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If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice, or representation.

Representation, then, is not - nor can it be - neutral; it is an act - indeed the founding act - of power in our culture.

If Thomas Jefferson thought taxation without representation was bad, he should see how it is with representation.

I want everyone to vote. I want everyone to be a part of electing officials. Because when we are not a part, when we don't have a very broad voter base, then we don't have true representation.

Representation is a crucial location of struggle for any exploited and oppressed people asserting subjectivity and decolonization of the mind.

The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.

Representation of the world, like the world itself, is the work of men; they describe it from their own point of view, which they confuse with the absolute truth.

People learn who they are by the images of themselves, the representations that they seek.

There is a lot of work to be done to make sure our leaders reflect the people they are supposed to represent. The more diverse a group of decision makers is, the more informed the decision will be. Until we achieve full representation, we all should understand we are falling short of the ideals of our country.

Because having your story told as a woman, as a person of color, as a lesbian, as a trans person, or as any member of any disenfranchised community, is sadly often still a radical idea. There is so much power in storytelling, and there is enormous power in inclusive storytelling, in inclusive representations.

If you understand something in only one way, then you don't really understand it at all. The secret of what anything means to us depends on how we've connected it to all other things we know. Well-connected representations let you turn ideas around in your mind, to envision things from many perspectives until you find one that works for you. And that's what we mean by thinking!

All men can understand what representation is; and that it must necessarily include a variety of knowledge and talents.

Because once the black man becomes the political master of his own community, it means that the politicians of that community will also be black, which also means that he then will be sending black representation or representatives not only to represent him at the local level and at the state level, but, but even at the federal level.

What we must eliminate are systems of representation that carry with them the authority which has become repressive because it doesn't permit or make room for interventions on the part of those represented.

Taxation without representation is tyranny.

Confidence is the only key. I know a lot of people who aren't traditionally 'beautiful' - not symmetrical or perfect-bodied or perfect-skinned. But none of that matters because all that shines through is their confidence, humor, and comfort with themselves. I can't think of any better representation of beauty than someone who is unafraid to be herself.

The issue of who gets to define the future, own the nation's wealth, shape the parameters of the social state, control the globe's resources, and create a formative culture for producing engaged and socially responsible citizens is no longer a rhetorical issue, but offers up new categories for defining how matters of representations, education, economic justice, and politics are to be defined and fought over. At stake here is the need for both a language of critique and possibility.

When we visualize something, we establish a relationship to the thing itself, not to some mere subjective representation of it inside us.

If taxes are laid upon us without our having a legal representation where they are laid, we are reduced from the character of free subjects to the state of tributary slaves.

I think it's important to present role models for young women coming up. I really do believe you can't be what you can't see, and representation matters. So, for me, it's the idea of putting women in media in ways that present them as having power, being heard, being true to themselves, and done from the perspective of women.

Every representation, even of an orgy, is a sublimation.

Abstraction and representation are supposed to be going down two very different paths, one sociological and the other aesthetic.

Every life has dark tracts and long stretches of somber tint, and no representation is true to fact which dips its pencil only in light, and flings no shadows on the canvas.

Art is the concrete representation of our most subtle feelings.

I think in fact that unless there is an organic link between the subjective impressions of the author and his objective representation of reality, he will not achieve even superficial credibility, let alone authenticity and inner truth.

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Representation quotes by:

• Immanuel Kant Philosopher
• Aristotle Philosopher
• Alexander Hamilton Founding Father of the United States
• George Saunders Writer
• Arthur Schopenhauer Philosopher
• Gustave Courbet Painter
• Edward Said Professor
• Richard Misrach Photographer
• Bakari Kitwana
• Kerry James Marshall Artist
• Junot Diaz Writer
• Emile Durkheim Sociologist
• Guy Debord Writer

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Quotes about Representation

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Representation of the world, like the world itself, is the work of men; they describe it from their own point of view, which they confuse with the absolute truth. Votes: 5

I used to say: "Everything is Representation Theory". Now I say: "Nothing is Representation Theory". Votes: 3

Painting is the representation of visible forms. The essence of realism is its negation of the ideal. Votes: 3

Representation is a crucial location of struggle for any exploited and oppressed people asserting subjectivity and decolonization of the mind. Votes: 3

The poet ranks far below the painter in the representation of visible things, and far below the musician in that of invisible things. Votes: 3

Representation, then, is not - nor can it be - neutral; it is an act - indeed the founding act - of power in our culture. Votes: 3

A tragedy is a representation of an action that is whole and complete and of a certain magnitude. A whole is what has a beginning and middle and end. Votes: 3

If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice, or representation. Votes: 3

Representation is very important to everyone, but especially to girls like me, and people like me, whether it be because of my body, because of my race, because of my skin color, because of my awkwardness or where I come from. Votes: 3

The true principle of a republic is that the people should choose whom they please to govern them. Representation is imperfect, in proportion as the current of popular favor is checked. The great source of free government, popular election, should be perfectly pure, and the most unbounded liberty allowed. Votes: 3

Taxation without representation is tyranny. Votes: 2

Art is the concrete representation of our most subtle feelings. Votes: 2

Experiences aren't pornographic; only images and representations - structures of the imagination - are. Votes: 2

Our forefathers made one mistake. What they should have fought for was representation without taxation. Votes: 2

I can't think of any better representation of beauty than someone who is unafraid to be herself. Votes: 2

If Thomas Jefferson thought taxation without representation was bad, he should see how it is with representation. Votes: 2

The spoken form is in fact a very restrained representation of what is possible in the musical language. Votes: 2

Natural science physics contains in itself synthetical judgments a priori, as principles. ... Space then is a necessary representation a priori, which serves for the foundation of all external intuitions. Votes: 2

If taxes are laid upon us without our having a legal representation where they are laid, we are reduced from the character of free subjects to the state of tributary slaves. Votes: 2

Every life has dark tracts and long stretches of somber tint, and no representation is true to fact which dips its pencil only in light, and flings no shadows on the canvas. Votes: 2

I think it would be folly to expect that women will ever dominate or even approach equal representation in a large number of areas simply because their aptitudes, abilities and interests are different for physiological reasons Votes: 2

A graphic representation of data abstracted from the banks of every computer in the human system. Unthinkable complexity. Lines of light ranged in the nonspace of the mind, clusters and constellations of data. Like city lights, receding. Votes: 2

As I say at the beginning of my workshops, 'Everything I say here is a lie -- bullshit, in other words -- because anything that you put in words is not experience, is not the experiment. It's a representation -- a misrepresentation. Votes: 2

The important role of union organizations must be admitted: their object is the representation of the various categories of workers, their lawful collaboration in the economic advance of society, and the development of the sense of their responsibility for the realization of the common good. Votes: 2

And you have to remember that I came to America as an immigrant. You know, on a ship, through the Statue of Liberty. And I saw that skyline, not just as a representation of steel and concrete and glass, but as really the substance of the American Dream Votes: 2

Many Americans do not realize that we could institute proportional representation for most elections in the U.S. without amending the Constitution. In helping to educate the public about the potential for voting system reform, CVD can play a central role in a pro-democracy movement right here in America! Votes: 2

The Promised Land was a tangible representation of God's ultimate desire for His people, but they failed to comprehend His gift for at least three reasons: It was unconditionally promised, it was outrageously generous, and it was absolutely free. None of those make sense in the world as we know it... Votes: 2

Confidence is the only key. I know a lot of people who aren't traditionally 'beautiful' - not symmetrical or perfect-bodied or perfect-skinned. But none of that matters because all that shines through is their confidence, humor, and comfort with themselves. I can't think of any better representation of beauty than someone who is unafraid to be herself. Votes: 2

Artwork is a representation of our devotion to life. Votes: 1

My mustache has become this weird iconic representation of a certain era. Votes: 1

No good is ever done to society by the pictorial representation of its diseases. Votes: 1

I like photography as a recording device. It's the best possible two-dimensional representation of 3D living things that we have. Votes: 1

In my experience, sometimes a movie just hits at the wrong time, gets the wrong press, or gets the wrong representation, and it gets misunderstood. Votes: 1

Consciousness, much like our feelings, is based on a representation of the body and how it changes when reacting to certain stimuli. Self-image would be unthinkable without this representation. Votes: 1

The world is a complex place, and the influence of the media in its representation and its power of communication and interpretation is a remarkable amplifier of emotions, and of illusions. Votes: 1

Choosing to work where there is a union and getting the related benefits of higher wages and collective bargaining, but not paying a fair share of the costs of representation, would be freeloading, right? Votes: 1

I don't want to imitate life in movies; I want to represent it. And in that representation, you use the colors you feel, and sometimes they are fake colors. But always it's to show one emotion. Votes: 1

The World Trade Center is a living symbol of man's dedication to world peace... a representation of man's belief in humanity, his need for individual dignity, his beliefs in the cooperation of men, and, through cooperation, his ability to find greatness. Votes: 1

The representation of the tabernacle arose out of the temple of Solomon as its root, in dependence on the sacred ark, for which there is early testimony, and which in the time of David, and also before it, was sheltered by a tent. Votes: 1

My father-in-law and I always had great interest in Indian sport. At the Athens Olympics, watching the wrestling event, we started discussing the state of Indian sport - inadequate representation, lack of satisfactory results etc. We thought we should do something about it. Votes: 1

Our Founding Fathers crafted a constitutional Republic for the first time in the history of the world because they were shaping a form of government that would not have the failures of a democracy in it, but had the representation of democracy in it. Votes: 1

Many billboards and magazine ads have resorted to showing isolated body parts rather than full-body portraits of models using or wearing products. This style of photography, known in the industry as abstract representation, allows the viewer to see himself in the advertisement, rather than the model. Votes: 1

And this whole period of time of gradually working at being a better guitar player and songwriter have gradually led me to the point where I feel I'm doing a clearer representation of the thing that I've been feeling inside me since I was four years old. Votes: 1

Yes, my fellow citizens, despite what the original Constitution of the United States says about the qualifications for statehood and the guarantee of representation in Congress, by every measure that truly matters in America (bigness, crowdedness, awesomeness, Texasness), Nebraska doesn't deserve its star on the American flag. Votes: 1

And you have to remember that I came to America as an immigrant. You know, on a ship, through the Statue of Liberty. And I saw that skyline, not just as a representation of steel and concrete and glass, but as really the substance of the American Dream. Votes: 1

A painter, who finds no satisfaction in mere representation, however artistic, in his longing to express his inner life, cannot but envy the ease with which music, the most non-material of the arts today, achieves this end. He naturally seeks to apply the methods of music to his own art. Votes: 1

Like probably a lot of people, I came away from watching films like 'Miss Representation' and 'Half the Sky' with the realization that the battle for women's rights is not over, especially not globally, and that the moral imperative of our century is to achieve full rights for everyone regardless of gender. Votes: 1

The U.S. Military is us. There is no truer representation of a country than the people that it sends into the field to fight for it. The people who wear our uniform and carry our rifles into combat are our kids, and our job is to support them, because they're protecting us. Votes: 1

More and more these days what I find myself doing in my stories is making a representation of goodness and a representation of evil and then having those two run at each other full-speed, like a couple of PeeWee football players, to see what happens. Who stays standing? Whose helmet goes flying off? Votes: 1

The world is my representation Votes: 0

Anything can be painted without representation. Votes: 0

Any representation of God produces accordingly. Votes: 0

To me, food is a representation of your soul. Votes: 0

Every representation, even of an orgy, is a sublimation. Votes: 0

We can achieve much greater representation through term-limited members. Votes: 0

All that was once directly lived has become mere representation. Votes: 0

All that once was directly lived has become mere representation. Votes: 0

What we should have fought for was representation without taxation. Votes: 0

The key to artificial intelligence has always been the representation. Votes: 0

There is no proportional representation requirement in the Equal Protection Clause Votes: 0

We're highly adaptable and have developed some powerful systems of representation. Votes: 0

There is no proportional representation requirement in the Equal Protection Clause. Votes: 0

I think every record, good or bad, is a representation of us. Votes: 0

Gish was the best representation of where we were at the time. Votes: 0

Without design, there may be representation, but there can be no art. Votes: 0

picture, n. A representation in two dimensions of something wearisome in three. Votes: 0

Reality changes; in order to represent it, modes of representation must change. Votes: 0

If comics are modern mythology, then black participation and representation is crucial. Votes: 0

There's a lot of bleeding idiots in t'country and they deserve some representation. Votes: 0

Succession planning often results in the selection of a weaker representation of yourself. Votes: 0

Speech is the representation of the mind, and writing is the representation of speech. Votes: 0

Drawing is the representation of form - the graphic expression of a visual experience. Votes: 0

Did you ever get to wondering if taxation without representation might have been cheaper? Votes: 0

From the perspective of mere representation, the external world always remains only a phenomenon. Votes: 0

Or whatever politically correct spiritual representation of universal goodness you happen to believe in. Votes: 0

When it comes to sexuality, sensuality, self-representation, self-nurturance - America fails in those departments. Votes: 0

The character of the subject must influence the choice of the method of its representation. Votes: 0

Nature has a counterpart, a representation of every interior mood and obscure perception of man. Votes: 0

More than half of America's rural counties are losing population and with it, political representation. Votes: 0

