• Ahmed, S. (2010). The Promise of Happiness. Duke University Press.

• Ahmed, S. (2004). The Cultural Politics of Emotion. Routledge.

• Benjamin, R. (2019). Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code. Polity.

• Bishop, A. (2002). Becoming an Ally: Breaking the Cycle of Oppression in People. Zed Books.

• Costanza-Chock, S. (2020). Design Justice: Community-Led Practices to Build the Worlds We Need. MIT Press.

• Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory, and Antiracist Politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum.

• Dillon, G. (2016). Walking the Clouds: An Anthology of Indigenous Science Fiction. University of Arizona Press.

• Eshun, K. (2003). “Further Considerations on Afrofuturism”. CR: The New Centennial Review, 3(2), 287–302.

• Haraway, D. J. (2016). Staying with the Trouble: Making Kin in the Chthulucene. Duke University Press.

• Haraway, D. J. (1988). “Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective”. Feminist Studies, 14(3), 575–599.

• Ibnelkaïd, S. (Forthcoming). Digitally and Colonially Mediated Spaces and Beings: From Oppression to Liberation. Bloomsbury Publishing.

• Kafer, A. (2013). Feminist, Queer, Crip. Indiana University Press.

• Mignolo, W. D. (2007). “Delinking: The Rhetoric of Modernity, the Logic of Coloniality and the Grammar of Decoloniality”. Cultural Studies, 21(2-3), 449–514.

• Muñoz, J. E. (2009). Cruising Utopia: The Then and There of Queer Futurity. NYU Press.

• Nakamura, L. (2008). Digitizing Race: Visual Cultures of the Internet. University of Minnesota Press.

• Nelson, A. (2002). “Afrofuturism: Past-Future Visions”. Social Text, 20(2), 1–19.

• Noble, S. U. (2018). Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism. NYU Press.

• Pillow, W. S. (2003). “Confession, Catharsis, or Cure? Rethinking the Uses of Reflexivity as Methodological Power in Qualitative Research”. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 16(2), 175–196.

• Quijano, A. (2000). “Coloniality of Power, Eurocentrism, and Latin America”. Nepantla: Views from South, 1(3), 533–580.

• Qin, D. (2016). “Positionality”. In Wong, A., Wickramasinghe, M., Hoogland, R.  and Naples, N.A. (eds) The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Gender and Sexuality Studies.

• Rose, G. (1997). “Situating Knowledges: Positionality, Reflexivities and Other Tactics”. Progress in Human Geography, 21(3), 305–320.

• Smith, L. T. (2012). Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. Zed Books.

• Tuck, E., & Yang, K. W. (2012). “Decolonization is Not a Metaphor”. Decolonization: Indigeneity, Education & Society, 1(1), 1–40.

• Whyte, K. (2018). “Indigenous Climate Justice and Settler Colonialism”. Climatic Change, 150(3-4), 399–406.

• Wilson, S. (2008). Research Is Ceremony: Indigenous Research Methods. Fernwood Publishing.

• Wilson, S. (2002). Art + Science Now: How Scientific Research and Technological Innovation are Becoming Key to Contemporary Art. Thames & Hudson.

This short guide will help contributors articulate their positionality,
fostering transparency, reflexivity, and accountability in their artistic/academic work.

What Is a Positionality Statement?

“There’s no enunciation without positionality.

You have to position yourself somewhere

in order to say anything at all”

(Hall 1990: 18)

Positionality, in academic research, refers to “the practice of a researcher delineating [their] own position in relation to the study, with the implication that this position may influence aspect of the study, such as the data collected or the way in which it is interpreted.” (Qin 2016: 1). A positionality statement is thus a reflective account in which contributors critically examine how their personal identities, experiences, and social locations intersect with systems of power and influence their research, artistic practice, or professional work. It is a key tool for fostering reflexivity, an essential practice in intersectional and decolonial scholarship, which emphasizes the importance of situating oneself within the broader social, cultural, and political contexts that shape knowledge production (Haraway, 1988).

The concept of positionality acknowledges that no individual or work is "neutral" or detached from the dynamics of power and privilege. Factors such as racial affiliation, gender identity, sexuality, class, ability, and citizenship status—as well as lived experiences and institutional affiliations—impact not only how one perceives the world but also how one engages with it. Writing a positionality statement helps contributors explicitly articulate how these factors shape their perspective and inform the choices they make in their scholarly or creative work (Rose, 1997).

