Blackening careers beyond barriers: Intersectional experiences of black women in imperial careers

Abstract

This article investigates how Black Brazilian women navigate and transform careers in the fields of medicine, law, and engineering, professions historically characterized by elitism, racism, and sexism. Employing intersectionality as a theoretical framework, methodological approach, and activist tool, the study analyses personal narratives to demonstrate how these women confront systemic oppression, develop racial and gender consciousness, and challenge the exclusionary norms within their respective fields. The analysis is guided by three principal dimensions: (1) the awareness of occupying spaces historically denied to them, (2) encounters with elite, White, and male-dominated environments and their associated controlling images, and (3) collective resistance and the redefinition of professional trajectories. The concept of Blackening Careers is introduced to depict how these women resist marginalization and redefine career meanings through social justice efforts and collective action. These findings contribute to feminist and decolonial perspectives on careers within contexts shaped by racialized and colonial legacies.