Because I'm interested in depiction, representation, therefore you're interested in photography. You don't ignore it. Votes: 0

I'd love to see more equal representation of female and male cartoonists on the comics page. Votes: 0

The fact is fiction is always a representation of life, sometimes the lives of famous people. Votes: 0

Movies aren't just supposed to be a representation of reality. They're supposed to be an art. Votes: 0

Acting is the physical representation of a mental picture and the projection of an emotional concept. Votes: 0

Art does not want the representation of a beautiful thing, but the representation of something beautiful. Votes: 0

I myself share with the Conservative Party a profound dislike for such fandangles as proportional representation. Votes: 0

The most prevalent poetic representation of contemporary experience is the mimesis of disorientation by non sequitor. Votes: 0

It was necessary that the Devil should have a representation upon the earth as well as God. Votes: 0

Open source is important to our orgs as a talent pool; we need better representation of women. Votes: 0

Photography [can] be seen as a system of representation that you bring to bear on other systems. Votes: 0

A timeline is a linear representation of cause and effect, changing one event alters all that follow. Votes: 0

There is no such thing as a 'real' representation of 'reality.' Except, perhaps, in algebraic formulae. Votes: 0

Virtual representation is so absurd as to not deserve an answer. I therefore pass it over with contempt. Votes: 0

Painting is an essentially concrete art and can only consist of the representation of real and existing things. Votes: 0

Completion does not depend on material representation. The work is done when that special thing has been said. Votes: 0

For families to access affordable housing, they often need legal representation that takes their side against abusive landlords. Votes: 0

Abstraction returned as soon as artists tried to come to closer grips with reality than naturalistic representation permitted... Votes: 0

We gave up on the idea of trying to make the record a good representation of the live performance. Votes: 0

There are a lot of idiots in this country, and they deserve representation as much as the next man. Votes: 0

The transposition that a painter makes with an original vision gives to the representation of nature a new interest. Votes: 0

Providing adequate representation even for defendants who appear guilty is the best way to protect those who are not. Votes: 0

All men can understand what representation is; and that it must necessarily include a variety of knowledge and talents. Votes: 0

Abstraction and representation are supposed to be going down two very different paths, one sociological and the other aesthetic. Votes: 0

We have a Scottish Parliament and National Assembly for Wales, both elected by fairer votes - involving proportional representation. Votes: 0

Every revolutionary thinker in America, White, Black, Brown or Red, never got the true representation from the corporate-controlled media. Votes: 0

I'm a big advocate of music being an honest representation of who you are as a person and your perspective. Votes: 0

You can't make a representation and then claim you didn't make it. You know, it just shouldn't work that way. Votes: 0

I think New York has the most diverse and best quality representation of so many different cuisines at all levels. Votes: 0

Diversity in literature is, in part, about representation - who is telling the stories and who stories are told about. Votes: 0

I will always find even the worst paintings that attempt some kind of representation better than the best invented paintings. Votes: 0

Creating a representation of yourself for the Internet stopped making sense when we were all on phones and connected everywhere. Votes: 0

Under-representation of women and other inequality among researchers is a problem that will not solve itself as women acquire competence. Votes: 0

The supreme power cannot take from any man any part of his property, without his consent in person, or by representation. Votes: 0

There are lawyers who believe in client-centered representation and who are dedicated on the same level I feel I was dedicated. Votes: 0

In the final analysis, style is art. And art is nothing more or less than various modes of stylized, dehumanized representation. Votes: 0

Apparently it was unethical for lawyers to sleep with their clients. This from a man who offered legal representation to assassins. Votes: 0

On the perfect night there is nothing more transcendent or terrifying than boxing. It's the ultimate representation of the guilty pleasure. Votes: 0

The anxiety of fate is conquered by the self-affirmation of the individual as an infinitely significant microcosmic representation of the universe . Votes: 0

I used to be a fan of proportional representation, but I am not at all now I have seen it in action. Votes: 0

Broad City' is how I wish we could all be, whereas 'Girls' is maybe a more accurate representation of how things are. Votes: 0

I consider myself neither legally nor morally bound to obey the laws made by a body in which I have no representation. Votes: 0

I return my tax bill without paying it. My reason for doing so is that women suffer taxation yet have not representation. Votes: 0

Form is sometimes considered a mere spice added by the artist to the representation of objects in order to make it pleasurable. Votes: 0

There is one solution to all of our problems: Teaching our kids clarity of thought and political representation in democracy. That's it. Votes: 0

When we visualize something, we establish a relationship to the thing itself, not to some mere subjective representation of it inside us. Votes: 0

As the ego cogito, subjectivity is the consciousness that represents something, relates this representation back to itself, and so gathers with itself. Votes: 0

Beauty comes from the balance between two and three dimensions, between abstraction and representation - I seek the equilibrium behind changing appearances. Votes: 0

The observer must learn to look at the picture as a graphic representation of a mood and not as a representation of objects. Votes: 0

Remember, a word is an invention, a symbol for an idea. Written text began as an artistic representation of a thought or event. Votes: 0

If our Trade be taxed, why not our Lands, or Produce in short, everything we possess? They tax us without having legal representation. Votes: 0

Bisexuality is the proportional representation of sexuality in a world where most of us - straight or gay - operate a first-past-the-post system. Votes: 0

reports about very innocent people being thrown into detention where they could be held for years without any representation or charges is distressing. Votes: 0

Picasso had nicknamed Georges Braque "Wilbur," thereby becoming "Orville" in their Wright Brothers-like ambition to get painting off the ground of conventional representation. Votes: 0

We are more than the work we perform. In fact, I'd say that our work is a mere representation of who we are underneath. Votes: 0

I think clothes are very much a representation of your attitude and the way you feel. I really love to be dressed down, though. Votes: 0

I understood that 'The Yellow Birds' would be a peculiar representation of the experience of being at war. I intended it to be so. Votes: 0

During its development the animal passes through all stages of the animal kingdom. The foetus is a representation of all animal classes in time. Votes: 0

A picture was a motionless record of motion. An arrested representation of life. A picture was the kiss of death pretending to possess immutability. Votes: 0

A creature who has spent his life creating one particular representation of his selfdom will die rather than become the antithesis of that representation Votes: 0

In many respects, theater is still grappling with problems of reality and representation that the visual art movement realized were unimportant many years ago. Votes: 0

Formal symbolic representation of qualitative entities is doomed to its rightful place of minor significance in a world where flowers and beautiful women abound. Votes: 0

PowerPoint is like being trapped in the style of early Egyptian flatland cartoons rather than using the more effective tools of Renaissance visual representation. Votes: 0

Neither democracy nor effective representation is possible until each participant in the group...devotes a measurable part of his life to furthering its existence. Votes: 0

It is my sense of exclusion from representation that made me want to be a part of figuring out if we could make a difference. Votes: 0

I am for an art that takes into account the direct effect of the elements as they exist from day to day apart from representation. Votes: 0

Any child knows that history can only be a reduced representation of reality, but it must be a true one, not distorted by queer lenses. Votes: 0

The writer's first affinity is not to a loyalty, a tradition, a morality, a religion, but to life itself, and to its representation in language. Votes: 0

Most criminal defendants do not get adequate representation because there are not enough public defenders to represent them. There is a lot that is wrong. Votes: 0

The American colonies, all know, were greatly opposed to taxation without representation. They were also, a less celebrated quality, equally opposed to taxation with representation. Votes: 0

In 1790, the nation which had fought a revolution against taxation without representation discovered that some of its citizens weren't much happier about taxation with representation. Votes: 0

Hence it is from the representation of things spoken by means of posture and gesture that the whole of the art of dance has been elaborated. Votes: 0

I'm very shocked when I look at television and I see such an aggressive youth and image obsession in the representation of women on our screens. Votes: 0

I devoted myself to writing for years without representation or a promise of anything. And there were times when I felt quite down about my prospects. Votes: 0

When the true qualities of photography are recognized, the process of representation by mechanical means will be brought to a level of perfection never before reached. Votes: 0

Tyranny is usually tempered with assassination, and Democracy must be tempered with culture. In the absence of this, it turns into a representation of collective folly. Votes: 0

Utopia would seem to offer the spectacle of one of those rare phenomena whose concept is indistinguishable from its reality, whose ontology coincides with its representation. Votes: 0

...things become mainstream when they become imaged over and over again. Something happens in relationship to ideas of representation that makes it more palatable or digestible. Votes: 0

In response to the challenge of strangers, sport arose as a sublimated representation of a community's armed might as well as its pride of place and clan. Votes: 0

The desire of representation exists only insofar as the original is always deferred. It is only in the absence of the original that representation can take place. Votes: 0

The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting for this representation. Votes: 0

I love the gallery, the arena of representation. It's a commercial world, and morality is based generally around economics, and that's taking place in the art gallery. Votes: 0

Poetry cannot afford to lose its fundamentally self-delighting inventiveness, its joy in being a process of language as well as a representation of things in the world. Votes: 0

It [the computer] is the first metamedium, and as such it has degrees of freedom for representation and expression never before encountered and as yet barely investigated Votes: 0

In England the practice of "virtual" representation provided reasonably well for the actual representation of the major interests of the society, and it raised no widespread objection. Votes: 0

Also, the Federal Advisory Committee should be enlarged and reorganized. Members should be chosen for the broadest possible representation of the public interest, their main qualification: ability. Votes: 0

But I do not know whether the photograph can, or does, say things as they really are. Something has been lost. But the representation is all we have. Votes: 0

So many of us are hungry for stories with more racial diversity, more truth in representation, and I am anxious to help tell those stories in the future. Votes: 0

Insincerity in a man's own heart must make all his enjoyments, all that concerns him, unreal; so that his whole life must seem like a merely dramatic representation. Votes: 0

The only real good technology is no technology at all. Technology is taxation without representation, imposed by our elitist species (man) upon the rest of the natural world. Votes: 0

You don't think of yourself as your external representation, or even your national origin or anything like that. You don't reduce yourself to that. That's kind of unthinkable. Votes: 0

If we wish to discuss knowledge in the most highly developed contemporary society, we must answer the preliminary question of what methodological representation to apply to that society Votes: 0

If we wish to discuss knowledge in the most highly developed contemporary society, we must answer the preliminary question of what methodological representation to apply to that society. Votes: 0

Instead, I was interested in what I guess I could call narrative indeterminacy, in questioning the apparent, taken-for-granted authority of any particular representation of the events in question. Votes: 0

Mainstream medias representation, or its guerrilla decontextualization, of black mens lives in particular can set the stage for erroneous assumptions capable of damaging an individual or a nation. Votes: 0

Mainstream media's representation, or its guerrilla decontextualization, of black men's lives in particular can set the stage for erroneous assumptions capable of damaging an individual or a nation. Votes: 0

As the print of the seal on the wax is the express image of the seal itself, so Christ is the express image - the perfect representation of God. Votes: 0

When I make a representation of something, this, too, is an analogy to what exists; I make an effort to get a grip on the thing by depicting it. Votes: 0

A novelist has mad a fictional representation of life. I doing so, he has revealed to us more significance, it may be, than he could find in life itself. Votes: 0

A republic, by which I mean a government in which the scheme of representation takes place, opens a different prospect and promises the cure for which we are seeking. Votes: 0

Time is not an empirical concept. For neither co-existence nor succession would be perceived by us, if the representation of time did not exist as a foundation a priori. Votes: 0

For me, the main point is that reality is rich. We can respond to it more immediately and directly, in ways where there's less displacement between representation and reality. Votes: 0

Have you never seen a strange unconnected deformed representation of a figure, which seen in another point of view, became proportioned and agreeable? It is the picture of man. Votes: 0

If the technical innovations of the Impressionists led merely to a more accurate representation of nature, it was perhaps of not much value in enlarging their powers of expression. Votes: 0

For it is precisely because certain groups have no representation in a number of recognized political structures that their position tends to be so stable, their oppression so continuous. Votes: 0

Today I wonder why it is God refers to Himself as 'Father' at all. This, to me, in light of the earthly representation of the role, seems a marketing mistake. Votes: 0

As a territory, American Samoa has no representation in the U.S. Senate, and we Samoans lost a respected and powerful ally with the passing of Hawaii Sen. Daniel Inouye. Votes: 0

The fundamental purpose of a novel like Count Julian is to achieve the unity of object and means of representation, the fusion of treason as scheme and treason as language. Votes: 0

It's one thing to be talented, but the other thing is connections - with agents, with people; that's what makes a difference, and from the beginning, I've had wonderful representation. Votes: 0

Practice by drawing things large, as if equal in representation and reality. In small drawings every large weakness is easily hidden; in the large, the smallest weakness is easily seen. Votes: 0

It seems Palestinians can't win. The language of peace negotiations has always been predicated on a representation that Palestinians are violent and that is why Israel behaves as it does. Votes: 0

The reactions haven't differed; the concerns have been different. When I read for a predominantly Indian audience, there are more questions that are based on issues of identity and representation. Votes: 0

In societies where modern conditions of production prevail, all of life presents itself as an immense accumulation of spectacles. Everything that was directly lived has moved away into a representation. Votes: 0

Never fall for a person's image and status as the may serve as a false representation of character. Watch closely the character and you"ll know who a person really is. Votes: 0