Why Is Positionality Important?

1. Acknowledging Power and Privilege:
   Positionality requires contributors to critically examine their own power and privilege in relation to their subject matter, audience, and collaborators. For instance, an able-bodied researcher examining digital accessibility must consider how their perspective may differ from those with lived experiences of disability (Kafer, 2013).

2. Enhancing Reflexivity:
   Reflexivity is the process of continually interrogating how one’s own positionality affects the questions they ask, the methods they use, and the interpretations they draw (Pillow, 2003). A positionality statement demonstrates an awareness of this dynamic and highlights efforts to minimize biases or assumptions.

3. Fostering Transparency and Accountability:
   By disclosing positionality, contributors demonstrate their commitment to transparency in their intellectual and creative practices. This accountability strengthens the ethical foundation of their work, particularly when engaging with marginalized communities or sensitive topics (Smith, 2012).

4. Challenging Dominant Epistemologies:
   Traditional academic norms often obscure the researcher’s role in shaping knowledge. Writing a positionality statement aligns with decolonial and feminist epistemologies, which challenge these norms by situating knowledge as partial, relational, and context-dependent (Ahmed, 2010; Tuhiwai Smith, 2012).

What to Include in a Positionality Statement

A positionality statement is highly individual and context-specific, but it typically addresses the following:

• Identity and Lived Experience: Reflect on how your identities and lived experiences—such as race, gender, sexuality, class, disability, or migration status—inform your perspective on the topic.

• Power Dynamics: Examine your relative privilege or marginalization in relation to your subject matter and collaborators. For example, consider whether you are an insider or outsider to the community or issues you are engaging with.

• Motivations and Intentions: Articulate why you are drawn to this topic or artistic practice, and how your work seeks to engage with or challenge existing power structures.

• Ethics and Relationships: Consider the ethical implications of your work, including how you approach collaboration, representation, and accountability to the communities or topics involved.

• Impact on Methodologies and Outputs: Reflect on how your positionality shapes your methodological choices, creative processes, or the way you present your findings.

Example of Positionality in Practice

For instance, a scholar exploring algorithmic bias in digital technologies might note their privileged position as a tech user from a Global North country while acknowledging the limitations of their perspective in understanding the lived realities of algorithmic harm in the Global South (Benjamin, 2019). Similarly, an artist working with Indigenous futurism may reflect on their non-Indigenous identity and describe how they collaborate with Indigenous knowledge holders to avoid cultural appropriation and ensure respectful engagement (Dillon, 2016).

Writing Your Positionality Statement

When writing your positionality statement, strive for honesty, specificity, and critical self-awareness. Avoid performative disclosure or overly generalized statements. Instead, focus on demonstrating a thoughtful engagement with how your positionality shapes your work and its implications.

A strong positionality statement not only enriches the rigor and integrity of your contribution but also aligns with the values of Intersectional Futurisms: Navigating Margins, Disrupting Norms—a space dedicated to fostering critical, expansive, and reflexive scholarship and artistic practice.

References

• Ahmed, S. (2010). The Promise of Happiness. Duke University Press.

• Benjamin, R. (2019). Race After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code. Polity.

• Dillon, G. (2016). Walking the Clouds: An Anthology of Indigenous Science Fiction. University of Arizona Press.

• Haraway, D. J. (1988). "Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective". Feminist Studies, 14(3), 575–599.

• Kafer, A. (2013). Feminist, Queer, Crip. Indiana University Press.

• Pillow, W. S. (2003). "Confession, Catharsis, or Cure? Rethinking the Uses of Reflexivity as Methodological Power in Qualitative Research". International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 16(2), 175–196.

• Rose, G. (1997). "Situating Knowledges: Positionality, Reflexivities and Other Tactics". Progress in Human Geography, 21(3), 305–320.

• Smith, L. T. (2012). Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. Zed Books.

• Qin, D. (2016). “Positionality”. In Wong, A., Wickramasinghe, M., Hoogland, R.  and Naples, N.A. (eds) The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Gender and Sexuality Studies.

(author: Ibnelkaïd Samira)