The Struggle over Intersectionality: Competing Constructions of Inequality in the European Parliament

Intersectionality is increasingly invoked within formal political arenas, among which are European Union (EU) institutions. The European Commission, through its 2019 Union of Equality agenda, has explicitly adopted intersectionality as a guiding principle for supranational equality policymaking, promising to integrate it across areas such as gender equality, LGBTQ+ rights, anti-racism, and disability. Yet, as intersectionality enters institutional venues, its meaning and purpose are exposed to processes of contestation and (re-)interpretation. This study examines how these dynamics unfold within the European Parliament (EP)—a central arena where the EU’s equality agenda is debated, legitimized, and translated into political discourse. Focusing on plenary debates held between 2020 and 2024, we analyze how Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) engage with, adapt to, or resist the intersectional turn in EU equality policy. We expect right-wing populist (RWP) actors to challenge intersectionality’s social justice logic by reframing structural hierarchies as inverted victimhoods—portraying heterosexual, ethnic majority men or other majority groups as the “real” marginalized. Equality-oriented actors defending an intersectional understanding of inequality against populist challenges may reaffirm its emphasis on structural and compounding forms of oppression. However, they may also strategically adjust intersectional ideas to the polarized political reality of contestation, reframing them to broaden their appeal and build wider support—thereby softening their critical edge and transformative potential. We employ an original seven-dimensional analytical framework to operationalize intersectionality in discourse. This framework enables a systematic examination of how multiple axes of inequality are represented, connected, and prioritized in political speech. Methodologically, we conduct a qualitative content analysis of EP plenary debates and MEPs’ explanations of the vote related to the Union of Equality framework, covering the topics of gender equality, LGBTQ+ rights, anti-racism, disability, and Roma inclusion. The paper contributes to research on the institutional translation and contestation of intersectionality and, more broadly, to debates on how right-wing populism reshapes the language and boundaries of equality in contemporary democracies.