Art can no longer be merely a mirror, it must act as the organizer of the people's consciousness... No form of representation is so readily comprehensible to the masses as photography. Votes: 0

The critic is actually describing a conscious representation of their interaction with the wine, and therefore the score of rating is a property of that interaction and not the wine itself Votes: 0

We assume whiteness is the default because whiteness, historically, has been the default. This is one of the many reasons diverse representation matters so much. We need to change the default. Votes: 0

Having no diplomatic representation in Washington, China has no sources which allow her to check the character of applicants and therefore makes the practice of refusing everybody from the United States. Votes: 0

I was the only Black person on the set. It was unusual for me to be in a circumstance in which every move I made was tantamount to representation of 18 million people. Votes: 0

The pleasure we derive from the representation of the present is due, not only to the beauty it can be clothed in, but also to its essential quality of being the present. Votes: 0

It sounds formulaic now, but at the time, I was interested in the difference between the thing and the representation of the idea of the thing - the space between the two. Votes: 0

Landscape is the creation of the one God - his sensuous image and revelation, through the investigation of which, by science or its representation by art, men's hearts are lifted toward him. Votes: 0

Theatre has always been better disposed to colourblind casting than telly or film. Given that most television is contemporary, and it reaches 56 million people, I am disappointed there still isn't more representation. Votes: 0

There's four main pillars to the bow tie - self-representation, service, collaboration and critical thought. You have to understand how to represent yourself and critically understand how to collaborate and serve others. Votes: 0

I moved to New York between my junior and senior years of high school to just see what it was like, to go to a modeling agency and see how to get representation. Votes: 0

It's important to have the right agent - people that are working hard for you. But an actor needs to be in control of their career no matter how good the representation is. Votes: 0

I believe that marriage is a representation of Christ and the church and when Christ and the church are unified, they are the strongest and most attractive to those that don't know Jesus. Votes: 0

Its quite there sonically; a strong representation of what the songs on our records are like. It's very loud and our set is based around containing as much energy and dynamics as possible. Votes: 0

Earlier in my life, I performed a lot of music. Some of it because I felt it was a demonstration, or a representation of certain intellectual concepts that were very exciting and important. Votes: 0

With representation there to do the speaking, the guilty are suddenly given the freedom that comes with hiding behind the fact that they never said that - in fact, they never said anything! Votes: 0

I just believe that marriage is a beautiful representation of God's love for us and that there is such a cherishing that can happen in marriage that is different from any other relationship. Votes: 0

We live in a permanent state of bad faith, a mutual representation of ourselves to one another for the sake of remaining sane and following our biological imperative to continue as a species. Votes: 0

The supreme goal of all theory is to make the irreducible basic elements as simple and as few as possible without having to surrender the adequate representation of a simple datum of experience. Votes: 0

Thanks to aid, a distressing number of African leaders care little about what their citizens want or need - after all it's the reverse of the Boston tea-party - no representation without taxation. Votes: 0

Junipers are generally chosen for the latter purpose, as they can be more readily bent into the desired form; the eyes and tongue are added afterwards, and the representation altogether is really good. Votes: 0

What we must eliminate are systems of representation that carry with them the authority which has become repressive because it doesn't permit or make room for interventions on the part of those represented. Votes: 0

Even in the Western world, one cannot argue that the ideal has been achieved given the existence of issues like the integration, participation and representation of Muslim citizens, and occasional but lingering anti-Semitism. Votes: 0

I was totally taken in and totally taken by that myth starting in 1999, rather carelessly writing about this archive and starting to read [Buckminster Fuller] self-representation, misrepresentation, whatever you want to call it. Votes: 0

[Proportional representation is a] device for defeating democracy, the principle of which was that the majority should rule, and for bringing faddists of all kinds into Parliament, and establishing groups and disintegrating parties. Votes: 0

Every special interest is entitled to justice full, fair and complete....but not one is entitled to a vote in Congress, to a voice on the bench or to representation in any public office. Votes: 0

America loves the representation of its heroes to be not just larger than life, but stupendously, awesomely bigger than anything else. If blue whales built statues to each other they'd be smaller then these. Votes: 0

The frame announces that between the part of reality that was cut away and this part there is a difference; and that this segment which the frame frames is an example of nature-as-representation, nature-as-sign. Votes: 0

Those words . . . national and portrait. They were both to do with identity: the identity of a culture (place, language and history), the identity of an individual human being as an object for mimetic representation. Votes: 0

There is no right and wrong way to paint except honestly or dishonestly. Honestly is trying for the bigger thing. Dishonestly is bluffing and getting through a smattering of surface representation with no meaning ... Votes: 0

In stamping photography with the patent of realism, society does nothing but confirm itself in the tautological certainty that an image of reality that conforms to its own representation of objectivity is truly objective. Votes: 0

Internal self-government under a local constitution was authorized by Congress and approved by the residents in 1952, but federal law is supreme in Puerto Rico and residents do not have voting representation in the Congress. Votes: 0

... A power of obtaining veracity in the representation of material and tangible things, which, within certain limits and conditions, is unimpeachable, has now been placed in the hands of all men, almost without labour. (1853) Votes: 0

So that the executive and legislative branches of the national government depend upon, and emanate from the states. Every where the state sovereignties are represented; and the national sovereignty, as such, has no representation. Votes: 0

I want you to know he's coming to the church before he comes FOR the church. He's gonna perfect the Church so the church can be the Image, and be him, and be his representation. Votes: 0

I don't think Jesus was an exclusivist. He said, and we believe, that He is the unique representation of God in the world. But that doesn't mean this is the only way God can work. Votes: 0

The natural does not have to be a specific representation. I am now working on a thing which is a reconstruction of a starry sky, yet I make it, nevertheless, without a given in nature. Votes: 0

Artists have really never had any representation on Capitol Hill, because it's not the nature of the artist to join together and make a unified presence. Those days kind of died in the '60s. Votes: 0

The essential form of knowledge... is nothing but a representation of truth: for the truth of being and the truth of knowing are one, differing no more than the direct beam and the beam reflected. Votes: 0

When I reflect on the issues that black Hollywood has had with the lack of representation at the Oscars, I realized that we have a responsibility to tell stories that are meaningful for our history. Votes: 0

Though there might not be any easy answers to the problem of poverty, its most compelling scribes do not resign themselves to representation solely for the sake of those age-old verities of truth and beauty. Votes: 0

When this country here was first being founded, there were 13 colonies. The whites were colonized. They were fed up with this taxation without representation. So some of them stood up and said, liberty or death. Votes: 0

I would vote against raising the national debt ceiling. Again, this is about mortgaging the future of unborn generations of Americans. It's a form of taxation without representation. I don't think we can do that. Votes: 0

The postmodernist critique of representation undermines the referential status of visual imagery, its claim to represent reality as it really is - either the appearance of things or some ideal order behind or beyond appearance. Votes: 0

... despite the limitations and problems inherent to photographic representation (and especially the representation of politics), it remains for me the most powerful and engaging medium today - one central to the development of cultural dialogue. Votes: 0

National Health? Socialized pension funds? State-controlled television? Search and seizure laws? Forfeiture laws? If we're not living in the Soviet Union of the United States we certainly have returned to 1776 and 'taxation without representation.' Votes: 0

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I think if you're going to show a true representation of any one life, it can't be about any one thing. I try to see more of a full picture, with the romance just a single part.

In life you can get a feeling which is part of a person, the same as in the songs. Music is almost our representation of our fantasies and so our songs are representations of our fantasies.

I want everyone to vote. I want everyone to be a part of electing officials. Because when we are not a part, when we don't have a very broad voter base, then we don't have true representation.

The famous pipe. How people reproached me for it! And yet, could you stuff my pipe? No, it's just a representation, is it not? So if I had written on my picture "This is a pipe", I'd have been lying!

I am committed to creating a vision of the world that reflects how I believe it is: diverse. It is not an effort to diversify media representation, but rather, it comes out of the world I have grown up in.

If done well, I believe the photographic representation of the human subject has the potential to be more revealing than what is revealed by the eye alone, since the human glance is usually a momentary one.

If I paint a hammer and sickle people may think it is a representation of Communism, but for me it is only a hammer and sickle. I just want to reproduce the objects for what they are, not for what they mean.

You want accuracy, but not representation. If you know how to make the figuration, it doesn't work. Anything you can make, you make by accident. In painting, you have to know what you do, not how, when you do it.

The plastic artist may or may not be concerned with presenting a superficial appearance of reality, but he is always concerned with the presentation - if not the representation - of the plastic values of reality.

War is only a sort of dramatic representation, a sort of dramatic symbol of a thousand forms of duty. I fancy that it is just as hard to do your duty when men are sneering at you as when they are shooting at you.

The spirit of Plato dies hard. We have been unable to escape the philosophical tradition that what we can see and measure in the world is merely the superficial and imperfect representation of an underlying reality.

There are religions in which the representation of the world is banned as an usurpation of the power of a God, creator of all things. It is very possible that photography is a trick of the devil and each shot is a sin.

For me the beginning of all true progress in the woman question lies in women's right to vote...The strong the emphasis on the difference between the sexes, the clearer the need for the specific representation of women.

Virtual reality is the representation of possible worlds and possible selves, with the aim of making them appear as real as possible - ideally, by creating a subjective sense of "presence" and full immersion in the user.

Myths and science fulfill a similar function: they both provide human beings with a representation of the world and of the forces that are supposed to govern it. They both fix the limits of what is considered as possible.

For me a true landscape is not just a representation of a desert or a forest. It shows an inner state of mind, literally inner landscapes, and it is the human soul that is visible through the landscapes presented in my films.

Representing the struggle that Muslim minorities go through today is something I personally experience. So I know that at the end of the day, I have a voice for many millions of people who don't have any representation at all.

Anyplace of work where you have a cross section of work, you have mini-ecosystem. A little representation of what the planet is. You have the Alpha Dog. You have the young ones, the old ones. The pissed off one. The quiet one.

My photos are my diary. Every photo is no more than the representation of a single day. And each day contains the past and the projection into the future. That's why I feel compelled to indicate the date on every picture I take.

To begin with, I wanted that truth to life to possess a concrete reliability, and rejoiced most when the poem seemed most direct, an upfront representation of the world it stood in for or stood up for or stood its ground against.

How can it be, in a country as strong and rich as this one, that tens of thousands of Americans who need legal representation are turned away every year because their government won't support the very program designed to help them?

Your mistake was not in imagining things you could not know—that is, after all, what imagination is for. Rather, your mistake was in unthinkingly treating what you imagined as though it were an accurate representation of the facts.

Sargent, when he painted the size of life, placed his canvas on a level with the model, walked back until canvas and sitter were equal before his eye, and was thus able to estimate the construction and values of his representation ...

I think in fact that unless there is an organic link between the subjective impressions of the author and his objective representation of reality, he will not achieve even superficial credibility, let alone authenticity and inner truth.

The privileged position of whiteness doesn't allow for someone with one drop of Negro blood to be considered white, which allows whiteness to be a fairly pure category while blackness has to absorb an expansive reality of representation.

Susan Rice, she's distant. She is the UN ambassador, got nothing to do with Benghazi, not in the State Department. She has no representation at the consulate or at Benghazi, send her out there, and so Brian Williams said, "Why send you?".

...it is appropriate to have an over representation of factual presentations on how dangerous it is, as a predicate for opening up the audience to listen to what the solutions are, and how hopeful it is that we are going to solve this crisis.

It was remarked yesterday that a numerous representation was necessary to obtain the confidence of the people. This is not generally true. The confidence of the people will easily be gained by a good administration. This is the true touchstone.

In many a poetic work, one gets here and there, instead of representation merely a title indicating that this or that was supposedto be represented here, that the artist has been prevented from doing it and most humbly asks to be kindly excused.

By now, a younger generation of women participate in extremely lively debates in which questions of gender, sexuality and representation on screens and across media are approached from perspectives that had not yet been articulated in the 1970s.

If you're a teacher, for instance, there are ways to have positive representation of gay people in the classroom. Making sure that, historically, people are noted and archived, and that kids are getting just positive images of people who are gay.

...In another time, What cannot be seen will define us, and we shall be prompted To say that language is error, and all things are wronged By representation. The self, we shall say, can never be Seen with a disguise, and never be seen without one.

I can be critical of Beyoncé and yet also appreciate aspects of her power and representation. I can especially critique the way white supremacist aesthetics more often than not informs her presentation of self and yet still acknowledge her beauty.

My ideal of conversation that includes wide representation of perspectives, informed by the consensus view of current experts, pursued with an attempt to find a position with which all can live, brings the expert and the public dimensions together.

It is absolutely clear that your continued leadership is putting the Labour Party's future in jeopardy and denying millions of people in our country who so desperately need representation by a Labour government the chance of that Labour government.

Hip-Hop's cultural movement is much larger than the corporate representation. The images most of hip-hop's critics point to are those manufactured by major corporations whether on television, via Viacom, or on the radio, via Radio One and Clear Channel.

If the Negro knows enough to pay taxes to support the government, he knows enough to vote; taxation and representation should go together. If he knows enough to shoulder a musket and fight for the flag, fight for the government, he knows enough to vote.

People accept a representation in which the elements of wish and fantasy are purposely included but which nevertheless proclaims to represent "the past" and to serve as a guide-rule for life, thereby hopelessly confusing the spheres of knowledge and will.

