Intersectionality In The Aviation Industry

Discrimination based on sex, which clearly existed in the past still has its lingering effects in the present day. Female pilots were required to disclose the lengths and times of their menstrual cycles during the Second World War. They had to submit their gynaecological records [18]. Unsurprisingly, this requirement could have made the aviation industry seem daunting to females that had to disclose such personal information. However, this is no longer an obligation since menstruation does not play any part in flight performance. The U.S. Civil Airmen Statistics, which contain information on active civil Airmen, and were later updated in 2015 shows a big gender discrepancy in the Aviation Industry. Including categories such as student, private,

Figure 2- All existing pilots in the United States from 1960-2010 separated in 3 categories: Airline Transport Pilot(ATP), Commercial Pilot, and pilots that are not for hire further divided by sex.

Intersectionality

Intersectionality is the study of intersections between different groups of minorities; specifically, the study of the interactions of multiple systems of oppression or discrimination. As quoted by McCall, “intersectionality is a methodology of studying the relationships among multiple dimensions and modalities of social relationships and subject formations” [5]. The theory suggests and examines how various categories such as gender, race, class, and sexual orientation interact on multiple levels, contributing to systematic social inequality. Intersectionality indicates that various forms of oppression within society, such as racism, sexism, homophobia, and religion-based prejudice, do not act independently of one another. Instead, these forms of oppression interrelate, creating systematic oppression. This methodology is largely important in aviation because there is a lack of information in regards to statistics about the intersections. The latter does not accurately depict the different struggles, such as those of feminist movements. The realization of the differences between women has helped better feminist movements for all women, not just those

Based on the aforementioned statistics, one can see how previous discrimination on age, sex and ethnicity are still prevalent. Although much progress has been made through the enactment of equal opportunity laws, there is a lot of improvement to be made before Aviation Industry diversity increases. The employee programs used to protect minorities and help them attain equal opportunity offer good resources to facilitate their professional development in the aviation field. This is an excellent first step in helping remove discrimination from the aviation