At the most fundamental level, and as discussed in the previous section, the Commission heard about how an intersectional approach is necessary to nuanced and effective definitions of ‘racism’ and ‘anti-racism’. Consultation participants and those who made submissions on a national anti-racism framework emphasised the role of intersectionality in shaping experiences of race and racism. Participants expressed how understanding racism only through the category of race obscures the complexity of racism. Recognising intersectionality means recognising racism as a complex and constantly shifting phenomenon – one that interlocks multiple social relations of power and forms of discrimination, and, in doing so, results in distinct and compounding harms and traumas. Most people are part of an intersectional community, but the system doesn’t recognise this. — consultation with First Nations organisation, NARF project, May 2021 – April 2022 As feedback from consultations and submissions highlighted, working intersectionality into definitions and understandings of racism will have practical significance in strategic approaches to anti-racism work. When policy, programs and the law accommodate intersectional experiences and harms, they can respond meaningfully to the breadth and complexity of racism, including the myriad structures of power implicated in the process. Intersection is where we can make change. — consultation with First Nations organisation, NARF project, May 2021 – April 2022 Project participants shared with the Commission the following examples of how intersectionality can shape the forms and harms of racism that are perpetrated interpersonally, institutionally, and systemically. While the focus here is on harms, the intention is not to reinforce racial or colonial mechanisms, but rather to recognise the power of articulating and understanding them in order to continue developing effective paths for anti-racism efforts. While these experiences are grouped into categories such as disability and age for convenience, experiences of race and racism can occur through the intersection of multiple, and not just two, categories. True to lived experience, the lines between the following categories are fluid and indistinct. The Commission also understands the importance of situating this focus on harms within its broader context where negatively racialised people and communities are engaged in and leading anti-racism and successfully participating and thriving in all aspects of public life. During the consultation and submissions process, however, the importance of articulating these intersecting harms, their consequences, and proposed solutions to address them was a key priority of participants and as such, a key responsibility of the Commission to analyse and report. National Anti-Racism Framework Scoping Report 2022 | 61