Basically the problem is that if the intellect is looking at or beholding the forms, what it will get is some kind of representation or image of the forms, but it won't actually have the forms, it won't touch them as it were, or it won't incorporate them.

Art does not organize parties, nor is it the servant or colleague of power. Rather, the work of art becomes a political force simply through the faithful representation of the spirit. It is a political act to create an image of the self or of the collective.

I always look at that stuff as something that's not a separate entity from the music but a visual representation of the music. I feel like your external appearance should be in harmony with your internal appearance. That's mainly our approach to the visuals.

When an investigator has developed a formula which gives a complete representation of the phenomena within a certain range, he may be prone to satisfaction. Would it not be wiser if he should say 'Foiled again! I can find out no more about Nature along this line.'

I shall oppose all slavery extension and all increase of slave representation in all places, at all times, under all circumstances, even against all inducements, against all supposed limitations of great interests, against all combinations, against all compromises.

Every unfulfilled aspiration of humanity in the past; all partial representation of perfect character; all sacrifices, nay, even those of idolatry, point to the fulfillment of what want, the answer to every longing--the type of perfect humanity, the Lord Jesus Christ.

A photograph presents itself not only as a visual representation, but as evidence, more convincing than a painting because of the unimpeachable mechanical means whereby it was made. We do not trust the artist's flattering hand; but we do trust film, and shadows, and light.

The essence of a software entity is a construct of interlocking concepts: [...] I believe the hard part of building software to be the specification, design, and testing of this conceptual construct, not the labor of representing it and testing the fidelity of the representation.

Comedy is a game played to throw reflections upon social life, and it deals with human nature in the drawing-room of civilized men and women, where we have no dust of the struggling outer world, no mire, no violent crashes, to make the correctness of the representation convincing.

The British Empire was so vast and so powerful, the sun would never set on it. This is how big it was, yet these 13 little scrawny states, tired of taxation without representation, tired of being exploited and oppressed and degraded, told that big British Empire, liberty or death.

Once you become an elaborate and well-developed culture, anything from Rome or the Etruscans, for that matter, the food starts to become a representation of what the culture is. When the food can transcend being just fuel, that's when you start to see these different permutations.

It is not because a part of the government is elective, that makes it less a despotism, if the persons so elected, possess afterwards, as a parliament, unlimited powers. Election, in this case, becomes separated from representation, and the candidates are candidates for despotism.

The error arises from the learned jurists deceiving themselves and others, by asserting that government is not what it really is, one set of men banded together to oppress another set of men , but, as shown by science, is the representation of the citizens in their collective capacity.

Ever so subtly, without even alluding to the last obstacles preserved by earlier opinions that we now push out of our path, we effectively replace the goal of a discrimination-free society with the quite imcompatible goal of proportionate representation by race and by sex in the workplace.

In industrialized warfare, where the representation of events outstripped the presentation of facts, the image was starting to gain sway over the object, time over space. Soon a conflict of strategic and political interpretation would ensue, with radio and then radar completing the picture.

Painting is an essentially concrete art and can only consist of the representation of real and existing things. It is a completely physical language, the words of which consist of all visible objects. An object which is abstract, not visible, non-existent, is not within the realm of painting.

[It] is not that television is entertaining but that it has made entertainment itself the natural format for the representation of all experience. ["¦] The problem is not that television presents us with entertaining subject matter but that all subject matter is presented as entertaining. (87)

A people who still remembered that their ancestors had been the masters of the world would have applauded, with conscious pride, the representation of ancient freedom, if they had not long since been accustomed to prefer the solid assurance of bread to the unsubstantial visions of liberty and greatness.

The very act of representation has been so thoroughly challenged in recent years by postmodern theories that it is impossible not to see the flaws everywhere, in any practice of photography. Traditional genres in particular-journalism, documentary studies, and fine-art photography-have become shells, or forms emptied of meaning.

Legal representation (34 quotes)

For families to access affordable housing, they often need legal representation that takes their side against abusive landlords. Votes: 3 Nydia Velazquez

Media representation (32 quotes)

I am committed to creating a vision of the world that reflects how I believe it is: diverse. It is not an effort to diversify media representation, but rather, it comes out of the world I have grown up in. Votes: 3 Jennifer Phang

Political representation (20 quotes)

More than half of America's rural counties are losing population and with it, political representation. Votes: 4 Tom Vilsack

Taxation Without Representation (32 quotes)

If Thomas Jefferson thought taxation without representation was bad, he should see how it is with representation. Votes: 4 Rush Limbaugh

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34 Inspiring Representation Quotes to Empower You

Florence Henderson

January 13, 2023

Quotes about representation can serve as a reminder for people to recognize and celebrate the diversity of voices and experiences in our communities. They can also serve as an inspiration for people to strive for a more equitable and inclusive world. Representation can come in many forms, from television, books, and film to art, music, and even fashion. Quotes about representation can remind us that everyone has something unique and valuable to contribute, and that our differences should be celebrated and embraced.

34 Best Quotes About Representation

“Representation matters, not just in the media, but also in the workplace, in politics, in academia, and in our daily lives.”

“We cannot ignore the fact that the underrepresentation of women and girls in decision-making limits their ability to shape their own lives and the societies in which they live.”

“Representation matters because it is not enough for black people to be seen; we must also be heard, respected, and valued.”

“The only way to create real change is through representation and visibility.”

“We must create the space for all voices to be heard. Diversity and representation are key to unleashing our fullest potential as individuals and as a society.”

“The power of representation is that it creates a dialogue between the artist, the audience, and the world.”

“The power of representation is critical in opening doors and creating a pathway for others.”

“True representation means that everyone feels seen, heard, and valued.”

“Representation is more than just seeing yourself on the screen; it’s also about having a voice and feeling valued.”

“Representation is the key to shifting cultural attitudes and creating a more equitable society.”

“We need to see ourselves in each other, so that we can learn to understand and accept our differences.”

“If you deny people representation, you deny them the right to be seen and heard.”

“Real representation means that everyone feels seen, heard, and valued.”

“Representation is about more than just seeing yourself on the screen; it’s about having a voice and feeling valued.”

“Representation is essential in order to create a more diverse and inclusive world.”

“It is important that we recognize that representation matters. We must work together to ensure that everyone’s voice is heard.”

“Representation is not just about seeing ourselves on screen, but also having our stories and experiences reflected in the media.”

“It’s not enough to be represented, we must be represented accurately and fairly.”

“We must ensure that our stories are represented in authentic and meaningful ways.”

“Representation matters because it helps us to see and understand our shared humanity.”

“We must strive to achieve a representation that is more comprehensive, diverse and inclusive.”

“We must strive for a representation that is more comprehensive, diverse and inclusive.”

“We must strive to create a world where everyone’s voice is heard and respected.”

By looking at the wide range of quotes about representation, it is clear that representation is an important concept for many people. Representation can be seen in many forms, from literature to art, and it is essential in giving a voice to people who may otherwise lack visibility or a platform to be heard. Representation is an important part of giving everyone an equal opportunity to be seen and heard, and these quotes serve as a reminder of the power of representation.

• The Guardian: Representation matters: the power of film and television to change lives
• Teen Vogue: Why Representation Matters in Film and TV

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Why Representation Matters and Why It’s Still Not Enough

Reflections on growing up brown, queer, and asian american..

Posted December 27, 2021 | Reviewed by Ekua Hagan

• Positive media representation can be helpful in increasing self-esteem for people of marginalized groups (especially youth).
• Interpersonal contact and exposure through media representation can assist in reducing stereotypes of underrepresented groups.
• Representation in educational curricula and social media can provide validation and support, especially for youth of marginalized groups.

Growing up as a Brown Asian American child of immigrants, I never really saw anyone who looked like me in the media. The TV shows and movies I watched mostly concentrated on blonde-haired, white, or light-skinned protagonists. They also normalized western and heterosexist ideals and behaviors, while hardly ever depicting things that reflected my everyday life. For example, it was equally odd and fascinating that people on TV didn’t eat rice at every meal; that their parents didn’t speak with accents; or that no one seemed to navigate a world of daily microaggressions . Despite these observations, I continued to absorb this mass media—internalizing messages of what my life should be like or what I should aspire to be like.

Because there were so few media images of people who looked like me, I distinctly remember the joy and validation that emerged when I did see those representations. Filipino American actors like Ernie Reyes, Nia Peeples, Dante Basco, and Tia Carrere looked like they could be my cousins. Each time they sporadically appeared in films and television series throughout my youth, their mere presence brought a sense of pride. However, because they never played Filipino characters (e.g., Carrere was Chinese American in Wayne's World ) or their racial identities remained unaddressed (e.g., Basco as Rufio in Hook ), I did not know for certain that they were Filipino American like me. And because the internet was not readily accessible (nor fully informational) until my late adolescence , I could not easily find out.

Through my Ethnic Studies classes as an undergraduate student (and my later research on Asian American and Filipino American experiences with microaggressions), I discovered that my perspectives were not that unique. Many Asian Americans and other people of color often struggle with their racial and ethnic identity development —with many citing how a lack of media representation negatively impacts their self-esteem and overall views of their racial or cultural groups. Scholars and community leaders have declared mottos like how it's "hard to be what you can’t see," asserting that people from marginalized groups do not pursue career or academic opportunities when they are not exposed to such possibilities. For example, when women (and women of color specifically) don’t see themselves represented in STEM fields , they may internalize that such careers are not made for them. When people of color don’t see themselves in the arts or in government positions, they likely learn similar messages too.

Complicating these messages are my intersectional identities as a queer person of color. In my teens, it was heartbreakingly lonely to witness everyday homophobia (especially unnecessary homophobic language) in almost all television programming. The few visual examples I saw of anyone LGBTQ involved mostly white, gay, cisgender people. While there was some comfort in seeing them navigate their coming out processes or overcome heterosexism on screen, their storylines often appeared unrealistic—at least in comparison to the nuanced homophobia I observed in my religious, immigrant family. In some ways, not seeing LGBTQ people of color in the media kept me in the closet for years.

How representation can help

Representation can serve as opportunities for minoritized people to find community support and validation. For example, recent studies have found that social media has given LGBTQ young people the outlets to connect with others—especially when the COVID-19 pandemic has limited in-person opportunities. Given the increased suicidal ideation, depression , and other mental health issues among LGBTQ youth amidst this global pandemic, visibility via social media can possibly save lives. Relatedly, taking Ethnic Studies courses can be valuable in helping students to develop a critical consciousness that is culturally relevant to their lives. In this way, representation can allow students of color to personally connect to school, potentially making their educational pursuits more meaningful.

Further, representation can be helpful in reducing negative stereotypes about other groups. Initially discussed by psychologist Dr. Gordon Allport as Intergroup Contact Theory, researchers believed that the more exposure or contact that people had to groups who were different from them, the less likely they would maintain prejudice . Literature has supported how positive LGBTQ media representation helped transform public opinions about LGBTQ people and their rights. In 2019, the Pew Research Center reported that the general US population significantly changed their views of same-sex marriage in just 15 years—with 60% of the population being opposed in 2004 to 61% in favor in 2019. While there are many other factors that likely influenced these perspective shifts, studies suggest that positive LGBTQ media depictions played a significant role.

For Asian Americans and other groups who have been historically underrepresented in the media, any visibility can feel like a win. For example, Gold House recently featured an article in Vanity Fair , highlighting the power of Asian American visibility in the media—citing blockbuster films like Crazy Rich Asians and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings . Asian American producers like Mindy Kaling of Never Have I Ever and The Sex Lives of College Girls demonstrate how influential creators of color can initiate their own projects and write their own storylines, in order to directly increase representation (and indirectly increase mental health and positive esteem for its audiences of color).

When representation is not enough

However, representation simply is not enough—especially when it is one-dimensional, superficial, or not actually representative. Some scholars describe how Asian American media depictions still tend to reinforce stereotypes, which may negatively impact identity development for Asian American youth. Asian American Studies is still needed to teach about oppression and to combat hate violence. Further, representation might also fail to reflect the true diversity of communities; historically, Brown Asian Americans have been underrepresented in Asian American media, resulting in marginalization within marginalized groups. For example, Filipino Americans—despite being the first Asian American group to settle in the US and one of the largest immigrant groups—remain underrepresented across many sectors, including academia, arts, and government.

Representation should never be the final goal; instead, it should merely be one step toward equity. Having a diverse cast on a television show is meaningless if those storylines promote harmful stereotypes or fail to address societal inequities. Being the “first” at anything is pointless if there aren’t efforts to address the systemic obstacles that prevent people from certain groups from succeeding in the first place.

Instead, representation should be intentional. People in power should aim for their content to reflect their audiences—especially if they know that doing so could assist in increasing people's self-esteem and wellness. People who have the opportunity to represent their identity groups in any sector may make conscious efforts to use their influence to teach (or remind) others that their communities exist. Finally, parents and teachers can be more intentional in ensuring that their children and students always feel seen and validated. By providing youth with visual representations of people they can relate to, they can potentially save future generations from a lifetime of feeling underrepresented or misunderstood.

Kevin Leo Yabut Nadal, Ph.D., is a Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the City University of New York and the author of books including Microaggressions and Traumatic Stress .

