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Cultivating Your Understanding of Social Identities & Membership

These checkboxes are here for reflection - they're not necessarily either-or dichotomies! We honor the fact that identities shift over time and context, and that many categories don't fit neatly into a "one or the other" format.
Feel free to check multiple columns and/or to reflect on the complexities of your experience in the "it's complicated" column.
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"It's complicated!"
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Dominant / Privileged Group MembersSocial + Political + Historical Identity ConstructSubordinated / Marginalized Group Members
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People without disabilities; non-disabledAbilityPeople with a physical, mental, emotional and/or learning disability; people living with HIV/AIDS
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30's to early 50'sAgeOlder; Younger
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Very Athletic, __________________AthleticismNot very athletic,____________________
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U.S. CitizenCitizenshipCitizen of another nation
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Upper class, upper middle classClass (S.E.S.)*Working class; poverty, middle class, _____________________________
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None, N/A, No: Arrests, Felonies or MisdemeanorsCriminal RecordHas an arrest and/or criminal record, specifically after the age of 18
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Bachelor's and / or gradaute degree; private schooling; Second+ generationEducational LevelHigh school diploma, GED; Associate's degree; public schooling; First generation; ___________________________
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"American"; Western European HeritageEthnicity / CultureArmenian; Brazilian; Hmong; Iranian; Jewish; Kurdish; Mexican; Nigerian; Palestinian; Puerto Rican; Roma; ________________________
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Two-parent household with a mother and a father (archetypes) Family of OriginSingle-parent household, guardianship or kinship household, __________________
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Appearance, behaviors are congruent with, valued in the gender binary systemMasculineGender ExpressionAmbiguous, Androgynous, Feminine, ________________Appearance, behaviors not congruent with, valued in the gender binary system
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CisManGender IdentityWoman, Agender, Gender Queer, Nonbinary, __________Trans
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Suburban; valued region of U.S.: East Coast; West Coast; _________________Geographic RegionExurban; Rural; Urban; less valued region of the U.S.: Central, Southern U.S., Gulf Coast
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No affiliation, perhaps claimed without corroboration Indigenous or Tribal AffiliationAboriginal, Ho-Chunk, Inuit; Mohawk, Santal, _______________________________
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Proficient in the "Queen's English;" uses "proper" English, no discernable accent, Monolingual English, uses an embraced dialectLanguageHas an accent: "foreign" or regional, Not proficient in the use of english; code-mesh, code-switch, Bi/Multilingual, monolingual in any other language other than English, less used dialect
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Legally married in a heterosexual monogamous relationshipMarital / Relationship StatusSingle; divorced; widowed; same-sex or unmarried heterosexual relationship; practice polyamory
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Have not served, not in reserve, not activeMilitary Service / StatusActive duty, reserve, veteran service member
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U.S. born, can trace ancestry to a specific country Nation of Origin"Foreign born;" born in a country other than the U.S. ________________________________
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Parent of 2 - 3 children within 2 - parent heterosexual marriageParental StatusSingle parent; do not have children; parents with one child; parents with more than three children; LGBTQ+ parents;
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Democrat; Republican; a party adjacent to those in the two party systemPolitical AffiliationParty not in the two party system, not affiliated / represented, etc.
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WhiteRaceIndigenous / First People, Asian, Black, Native Hawaiian / Alaskan, Pacific Islander, Biracial / Multiracial
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Christian: Catholic; Protestant; _________________________Religion / SpiritualityAgnostic, Atheist, Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Jehovah Witness, Mormon, Muslim, Spiritual, Wiccan, ____________________________
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Easily classified as Female or Male at birthSexIntersex, disorder of sexual development (DSD)
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Heterosexual; MonosexualSexual OrientationAsexual; Bisexual; Gay; Lesbian; Pansexual; Polysexual; Queer; Questioning, _______________
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Fit society's image of attractive, beautiful, handsome, athletic, _______________________Size / AppearancePerceived by others as too fat, tall, short, unattractive, not athletic, __________________
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Light / fair skin; Western European / Caucasian features ______________________Skin Color / Physical CharacteristicsBIPOC, Richly hued, darker skin, Aboriginal, African, Asian features, _____________________
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more years on campusYears on Campusfewer years on campus
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6 - 10 years (mid-level); 11+ years (seasoned)Years of Experience 0 - 5 years (new)
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Grid adapted from Teachings for Diversity and Social Justice, 2nd ed. (2007), the Social Justice Training Institute Professional Participant Guide. b. martinez, K. Obear, and J. Washington, June 2012. With elements from the Intergroup Dialogue Institute of the Program on Intergroup Relations from the University of Michigan, June 2013. Inspired by UW-River Falls PEACE Program. This resource was kindly shared by Warren Scherer, Assistant Dean and Director at the Gender and Sexuality Campus Center. Many thanks!
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