This study falls within the theoretical framework of Inclusive Education and Critical Disability Studies. Inclusive education supports that all children, especially children that have traditionally been excluded because of their identities, can be educated together and on equal terms with their peers (Ainscow, Booth, & Dyson, 2006). However, research in the field has mostly focused on specific groups of children (e.g. children with disabilities, children with immigrant background, refugee children) analyzing their experiences as the outcome of one identity and not as the outcome of intersection of identities. This often leads to “a monolithic view of children” (Waitoller & Kozleski, 2013, p.4) ignoring characteristics, experiences and important aspects that may affect the trajectory of their life. In this framework, examining the potential of the education system to consider the intersection of children’s identities becomes important (Besic, 2020).

Kimberlé Crenshaw (1989, 1991) proposed the term ‘intersectionality’ as the metaphor for understanding the way a person's characteristics and identities intersect and the ways that multiple forms of inequality sometimes compound and create obstacles. Originally, she used the term as a tool for studying the ways in which gender intersects with other identities and how these intersections constitute unique experiences for each individual (Crenshaw, Gotanda, Peller & Thomas, 1995). At the same time, disability feminists introduced the terms 'double oppression' and ‘multiple oppression’, arguing that all aspects of personal experience must be recognized and explored as a way to include the intersection of disability with other identities and experiences, such as gender (Vernon, 1996, 1998).

In this context, the concept of intersectionality was raised in Critical Disability Studies (CDS), encouraging us to focus on the life experiences of people with multiple identities, including disability. CDS recognizes that disability is constructed and understood culturally, politically, theoretically and socially (Goodley, 2017).  Research over the past years has mostly examined the identity of disability in relation to gender, race, sexual orientation, immigrant biography, and refugee background. What emerged through analysis is that people with disability and other identities that are considered as minorities may: (a) experience discrimination and marginalization from both mainstream communities and within the minority communities to which they belong, (b) develop practices of survival and resistance to the oppression they obtain and use their different identities as supportive of each other, (c) be indirectly forced to hide or reject some of the identities which in some cases results in abandoning their culture, language and preferences and (d) experience the intersection of their identities in a different way, depending on their social status, family and culture (Boydell, Bennett, Dew, Lappin, Lenette, Ussher, Vaughan & Wells, 2020; Fylling & Melbo, 2019; Miles, 2019).

In brief, intersectionality is not just a theoretical argument, but an approach that means more than being oppressed due to the intersection of your race and gender (Esposito & Evans-Winters, 2022). Intersectionality encourages us to focus on the experiences of people with disability and highlights the importance of implementing a social justice approach in education policy and practice. Specifically, intersectional understandings of disability can initiate new forms of pedagogical thinking, highlighting on students' intersecting identities and how these intersections contribute to students' experiences of discrimination and oppression on the principles of inclusive education (Liasidou, 2013).

This research aims to examine how the intersectional identities of a woman with disability can be used in a critical conversation about intersectionality and inclusive education. More specifically, it aims to explore the following research question: How do the intersectional identities of a woman influence her life trajectory by her experiences in the education system?  

The paper will focus on Zoe’s case study (pseudonym), a 40-year old woman from Cyprus who grew up in the USA, diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and with mental health problems (bipolar disorder and schizoaffective disorder) while at school. Zoe identified herself as bisexual and lived a turbulent life (medication at school, drug addiction, sexual harassment). Zoe is part of a sample of 12 women who were selected through purposive and chain sampling (Cohen, Manion & Morrison, 2008), meeting the criteria set for the study, i.e. women with any type of impairment; with two or more identities for which they are likely to experience discrimination, including disability (e.g. sexual orientation, social class, immigrant/refugee background); aged between 18-70 years old. Data collection entailed an audio-taped oral history interview (128 min) and a second interview (57 min) based on the collection of Zoe’s personal objects/artefacts. Zoe was informed about the research focus, her rights during the process (i.e. anonymity, right to withdraw any time, right to verify the transcription of the interview) and signed an informed consent form. One of the two authors of this abstract conducted the oral history interview, ensuring that her background and identities were not a barrier to Zoe feeling comfortable to share her story (Cohen, Manion & Morrison, 2008). In particular, the researcher was younger than Zoe (28 years old), without a family of her own, and with no experiences of social oppression or marginalization. Thus, a genuine effort to gain trust and not present herself as an "expert" of life experiences (Mertens, 2009) facilitated the communication during the interview. Thematic narrative analysis was selected as a content analysis method as it merges well with the concept of intersectionality (Esposito & Evans-Winters, 2022). In specific Zoe’s life experiences were analyzed through a first-person narrative portrait. This method prioritizes the way people that have been marginalized from mainstream society, make sense of their own experiences and situate their life stories within a particular context (Rodríguez-Dorans, 2023). In addition, narrative portraits as a methodology is more appropriate in this case study because it simultaneously highlights important aspects of Zoe’s intersecting identities and deals with the research data, contextualizing the story in numerous different ways (Esposito & Evans-Winters, 2022; Rodríguez-Dorans, 2023).

Analysis reveals a number of intersectional experiences that marked Zoe’s life. For example, Zoe reports that she was discriminated against because of her race in intersection with her mental health issues. This was the starting point of her marginalization in the educational system: “So, I grew up discriminated against because of my race…I never fit in […] and I started causing problems like in class or acting out.” Apart from the intersection of Zoe’s identities as a bisexual disabled woman with immigrant background, other experiences affected her life trajectory, especially during her school years. Some of the factors that are mentioned and seem to have intersected with her identities are medication at school, drug addiction, and sexual harassment. For example, the decision of taking medication since the age of 12 due to her mental health issues and her diagnosis with ADHD in the American educational system, led, according to Zoe, to turning into a drug addict at a later stage: “[…] So I was already hooked because they were giving me small doses in the morning…They basically turned me into a drug addict cause the moment I tried this street version of amphetamine and methamphetamine, I was an addict”. Zoe’s narrative portrait sparks connections on how the intersectional identities and experiences of a woman with disability can be used in a critical conversation about intersectionality and inclusive education. More specifically, this paper will discuss the way in which a person’s life may be affected by considering multiple identities in the educational system and in what way this leads to different choices or courses, that interrelate and affect one’s life in a positive or a negative way. This perspective requires for a new discourse of inclusive education that focuses on the intersections of students’ multiple identities (Besic, 2020).

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