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Representation Quotes

Representation quote from classy quote.

What, then, is truth? A mobile army of metaphors, metonyms, and anthropomorphisms – in short, a sum of human relations, which have been enhanced, transposed, and embellished poetically and rhetorically, and which after long use seem firm, canonical, and obligatory to a people: truths are illusions about which one has forgotten that this is what they are; metaphors which are worn out and without sensuous power; coins which have lost their pictures and now matter only as metal, no longer as coins.

~ Friedrich Nietzsche

If it's true what is said, that only the wise discover the wise, then it must also be true that the lone wolf symbolizes either the biggest fool on the planet or the biggest Einstein on the planet.

~ Criss Jami

Since we live in the heads of those who remember us, we lose control of our lives and become who they want us to be.

~ David Eagleman

It is more substantial to represent a purpose, rather than just a title.

~ T.f. Hodge

If we can't write diversity into sci-fi, then what's the point? You don't create new worlds to give them all the same limits of the old ones.

~ Jane Espenson

The more I write stories for young people, and the more young readers I meet, the more I'm struck by how much kids long to see themselves in stories. To see their identities and perspectives—their avatars—on the page. Not as issues to be addressed or as icons for social commentary, but simply as people who get to do cool things in amazing worlds. Yes, all the “issue” books are great and have a place in literature, but it's a different and wildly joyous gift to find yourself on the pages of an entertainment, experiencing the thrills and chills of a world more adventurous than our own.And when you see that as a writer, you quickly realize that you don't want to be the jerk who says to a young reader, “Sorry, kid. You don't get to exist in story; you're too different.” You don't want to be part of our present dystopia that tells kids that if they just stopped being who they are they could have a story written about them, too. That's the role of the bad guy in the dystopian stories, right? Given a choice, I'd rather be the storyteller who says every kid can have a chance to star.

~ Paolo Bacigalupi

Once, Turner had himself lashed to the mast of a ship for several hours, during a furious storm, so that he could later paint the storm. Obviously, it was not the storm itself that Turner intended to paint. What he intended to paint was a representation of the storm. One's language is frequently imprecise in that manner, I have discovered.

~ David Markson

If we really want to represent God in our day and time, we must embrace knowledge.

~ Sunday Adelaja

The oppressed are allowed once every few years to decide which particular representatives of the oppressing class are to represent and repress them.

~ Karl Marx

Now we really like to put people in boxes. As men, we do it because we don't understand characters that aren't ourselves and we aren't willing to put ourselves in the skin of those characters and women, I think, terrify us. We tend not to write women as human beings. It's cartoons we're making now. And that's a shame.

~ Paul Haggis

And I tried to remember any case in the course of my reading where two women are represented as friends. (...) almost without exception they are shown in their relation to men. (...) [women in fiction were] not only seen by the other sex, but seen only in relation to the other sex. And how small a part of a woman's life is that

~ Virginia Woolf

History is too much about wars, biography too much about great men

Choose a leader who will build bridges - not walls. A leader who will promote peace - not wars. A leader who believes in equality - not discrimination. A leader who is transparent - not secretive. A leader who will speak for all - not just animals.

~ Mizan Chaudhury

Our mind is the canvas on which the artists lay their colour; their pigments are our emotions; their chiaroscuro the light of joy, the shadow of sadness. The masterpiece is of ourselves, as we are of the masterpiece.

~ Kakuzō Okakura

These two developments throw light on what is perhaps the most fundamental difference between the Renaissance and all previous periods of art. We have repeatedly seen that there were these circumstances which could compel the artist to make a distinction between the technical proportions and the objective; the influence of organic movement, the influence of perspective foreshortening, and the regard for the visual impression of the beholder. These three factors of variation have one thing in common: they all presuppose the artistic recognition of subjectivity. Organic movement introduces into the calculus of artistic composition the subjective will and the subjective emotions of the thing represented; foreshortening the subjective visual experience of the artist; and those eurhythmic adjustments which alter that which is right in favor of what seems right, the subjective visual experience of a potential beholder. And it is the Renaissance which, for the first time, not only affirms but formally legitimizes and rationalizes these three forms of subjectivity.

~ Erwin Panofsky

Plato said that we are trapped inside a cave and know the world only through the shadows it casts on the wall. The skull is our cave, and mental representations are the shadows.

~ Steven Pinker

In that smooth fortress of glass, I caught a glimpse of my corruption gripping steel, which before I had thought of as my salvation, but now represented my obliteration.

~ J.d. Stroube

Surrealism also refuses the representation of reality: reality can only be; its existence proves its reality. Fiction thereby becomes impossible or is, by definition, false.

~ Michael Richardson

We do not claim that the portrait we are making is the whole truth, only that it is a resemblance.

~ Victor Hugo

Changing the way we talk is not political correctness run amok. It reflects an admirable willingness to acknowledge others who once were barely visible to the dominant culture, and to recognize that something that may seem innocent to you may be painful to others.

~ David Plotz

Reflective learning provokes critical thinking, enabling us to pose relevant questions, revealing the profound oceans of ignorance that surround even the most learned scholars in our fields of modern knowledge, invoking us to be active participants in the crusade for equality, representation, and social justice.

~ Martin Guevara Urbina

With Pollution, emotion is irrelevant, it is not their nature,” Mearth sighed, making a face as if she were talking to an ignorant small child. “I didn’t create them, humans created the Pollution. Cheryl Nobel, Alecto Steele, Albert Sanders, Olivia Campbell, all my pretty little Representations, there aren’t many of them left these days but they’re still very dangerous! They’re here to tell society all about its mistakes! You don’t understand the world of Representations.

~ Rebecca Mcnutt

Not to own the means of production can lead to premature death, but not to own the means of representation is also a kind of death. For if we are represented by others, might they not, one day, hose our deaths off memory's laminated floor?

~ Viet Thanh Nguyen

The ink in your pen never reshapes your thoughts, you must replace the ink before the ink can be inked properly.

~ Michael Bassey Johnson

One thinks of the failure of representation since 9/11, the proliferation of novels, the media glut, the surfeit of images that somehow slide too easily into a banal repertoire, commodified shock.

~ Maureen N. Mclane

[representative government is] deciding once in three or six years which member of the ruling class was to misrepresent the people in Parliament

if you want to make a human being into a monster, deny them, at the cultural level, any reflection of themselves.

~ Junot Díaz

The whiteness celebrated in Paris is Burning is not just any old brand of whiteness but rather that brutal imperial ruling-class capitalist patriarchal whiteness that presents itself -its way of life- as the only meaningful life there is. What could be more reassuring to a white public fearful that marginalized disenfranchised black folks might rise any day now make revolutionary black liberation struggle a reality than a documentary affirming that colonized, victimized, exploited black folks, are all too willing to be complicit in perpetuating the fantasy that ruling-class white culture is the quintessential site of unrestricted joy, freedom, power and pleasure.

~ Bell Hooks

One of the Christian's biggest fears is appearing 'too Christian'. God forbid, because that's often characterized as god-awful! We want to be one, but without being 'one of them'.

Governments represent their citizens in the same way as parasites represent their hosts.

~ Jakub Bożydar Wiśniewski

I have become very aware how under-represented are the stories of the underprivileged and undervalued. Our records are, in general, very male and if not always the material of the rich, certainly (for obvious reasons) the material of the literate.

~ Sara Sheridan

Big government = oligarchy. Simple equation. Big government = loss of representation.

~ A.e. Samaan

The effort really to see and really to represent is no idle business in face of the constant force that makes for muddlement. The great thing is indeed that the muddled state too is one of the very sharpest of the realities, that it also has color and form and character, has often in fact a broad and rich comicality.

~ Henry James

Watching Paris is Burning, I began to think that the many yuppie-looking, straight -acting, pushy, predominantly white folks in the audience were there because the film in no way interrogates “whiteness.” These folks left the film saying it was “amazing,” “marvellous,” incredibly funny,” worthy of statements like, “Didn’t you just love it?” And no, I didn’t love it. For in many ways the film was a graphic documentary portrait of the way in which colonized black people (in this case black gay brothers, some of whom were drag queens) worship at the throne of whiteness, even when such worship demands that we live in perpetual self-hate, steal, go hungry, and even die in its pursuit. The we evoked here is all of us, black people/people of color, who are daily bombarded by a powerful colonizing whiteness that seduces us away from ourselves, that negates that there is beauty to be found in any form of blackness that is not imitation whiteness.

I just like to say I'm from London, I don't have any specific area I represent. I'm not representing for a small group of people. I'd like everybody to be able to relate to a nerd, because everybody's a bit nerdy. I'm more interested in that than in where they're from. I'm more interested in what people do.

~ Craig Taylor

...But if we are to say anything important, if fiction is to stay relevant and vibrant, then we have to ask the right questions. All art fails if it is asked to be representative—the purpose of fiction is not to replace life anymore than it is meant to support some political movement or ideology. All fiction reinscribes the problematic past in terms of the present, and, if it is significant at all, reckons with it instead of simply making it palatable or pretty. What aesthetic is adequate to the Holocaust, or to the recent tragedy in Haiti? Narrative is not exculpatory—it is in fact about culpability, about recognizing human suffering and responsibility, and so examining what is true in us and about us. If we’re to say anything important, we require an art less facile, and editors willing to seek it.

~ Michael Copperman

America Is A GunEngland is a cup of tea. France, a wheel of ripened brie.Greece, a short, squat olive tree.America is a gun.Brazil is football on the sand.Argentina, Maradona's hand.Germany, an oompah band.America is a gun.Holland is a wooden shoe.Hungary, a goulash stew.Australia, a kangaroo.America is a gun.Japan is a thermal spring.Scotland is a highland fling.Oh, better to be anythingthan America as a gun.

~ Brian Bilston

Entertainment in its broadest sense- popular ballads, vaudeville, films, sculptures, plays, paintings, pornography, pulp novels-- has not only been a primary mode of expression of LGBT identity, but one of the most effective means of social change. Ironically, the enormous political power of these forms was often understood by the people who wanted to ban them, not by the people who were simply enjoying them.

~ Michael Bronski

The characters so many Bollywood actresses portray are ultimately flat, uncomplicated, two-dimensional stock characters that typically range between the girl-next-door and the diva. They may be flawed in small ways, but ultimately lack nuance, conform to and reinforce cultural expectations of a wholesome but ultimately submissive Indian women. The likability of these flat and boring characters hold the actresses' off screen reputations in good stead but reinforce the very norms that imprison and render so many Indian women vulnerable to disrespect and sexism.

~ Sharanya Haridas

There should be no single representation in the autism world. Think about this if someone got up on stage and talked about having “non-autistic syndrome” and made the assumption every one with this syndrome is the same we would be in big trouble. That applies to autism as well - it isn't one condition, there are profile differences between Autism and AS and all autism fruits salads are different. That is how diverse autism is.

~ Paul Isaacs

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56 Inspirational Diversity and Inclusion Quotes for the Workplace

Embracing diversity, equity, inclusion, representation, and an overall sense of belonging can significantly change perceptions of the world around you.  .

Understanding experiences and viewpoints that don’t mimic your own builds empathy, which is  the most valuable soft skill any professional can develop. Here are diversity, equity, and inclusion quotes to help you build an inspiring workplace culture.

Letting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging be a foundational part of how you approach others in your personal and professional life creates an environment that people want to be a part of. As Organizational Psychologist and writer, Adam Grant, explains, “ treating people with civility is a prerequisite for discovery. “

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging for Employees

Prioritizing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in your workplace helps your organization  attract and retain talent . More than ever, prospective employees want to work for companies that share the same core values. Focusing on DEIB allows your employees to be comfortable being themselves, leading  to more creative and innovative ideas . People are more likely to be open, honest, and vulnerable when they feel deeply respected and appreciated.

To be fully aware of the role DEIB plays in your organization, let’s review the meaning of each of these core terms.

• Diversity:  This is when people from all different backgrounds come together. It includes people of different races, genders, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, visible and  invisible disabilities , class, or status.
• Equity:  The understanding that providing equal treatment or resources doesn’t necessarily deliver equally matching results is the foundation of equity. While many people share the same goals and dreams, the path isn’t always the same, and one might experience more hardship and obstacles than another.
• Inclusion:  Celebrating diversity requires thoughtful inclusion.  Everyone  must be recognized and appreciated for their talents, be provided with opportunities to get involved, and have their perspectives valued and heard.
• Belonging:  A sense of belonging ties diversity, equity, and inclusion together. Each group member is respected, valued, and cherished while being their authentic selves. Belonging is a feeling of a shared community.

56 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Quotes

Being thoughtful about diversity and inclusion in the workplace continues to be increasingly crucial to current and prospective employees. Use these DEIB quotes to transform perceptions and increase diversity of thought. Whether you are working through unconscious bias training, sending out monthly newsletters, or organizing a lunch-and-learn, these topics can elevate discussions and strengthen the unity of your teams.

Inclusion Quotes

Quotes about equity.

• Quotes About Diversity and Unity

Quotes About Representation

Sense of belonging quotes, unconscious bias quotes.

Providing all employees with the opportunity to pursue and achieve their goals or feel heard is the most effective way to create an inclusive environment. There are many practical ways to be thoughtful about those in your office, like ensuring that all eligible employees are considered for promotions, planning work events, or being more considerate about scheduling meetings.

