 64(1), 230–243.

Kim, C. J. (1999). The racial triangulation of Asian Americans. Politics & Society, 27(1), 105–138.

McIntosh, P. (2012). Reflections and future directions for privilege studies. Journal of Social Issues, 68(1), 194–206.

Steiner, J. (1993). Psychic Retreats: Pathological Organizations in Psychotic, Neurotic and Borderline Patients. London: Routledge.

Warner, L. R., Settles, I. H., & Shields, S. A. (2016). Invited reflection intersectionality as an epistemological challenge to psychology. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 40(2), 171–176.

Session schedule

5 MINS

Introduction

30 MINS

Paper presentation

20 MINS

Small group discussion; impressions of the paper and developing questions for the presenter

20 MINS

Discussion forum with the presenter; moderated for the speaker to elaborate their ideas

10 MINS

Discussion forum with the presenter; themes from the discussions

5 MINS

Break

30 MINS

Whole symposium open reflection discussion

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