👁️ Spotting blind spots: Design Justice (Copy)

What is the relationship between design, power and social justice?

We live within systems that shape our lives — who has access, who makes the decisions, what is decided, who benefits and who is left out. Some people refer to this as ‘the matrix of domination’.

The matrix of domination explains how different forms of oppression (such as racism, sexism and class inequality) interact and reinforce one another as an interconnected system — PATRICIA HILLS COLLINS

It is not a conspiracy theory. It is the invisible web of power that shapes what we think, do, consume, how we work and even how we relate to one another.

To start seeing it, ask yourself these questions to identify your own blind spots:

Do I have decision-making power within my spaces (work, academic, social)?

What kind of work do I do, and who benefits most from it?

Which aspects of my identity (gender, race, class, education, sexual orientation, nationality, ability, language) grant me privileges or expose me to oppression? (limitations on access to resources, opportunities, recognition or full participation in society)

In what ways do my everyday decisions perpetuate inequalities? (what you consume and where, how you spend your money, what conversations you have)

“Design justice” is a way of looking at the world that recognises that all design distributes power: it decides who has access, who participates and who is marginalised.

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