• What Diversity & Inclusion is Really About:  Simon Sinek explains that  diversity of thought  makes companies successful. We all have blinders but being open to new perspectives challenges and motivates us to be better.
• Building an Inclusive Organization:  A diverse workforce brings a wealth of knowledge to teams and encourages creativity and innovation. This book offers ways to foster inclusivity in your organization.
• Code Switch Podcast:  Originally, code-switching referred to alternating between numerous languages in a conversation. More often, it encapsulates alternating behaviors or actions in conjunction with language. This term is becoming more prevalent as  emotional labor weighs many employees .
• How to Build an Inclusive Workplace : Organizational psychologist Adam Grant and best-selling author and psychologist John Amaechi discuss privilege, allyship, opportunity, and micro-aggressions.

The inclusive quotes and resources below highlight that many hands make light work. When people work together and cherish what makes them different, opportunities and  success can flourish.

“Diversity is a fact, but inclusion is a choice we make every day. As leaders, we have to put out the message that we embrace and not just tolerate diversity.”

–Nellie Borrero (Managing Director, Senior Strategic Advisor – Global Inclusion & Diversity at Accenture)

“Inclusion is not a matter of political correctness. It is the key to growth.”

–Jesse Jackson ( Activist )

“Honesty and openness is always the foundation of insightful dialogue.”

–bell hooks (Writer, ‘ All About Love: New Visions’ )

“You deserve a circle of inclusion and influence, but it’s up to you to create it.”

–Richie Norton (Writer, ‘ The Power of Starting Something Stupid: How to Crush Fear, Make Dreams Happen, and Live Without Regret’ )

“To me, beauty is inclusion– every size, every color– that’s the world I live in.”

–Prabal Gurung (Fashion Designer)

“We are greater than, and greater for, the sum of us.”

–Heather McGhee (Writer, ‘ The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together’ )

“The human heart is too grand to be wasted in the gutter of cultural exclusivity.”

–Abhijit Naskar (Writer, ‘ Making Britain Civilized: How to Gain Readmission to The Human Race’ )

“Why be a star when you can make a constellation?”

–Mariam Kaba (Writer, ‘ We Do This ‘Til We Free Us’ )

“Diversity requires commitment. Achieving superior performance diversity can produce further action– most notably, a commitment to develop a culture of inclusion. People do not just need to be different, they need to be fully involved and feel their voices are heard.”

–Alain Dehaze (CEO of Adecco)

“When we listen and celebrate what is both common and different, we become wiser, more inclusive, and better as an organization.”

–Pat Wadors (Chief Talent Officer at Procore Technologies)

“You either believe that people respond to authority, or that they respond to kindness and inclusion. I’m obviously in the latter camp. I think that people respond better to reward than punishment.”

–Brian Eno(Musician)

“You have a responsibility to make inclusion a daily thought, so we can get rid of the word ‘inclusion.’

–Theodore Melfi (American Producer)

“We will all profit from a more diverse, inclusive society, understanding, accommodating, even celebrating our differences, while pulling together for the common good.”

–Ruth Bader Ginsburg

“If we want to include everyone, we have to help everyone develop their talents and use their gifts for the good of the community. That’s what inclusion means– everyone contributes.”

–Melinda Gates

“Diversity is being invited to the party; inclusion is being asked to dance.”

–Verna Myers (Vice President of Inclusion Strategy at Netflix)

“Using people to be inclusive is not an attack. It is progress.”

–DaShanne Stokes (Sociologist)

–George Washington (Writer, ‘ The Story of My Life’ )

When thinking of DEIB, many people consider equity to be about race. While this can be true, equity extends to more than one area of society. Equity disparities can also relate to education, housing, transportation, and more. Because of these additional factors, an organization must think critically and compassionately for its employees.

Many of the quotes below explain the correlation between fairness, justice, and equity. Through this lens, intentionally addressing inequitable instances in the workplace ensures all employees are more empowered to work together.

• What is Social Equity:  This United Way article breaks down various types of social equity, the difference between equality, and provides examples.
• Heather C. McGhee: Racism has a cost for everyone:  When policies and procedures are meant to control one group or another, the impact is felt by everyone.
• Social Inequalities Explained in a $100 Race:  This 2018 viral shows how opportunities can be offered to people based on factors irrelevant to personal choice.
• Subtle Acts of Exclusion: How to Understand, Identify, and Stop Microaggressions: Unconscious or implicit biases can cause people to behave in ways they don’t realize are hurtful. Learning how to identify and address micro-aggressions is a step needed to develop inclusion, belonging, and foster equity in your organization.

“Ethics and equity and the principles of justice do not change with the calendar.”

–D.H. Lawrence (Writer)

“Treating different things the same can generate as much inequality as treating the same things differently.”

–Kimberlé Crenshaw (Civil Rights Advocate)

“Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly”

–Martin Luther King Jr.

“I learned early on about the real meaning of equity and inclusion, and that when those guiding principles are not met, they can have devastating effects on individuals, families, and communities.”

–Lori Lightfoot ( Mayor of Chicago )

“Equality is leaving the door open for anyone who has the means to approach it; equity is ensuring there is a pathway to that door for those who need it.”

–Caroline Belden (Writer, ‘ The Inclusion Solution’ )

“The difference between equity and equality is that equality is when everyone gets the same thing, and equity is when everyone gets the things they deserve.”

–DeRay Mckesson (Activist)

Quotes About Diversity

Our many backgrounds, experiences, interests, and passions create a beautiful and unique world. The many combinations of these differences enable us to connect unexpectedly, which entangles the rich tapestry that Maya Angelou speaks of in the quote below.

The workplace is one of the best scenarios where these differences can  engage ,  support ,  challenge , and  inspire  curiosity. Championing diversity in an organization leads to better outcomes and greater success for individuals and teams.

• The Loudest Duck: Moving Beyond Diversity While Embracing Differences to Achieve Success at Work:  Find new ideas and alternative routes to bring inclusivity and diversity to the forefront of your organization.
• Diversity in the Workplace: Eye-Opening Interviews to Jumpstart Conversations about Identity, Privilege, and Bias:  This book offers real-life examples of conversations surrounding diverse groups of people. It also highlights that sometimes people don’t have the vocabulary to explain their thoughts or feelings but are curious and want to learn how to be better.
• Obama: Diversity makes us stronger, creative, different:  At a citizenship ceremony in 2014, former President Obama addressed immigrants who served in the military and earned citizenship in the United States.
• “On the Pulse of Morning” by Maya Angelou:  This powerful poem by Maya Angelou describes how the earth is full of human beings from all backgrounds. Together, we can make the world a better place for everyone.

“Diverse groups are more creative. They feel uncomfortable, and that discomfort motivates them to do extra preparation and share new information.”

– Adam Grant (Organizational Psychologist and Writer, ‘ Work Life Podcast’)

“We are all different, which is great because we are all unique. Without diversity, life would be very boring.”

–Catherine Pulsifer

“We need to give each other the space to grow, to be ourselves, to exercise our diversity. We need to give each other space so that we may both give and receive such beautiful things as ideas, openness, dignity, joy, healing, and inclusion.”

–Max De Pree (Writer, ‘ Leadership is an Art )

“We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color.”

–Maya Angelou

“Diversity doesn’t look like anyone. It looks like everyone.”

–Karen Draper (Writer,  ‘The Place of Us’ )

“I can tell you, without diversity, creativity remains stagnant.”

–Edward Enninful (Editor in Chief of British Vogue)

“The greater the diversity, the greater the perfection.”

–Thomas Berry (History)

“The path to diversity begins with supporting, mentoring, and sponsoring diverse women and men to become leaders and entrepreneurs.”

–Denise Morrison (Retired CEO and President of Campbell Soup Company)

“Diversity is the one true thing we all have in common. Celebrate it every day.”

–Winston Churchill

“Different roads sometimes lead to the same castle.”

–George R. R. Martin (Writer, ‘ A Song of Ice and Fire’ )

“Understanding diversity includes knowing how diminished we all are when voices go unheard.”

–Preskill & Brookfield (Writer, ‘ The Story of My Life’ )

“It is impossible to get to know people deeply and not come to like them.”

–Lori Gottlieb (Writer & Psychologist, ‘ Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed’ )

“We need to reach that happy stage of our development when differences and diversity are not seen as sources of division and distrust, but of strength and inspiration.”

–Josefa Iloilo (Former President of Fiji)

“Let’s stop believing that our differences make us superior or inferior to one another.”

–Con Miguel Ruiz (Writer, ‘ The Four Agreements’ )

“A diverse mix of voices leads to better discussions, decisions, and outcomes for everyone.”

–Sundar Pichai (CEO of Google)

“Creating and managing a diverse workforce is a process, not a destination.”

–R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr.

“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.”

–Audre Lorde (Writer)

Representation means seeing people in successful positions that share a similar story to your own. We often associate representation with portrayals in movies or TV shows, but it is equally important in the office. The  opportunity gap  decreases, and goals or ambitions aren’t as far out of reach when we know someone we share everyday experiences with and achieve the same purpose.

• Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi: The danger of a single story:  Renowned author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie tells us how a single story, a single perception, can inflict untrue ideology and assumptions about one another.
• 2-Year-Old Boy’s Sweet Reaction to His Lookalike in ‘Encanto’:  Seeing people or characters in movies and TV that look like you further normalizes the beauty in diversity. There is power in representation, and Kenzo was so thrilled to see someone like him in Encanto.
• The Power of Representation in Leadership Roles:  It’s difficult to imagine yourself as a leader or successful if you’ve never seen anyone that looks like you in a similar position. The rise of women and BIPOC in leadership roles shows others it is possible to achieve their dreams.

“You can’t be what you can’t see.”

–Marian Wright Edelman (Founder of Children’s Defense Fund)

“Every culture’s history is essential. Everyone deserves to have their lives elevated through the beauty of truthful representation.”

–Rohit Bhargava (Writer, ‘ Beyond Diversity’ )

“If you haven’t got the best talent, you’re not going to be the best; if you’re not representing properly the available pool of talent, then you’re missing an opportunity.”

–Alex Wilmot-Sitwell (Partner at Perella Weinberg Partners’ Advisory)

“What diversity advocates are working for is an industry that honestly, accurately, and equitably represents the world we live in.”

–Mike Jung (Writer, ‘ Unidentified Suburban Object’ )

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are foundational to building a sense of belonging. In belonging, you establish a community which is the best way to keep each other feeling safe and secure.

With that security, employee satisfaction increases, and workplace culture improves. You will find your team is ready to take on new challenges and share fresh perspectives bravely. As the sense of belonging quotes and references below allude, community enables us to be our most authentic selves and accept one another.

• Belonging At Work: Everyday Actions You Can Take to Cultivate an Inclusive Organization:  Through personal stories, case studies, and valuable strategies for change,  Belonging At Work  provides a framework to inspire leaders of all levels to prioritize inclusion belonging in their organization.
• Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown:  Researcher, author, and podcaster Brene Brown explains that true belonging starts with knowing and accepting ourselves.
• Jessica Hanzie’s Tattooed Headshot:  When Hanzie wanted a separate headshot for her LinkedIn account that showed her tattoos, her boss encouraged her to use the photo on the company website as well. She’d spent years feeling nervous she would upset someone with her tattoos. Now, her boss was enthusiastically encouraging her to be herself.

“True belonging only happens when we present our authentic, imperfect selves to the world. Our sense of belonging can never be greater than our level of self-acceptance.”

–Brene Brown (Writer, ‘ The Gifts of Imperfection’ )

“People will typically be more enthusiastic where they feel a sense of belonging and see themselves as part of a community than they will in a workplace in which each person is left to his own devices.”

–Alfie Kohn (Philosopher)

“We long to belong, and belonging and caring anchors our sense of place in the universe.”

–Patricia Churchland (Philosopher)

“You can’t build a society purely on interests, you need a sense of belonging.”

–Valery Giscard d’Estaing (Former President of France)

“Being able to feel safe with other people is probably the single most important aspect of mental health; safe connections are fundamental to meaningful and satisfying lives.”

–Bessel A. van der Kolk (Writer & Psychologist, ‘ The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma’ )

“Don’t be a pepper on the eyes of people; rather be the salt on their tongue and make a difference that influences their sense of belonging to the earth.”

–Israelmore Ayivor (Writer)

“There is a reason the word belonging has a synonym for want at its center; it is the human condition.”

–Jodi Picoult (Writer, ‘ My Sister’s Keeper’ )

The thoughts and ideas that come into our minds immediately about another person are our unconscious or implicit biases. In some cases, these thought processes occur so quickly or subtly that we don’t even know they happened. 

For example, a  study found that “Black-sounding” names were less likely to hear back from employers by 2.1 percent relative to white-sounding names. This shows how we can make choices so quickly that we don’t take the time to examine why we decided that way at all.

In these unconscious bias quotes, you will find that the first step is to be aware of these patterns to learn how to dismantle them. The resources below provide steps and ideas on breaking those patterns and accepting others for who they indeed are, not who you perceive them to be.

• The Leader’s Guide to Unconscious Bias: How to Reframe Bias, Cultivate Connection, and Create High-Performing Teams:  Overcoming biases can only be done when true understanding and compassion occur. Learning how to manifest a sense of belonging enables people to know one another deeply and foster a safe environment.
• Implicit Bias – Concepts Unwrapped:  This video explains how unconscious bias affects our interactions.
• Sway: Unravelling Unconscious Bias:  Unconscious bias is challenging because it’s unintentional and lightning quick. In  Sway , Pragya Agarwal uses scientific research to illuminate how these biases impact our communication, decisions, and intentions.
• Unconscious bias: Stereotypical hiring practices:  We all have unconscious biases. But some might be so subtle and seem so harmless that you don’t realize you could be missing out on an exceptional candidate for your team.

“Stupidity and unconscious bias often work more damage than venality.”

–Bertrand Russel (Philosopher)

“The point isn’t to get people to accept that they have biases, but to get them to see [for themselves] that those biases have negative consequences for others.”

–Theresa McHenry (GM HR, Marketing and Consumer Business at Microsoft)

“To know the true reality of yourself, you must be aware not only of your conscious thoughts, but also of your unconscious prejudices, bias and habits.”

“A lot of change is possible by just acknowledging unconscious bias–that exhaustively documented but unpleasant reality many would rather ignore–and listening with less bias and acting on what we then learn.”

“It’s not at all hard to understand a person; it’s only hard to listen without bias.”

–Criss Jami (Writer, ‘ Killosophy’ )

“Unconscious perceptions govern many of the most important decisions we make and have a profound effect on the lives of many people in many ways… Unconscious patterns play out in ways that are so subtle they are hard to spot.”

–Howard Ross (Activist)

Eliminate Implicit Bias From Hiring With the Chally Assessment

Learning about the many social circumstances that can unintentionally impact people isn’t easy. It requires a  conscious effort  to be mindful of your perceptions and  critical thinking  to deeper understand unfamiliar viewpoints. The wealth of community that you can develop through this awareness will expand into the rest of your life and the lives of those around you. Only through this growth can we ensure that you can create a culture – and future – for your company, where people feel appreciated and heard.

One way to proactively develop these changes is in your  hiring processes . As mentioned, unconscious bias often appears in hiring practices through names, appearance, clothing, or other factors.

Learn about your candidate before human intuition makes decisions for you.  Remove biases from the equation and understand your candidate’s true potential with  Chally’s pre-hire assessment .

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The importance of representation

When I write creatively, I write about white people. Not the same white person, sure: There’s the awkward misunderstood white person, or the rich white woman destined to solve crime or the hard working white man that robs a store at gunpoint. Sitting in a conference with my creative writing teacher, I told her I’m scared to write about things that I don’t know.

I fell in love with writing as I fell in love with books. I would read the Magic Tree House, Judy Bloom, Andrew Clements and Ann M. Martin during lunch, at recess, in my room when the lights were meant to be off. I told myself I would be a writer — that I could be a writer. On the covers of my second grade novels I’d draw a girl, using the peach shade crayon, and name her Grace. Or Lindsay or Abby or Charlotte. This is a girl I felt I knew. She was all around me, in my white school, in my white town. She was on Disney Channel and Nickelodeon. She was on magazines and American Girl dolls. As I got older, this white wash became more apparent. Classical literature praises this peach-shade figment: Jane Eyre, Elizabeth Bennet, Anna Karenina. These adventurous yet respectful white women — I eventually branched out to white men — became my muse.

Representation in the media is a constant source of controversy. For decades, award shows like the Oscars and Grammys have consistently overlooked the work of black artists. Black Panther is proving to be one of the most influential movies of our time with its assertion of black power both in its plot and cast. Many other films and TV shows released in the past few years have sought to provide representation for minority groups in the media. Representation isn’t just a nice way to appease complaining minorities. The media is a reflection of who America is and isn’t. America isn’t just white, and it never has been. When America looks into a mirror, the reflection is white, Christian, financially well-off. The picturesque American citizen.

I, along with so many people of color, write about white people because that is the only face the media deems as a full character. The complexity awarded to white Americans in the media is not seen in minority characters. There is no drive to explore the sassy black sidekick when there’s the multi-faceted white person. There is no incentive to explore minority characters when they exist to further stereotypes. I assumed this was normal. Fiction is about channeling something ideal or fantastical. In my childhood, the ideal was always white. Black people were side characters or villains. They were thugs or drug lords. They were never the hero. The media is partially responsible in the process of constructing what blackness and whiteness are, and in America, the furthering of racial stereotypes only helps justify racist actions. The fight for adequate representation isn’t a new thing. Amazing people have been advocating for cultural diversity in the media since before I was born. But there is more work that needs to be done.

We are in such a place where fundamental American thought can be shifted. Right now, minorities are starting to be listened to. Minorities have been yelling for decades at a country that doesn’t acknowledge us as part of its cultural makeup. Now there are more movies, TV shows, podcasts, models, activists that are beginning to be appreciated and listened to. This is the time. Children don’t have to write about peach-colored girls. The foundations created finally have room for some footing. By pushing for representation, we can change the way America is seen by Americans. When media is white, the stories of the marginalized, of racism, unfair housing, income inequality are never told. The media is a way to bring stories to life. The complexities of different races are not realized by most Americans because they are not visible to most Americans. The media is a pivotal start in forcing Americans to confront the harsh truth of our current political dynamic. Our media is silencing the voices of millions.

Representation is a vicious cycle. We write about what we see and what we experience. When all we study is white and all we see is white, all we create is white. I applaud the great authors and thinkers that have managed to test these boundaries, to push our current media and literature out of balance. They inspire young writers like me to explore the unseen characters, the traditional sidekicks, the never forgotten villains. They also encourage us to find characters in our own identity. We are encouraged to write characters with our strength and weaknesses and flaws.

Everyday, the media reassures us that America is white. Minorities are sidekicks or the help, the American Dream is alive and well, and racism is dead. Representation in the media means that America can finally see itself in all its multicultural, multiracial, beautiful self. Representation in the media means that America sees more to minorities than stereotypes. Representation can make disadvantaged groups become real people.  

Contact Natachi Onwuamaegbu at natachi ‘at’ stanford.edu.

Natachi Onwuamaegbu is a freshman from Bethesda, Maryland. She is currently undecided but is leaning towards Political Science and English. Currently, Natachi is part of the Black Student Union and hopes to run a radio station on campus. When she's not wandering around campus, Natachi likes to sit in the sun, listen to music and overuse semi-colons.

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WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®

Helping writers become bestselling authors

Representation in Literature: Why It’s Important & How To Handle It

October 10, 2018 by ANGELA ACKERMAN

Happy to welcome Deborah Dixon , a passionate author, editor, and racial justice activist to talk a bit on Representation in Literature, a topic of importance and something I think many of us want to understand better so we can encourage the right sort of discussions and help bring about change. Please read on!

The issue of representation has become an important one in literature and throughout the entertainment industry. As an author and publisher of color, I am often asked to offer insight on how best to include characters of diverse backgrounds. Specifically, this means characters from minority or underrepresented groups, such as ethnic minorities, LGBTQIA+ persons, religious minorities, those with disabilities, and to some extent, socioeconomic minorities. In this article, I will use the term “minority” to refer to members of all of these groups.

First, my credentials: I am Jamaican, neurodivergent, and simultaneously a citizen of and immigrant to the United States, among other things. These credentials do matter, because the basis of a person’s regard for your opinion on these sensitive matters starts with your background. It isn’t the whole picture; not every minority person has the same breadth of experiences, and many majority members have been exposed to the problems that minority members face. Also, like anything else, background and privilege are nuanced. Even I have some sources of privilege: I am cisgender and not physically disabled.

Also valued is the nature of a writer’s privilege. I won’t discuss privilege and entitlement too much here, as there are plenty of resources on both, such as this exploration of the different elements of identity.

There are two primary reasons why representation is important: inclusivity and perception .

Seeing people who look, act, and experience life like them in media makes a person feel included in a society, and it reinforces positive views of themselves and what they can achieve in society. Also, members of other groups, especially majority groups, base their ideas of groups on what they see in the media . For example, a hiring manager who watches too many police procedurals might view candidates of minority races as having criminal tendencies.

For people who exist outside of these marginalized and underrepresented groups, it can be hard to imagine life with the experiences and hardships that minorities experience. Without those experiences, writing characters of diverse backgrounds can seem daunting.

A good start is to be cognizant of the problems that your character would face and when those problems would have to be addressed. People of minority groups are still people; we have similar needs and similar motivations. The main difference is in the ways that society and its structures are arrayed against any particular group.

Therefore, in some situations, it will be perfectly acceptable to write a minority character just as you would any other. If a character’s romantic relationships are never brought up, then their sexual orientation might be little more than a footnote. Likewise, a black student’s college career might be just like that of a white student if the college itself is diverse and tolerant.

However, if the character is placed in a situation where their identity would be a factor, then it would be irresponsible to overlook it. For example, a black character being pulled over by the police should be described as feeling exceptional anxiety over their possible treatment by the officers. Whether the writer feels that this is a legitimate fear is irrelevant; it is what black people experience, and it is a problem that we continue to battle . Any work that included a black character getting along famously with the police would be soundly ridiculed by the black community.

Also, it might be tempting to fall back on stereotypes, but these are harmful images that still negatively affect members of those minorities. Take, for example, the common use of Middle Eastern characters as villains , or the portrayal of Native Americans as oversexualized savages . If these are the characters that are being written, then we would rather not have them at all!

Remember that minority characters are not there to be “exotic” ornaments for your plot. One striking example I encountered as an editor was a white writer using an almost all-white cast who included an Asian woman as a manicurist. It was meant as a cheeky observation, but in practice, it supported yet another harmful stereotype, and it would have reinforced to readers that Asian woman are only fit to run nail salons.

Always Do the Research

There is plenty of first-hand material about the situations that minority groups face, and many companies, including mine , offer research specific to fiction writing. If you happen to know someone from the group that you are interested in writing about, then ask that person if they can offer any insight, and be prepared for them to possibly turn you down.

Finally, remember that this is a cultural exchange; you must offer something in return. Consider promoting minority authors. Don’t just tack on characters to be “diverse,” and don’t borrow elements from a group without context, such as European knights using scimitars because they’re “cool.”

For a well-known example of what not to do , observe J. K. Rowling’s approach to including Native Americans in the Potterverse. She combined the hundreds of Native American cultures into one homogenous “community,” reappropriated important cultural touchstones, and supported harmful narratives of Natives accepting white colonialism. Although she was called out on this , she has not publicly apologized or changed her approach.

The best recent example of representation being done right is a film: 2016’s The Accountant , in which the main character, played by Ben Affleck, is high-functioning autistic. While the character is written in a very predictable fashion—aural oversensitivity, emotional vacancy—Affleck’s performance provides nuance that elevates the entire story. It’s clear that he and his supporting cast did the research, and while the movie’s overall effect on the autistic community is debatable, many of us saw pieces of ourselves in its protagonist .

Although the entertainment industry at large is welcoming more content written by minority members, most stories that reach the mainstream are still ones written by the majority—white, straight people. The majority still has a much stronger voice. Use it to amplify positive portrayals of the people who need them the most.

As with anything else, when in doubt, ask.

Look for editors who specifically offer sensitivity reading as part of their processes. Many editors, like those at Shalamar, offer diversity feedback as a matter of course.  Here’s an additional resource to check out if you are incorporating diversity in your work:

Writing Diversity Checklist

We welcome respectful discussion–if you have questions or comments, debra is here to discuss.

Shalamar is a book publishing and author advocacy company based in New Orleans, Louisiana. Created in 2016 by a trio of writers, Shalamar aims to break down barriers to entry in publishing by offering accessible and affordable services to new and undiscovered writers.

The company also supports initiatives to amplify voices from underrepresented and marginalized groups. They can be found at @shalamarllp on Facebook and @ShalamarNOLA everywhere else.

Deborah Dixon is a cofounder, author, and editor at Shalamar . She has published two novels, seven novellas, and numerous short stories of her own.

She is a digital rights and racial justice activist, and her opinions on social issues, the publishing process, and Saints football can be found on Twitter at @Deboracracy .

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers , a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

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Reader Interactions

October 18, 2020 at 10:26 am

I believe that books are the essence of who we are and who we dream of being. Therefore, representation is a crucial component in building the identity of an individual and its sense of belonging. Reading about someone who looks like you makes you feel that you can achieve anything and that you truly belong in the society. Seeing someone just like me being reflected in a book makes me feel that I’m not the outsider that I always thought I was. However, there is indeed a lack of representation of minority groups in books. I totally agree that the lack of representation has become an important issue in literature and that minorities should be depicted more in books. In that being said however, any representation should not be accepted just because of the lack of it. Disrespectful and damaging representations of minorities should not be tolerated just for the sake of finally being represented in books.

August 13, 2019 at 11:26 pm

Great stuff, and the Shalamar tips before publishing are excellent and extensive! Thanks for this. Will help my Gr 12 English class think oppressive representation that occurs in some of these more subtle ways.

August 13, 2019 at 11:40 pm

August 22, 2019 at 3:51 pm

Thank you so much Wes, and best wishes for your English class! Glad you found this information and the resources helpful. Feel free to reach out if I can help further!

October 12, 2018 at 12:08 am

As a Native American author, I want to thank you for this post. Keep fighting the good fight!

It is hard to find books where people like me aren’t A) Sexy Shifters B) Poor C) Swindlers

Which is funny, since none of the Lenni-Lenape people that I know are any of those. Hang on… *runs outside, looks at the moon, tries real real extra super hard* Nope. Still not a shifter. Darn. 😉

My people also didn’t wear huge feather headdresses, live in teepees, say “howgh” for hello, or most of the other traits that perhaps were exhibited in the western tribes. We did, however, influence the creation of the original laws of this country, such as the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Obviously not well enough to be considered human until 1879, or be eligible to be citizen of the land we’d lived on for thousands of years until 1924, or get the Voting Rights Act fully nailed down (looking at two states right now…). But hey, we tried.

If anyone out there does have a book with well-written Lenni-Lenape characters, please track me down and drop a buy link. I’m always looking!

October 12, 2018 at 2:24 pm

Preach it! I would love to sit many, many non-Native writers (sadly, including some Black ones) down and have them write this sentence a few hundred times:

Native American communities are NOT monolithic.

As you can see above, I refuse to let Rowling live it down.

If anyone out there has a story will well-developed Lenni-Lenape characters, I just might publish it. 😉

October 11, 2018 at 10:02 pm

That’s definitely some great stuff, and I largely agree. I do take issue with simply saying there are some things you should “never do.” For example, making an autistic character have some unique strange ability can work if it’s done well or the usual cliches of the trope are subverted.

I’m not saying that just for the sake of debate. I have autism myself, and my current story in progress plays on that trope.

October 12, 2018 at 2:13 pm

Thank you Claire! And thanks for checking out our list!

The things that made it onto the Never-Do list aren’t there because they can’t be done well, but because when they are done (well or otherwise), they consistently cause harm to real, living people of that particular group.

Regarding autistic characters, I’ll go and change my wording on the list, but I did think specifically of powers that are related to a character’s autism, correcting the ‘imbalance’ of the disability. (An autistic character with, say, lightning powers, unrelated to her autism, would probably be okay.)

Objectively, a disability-superpower autistic character could possibly be done well, especially by an autistic writer, but I respectfully disagree that the character *should* be done even so. Even if the character was brilliant and an excellent role model, like a neurodivergent Wonder Woman, she would still be perpetrating objectifying stereotypes about how we need a ‘cure’ to balance out our deficiencies. It also isolates a model minority within the autistic community, as it elevates ‘superhuman’ autistics (ie savants) above others on the spectrum, valuing them more and devaluing the others as useless or helpless.

(Here’s an article that goes into model minorities more: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-good-doctor-is-bad-medicine-autism-1098809 )

So while this kind of character could work from a character-development standpoint, her existence would cause strain on those of us (like you and me) who deal with autism stereotypes regularly. My opinion is that the character isn’t worth the harm done, but we likely have different experiences and observations that lead to different conclusions. 🙂

October 11, 2018 at 9:15 pm

Wonderful! Very revelant!

October 12, 2018 at 1:29 pm

Thanks for reading, Traci!!

October 11, 2018 at 2:03 pm

First of all, Who Dat!!!

Thank you so much for writing this article, Deborah. I loved that you explained that a writer needs to remember that diverse characters are still human beings. I also hate that you had to say that.

I had a small press from Mississippi, where I’m from, reach out to me about wanting to work with me. The minute they found out I was a lesbian they quickly let me know that they could not work with a story with LGBTQ+ characters, because they wouldn’t know how to market it. It was shocking and saddening. Needless to say, I did not work with them.

Thank you again, and I look forward to checking out your company and your work!

October 11, 2018 at 4:12 pm

Yeah you rite Keli!!!!

I’m sorry to hear about your experience with that press! And yet I’m not surprised. The inclusion of underrepresented writers ourselves is another topic that I’m passionate about, and fortunately I get to work toward that goal through Shalamar.

Being treated that way, particularly by a press that sought you out, had to have stung, and rightfully so; but, with the benefit of hindsight, people that closed-minded would have been rough to work with anyway, so maybe it was for the better, rudeness and prejudice aside.

(Marketing professionals are specifically taught to adapt to different audience, genres, and trends, so that excuse is always code for “we don’t want to work with you.”)

I hope you found a much better home for your writing, and would love to hear from you anytime!

October 11, 2018 at 10:23 am

Glad to have you here discussing something that I think confuses a lot of people because sometimes we can see part of the picture, but not the whole thing and so we don’t necessarily realize the ripples that come from stereotypes or the level of inequity out there.

In our fiction it is our job to make the reader feel part of another’s point of view. I think as a Caucasian and a Caucasian author, I need to work harder to do what I can to make sure all voices are represented. Change comes about through understanding, and this happens at all levels from governing entities to the drivers of industries to the producers of content and the consumers of that content.

Thanks for being here!

October 11, 2018 at 9:06 am

Hi everyone! Angela, thank you SO MUCH for your help and your kindness! You are an inspiration to me as an author advocate. <3

Readers: Thanks for checking out this article! I am happy to answer any further questions you might have here. You can also contact me directly if you'd prefer a one-on-one conversation.

Much love from New Orleans!

October 11, 2018 at 9:03 am

Thanks for being here today, Deborah!

October 11, 2018 at 3:59 pm

Hi Becca! Thanks for having me! 🙂

[…] Ackerman talks about the importance of inclusivity and perception.   Inclusivity prescribes that the characters in the texts that we use should be as […]

[…] Deborah Dixon examine representation in literature: why it’s important and how to handle it. […]

Representation

Representation , in politics, representation describes how some individuals stand in for others or a group of others, for a certain time period. Representation usually refers to representative democracies, where elected officials nominally speak for their constituents in the legislature. Generally, only citizens are granted representation in the government in the form of voting rights; however, some democracies have extended this right further.

Quotes [ edit ]

• Thomas Jefferson , letter to John Taylor (May 28, 1816); in Paul L. Ford, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson (1899) vol. 10, p. 30.
• Thomas Jefferson , letter to Samuel Kercheval, September 5, 1816); in Paul L. Ford, The Writings of Thomas Jefferson (1899) vol. 10, p. 45–46, footnote 1.
• Arnold Hauser . The Social History of Art, Volume I. From Prehistoric Times to the Middle Ages, 1999
• David Stasavage, The Decline and Rise of Democracy: A Global History from Antiquity to Today (2020), p. 17
• Earl Warren , governor of California, speech at Merced, California (October 29, 1948), as reported in the San Francisco Chronicle (October 30, 1948), p. 3. Warren was asking for a "no" vote on a proposition which would reconstitute the state senate on the basis of population.
• Lindsey Vonn about Donald Trump , in Macfarlane, Christina; Caderas, Ursin; Sinnott, John (7 December 2017), " Lindsey Vonn: I won't be representing US President at Winter Olympics ", CNN  

See also [ edit ]

• Politicians

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Why is Representation Important: A Guide to Its Significance

By: Author Paul Jenkins

Posted on April 6, 2024

Categories Community , Education , Leadership , Society

Representation is a crucial aspect in today’s diverse society. It helps in breaking down stereotypes and fostering understanding among different groups. In this section, you’ll learn about the concept of representation and why it is essential.

The Concept of Representation

Representation refers to how various media, like films, television shows, books, and even advertisements, portray groups of people based on factors such as their gender, ethnicity, age, or sexual orientation.

By showcasing individuals from different backgrounds, representation aims at encouraging understanding and eliminating stereotypes surrounding these groups. It also empowers underrepresented individuals by making them feel seen and heard.

When you see people who look like you or share similar experiences represented in the media, it becomes easier to relate to the story and imagine yourself in those situations. This can be an empowering feeling, as it helps foster a sense of belonging and encourages a more inclusive society.

However, it is important to note that representation is not just about tokenism or merely including diverse characters for the sake of it. Authentic representation should provide accurate portrayals of individuals and their experiences, celebrating their unique qualities and cultivating empathy among viewers or readers.

By working on representation, you can help contribute to a society that is more open, accepting, and understanding of different perspectives.

The Pillars of Political Representation

Descriptive representation.

Descriptive representation is when a representative shares the same demographic traits as the population they represent. In other words, it focuses on having a representative who physically resembles or reflects the various identities of the group they represent, such as race, ethnicity, and gender.

When representatives come from diverse backgrounds, including Asian Americans, or other ethnicities, they can offer unique perspectives that help in creating well-rounded policies. This also improves the political process by counteracting stereotypes and promoting inclusion for different identities.

A diverse political body helps you feel more connected to your representatives, as they’re likely to understand your concerns more intimately.

Substantive Representation

While descriptive representation focuses on the physical representation of citizens, substantive representation is about the actions of the representatives. It means that the representative advocates for and pursues the interests and needs of the specific groups they represent, regardless of their own personal characteristics or background.

Here, the emphasis is on what your representative does for you, rather than who they are. It’s crucial to ensure that your representative considers your opinions, perspectives, and concerns when making decisions and crafting policies. A strong substantive representation ensures that diverse voices are heard and included in the political process.

Ultimately, both descriptive and substantive representation play essential roles in achieving fair representation, promoting diversity, and bolstering the political process. By focusing on these pillars, you can be better informed when participating in the political arena and selecting your representatives. So, embrace these concepts to create a more inclusive and representative society.

Benefits of Political Representation

Strengthening democracy.

Representation plays a vital role in strengthening democracy by promoting equality and inclusion. When people from diverse backgrounds, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic statuses have a voice in political decision-making, everyone’s needs are more likely to be addressed.

You can see this when elected representatives prioritize issues that directly impact their constituents, such as education and healthcare. Diverse representation ensures that the concerns of underrepresented groups are not overlooked.

Promoting Social Cohesion

Another important aspect of political representation is fostering social cohesion by increasing visibility and awareness for various cultural, gender, and social groups.

As role models, elected representatives from marginalized communities can help inspire and empower others to engage in the political process. Their presence can contribute to reducing the likelihood of discrimination and bias, fostering a more inclusive and diverse society.

By participating in the political process, you can help promote a healthy democracy that values representation and inclusivity. It not only contributes to a more just and equal society but also lifts up the voices of those who have been historically silenced or marginalized. Your involvement matters – it can lead to significant change and progress in the pursuit of a more fair and equitable world.

Challenges to Achieving Effective Representation

Systemic Barriers and Inequalities

When it comes to representation, various factors act as obstacles in achieving it effectively. One of these factors is the existence of systemic barriers and inequalities, which can perpetuate power imbalances between different groups.

For instance, people belonging to marginalized groups, those with lower socioeconomic status, and those facing gender-related biases often struggle to attain representation proportional to their population.

As you work towards implementing representation, it is essential to be aware of these barriers and strive to challenge and dismantle them. You can start by advocating for equal opportunities, promoting diversity, and addressing systemic obstacles in a meaningful way.

The Role of Media and Perception

The media plays a significant role in shaping our perception of the world, and it’s crucial to ensure fair representation in media to have a more balanced and inclusive understanding of various groups. Unfortunately, media representation often includes stereotypes and biases, which contribute to perpetuating misinformation and reinforcing power imbalances.

To address this issue, you can help support and promote diverse media that provides accurate and well-rounded portrayals of different groups of people.

Encourage media outlets to depict individuals of various backgrounds, identities, and perspectives, which can lead to a fuller understanding, challenge stereotypes, and empower marginalized communities.

Case Studies: Representation in Action

In this section, we will explore case studies that demonstrate representation in action, showcasing the positive outcomes that result from authentic representation and the presence of role models.

Historical Milestones in Political Representation

Throughout history, numerous milestones have marked significant progress in political representation, demonstrating the importance of authentic representation from various cultural backgrounds and social groups.

For instance, the election of Barack Obama, the first Black President of the United States, broke barriers and encouraged greater diversity in political leadership.

Meanwhile, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern showcases the potential for strong and compassionate leadership from women. Ardern’s tenure has been marked by her unique approach to representation, prioritizing empathy and inclusivity in her decision-making process.

Current Leaders and Their Representational Roles

Today, several leaders embody the spirit of representation and cultural diversity. Kamala Harris, the first female Vice President of the United States and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, serves as a role model for young women and girls, particularly those from disadvantaged and minority communities.

In these cases, the significance of representation becomes clear. Through the examples of political leadership and diverse officials in positions of power, we can form a clearer understanding of why representation is vital to society.

By elevating heroes and role models from an array of backgrounds, we can inspire future generations and pave the way for a more inclusive world where everyone can aspire to achieve greatness.

Strategies to Improve Representation

Policy Changes and Political Reforms

To ensure better representation, you should consider advocating for policy changes and political reforms that promote equity. One way to address this is by promoting decision-making processes that involve diverse perspectives. This can lead to a more inclusive environment that fosters innovation and creative problem-solving, benefiting everyone involved.

It’s important to take commitment and accountability seriously. By actively implementing policies that encourage diversity and inclusion, you help to create a foundation for lasting change.

Supporting equal opportunities in hiring practices and leadership roles can help address power dynamics within an organization or community, helping to level the playing field.

Collaborating and engaging in cooperative efforts with others who share similar goals can be beneficial as well. Consider exploring options for working with organizations or individuals that share the same vision for equity and representation.

Grassroots Movements and Advocacy

Grassroots movements and advocacy efforts can be powerful forces of change, particularly when tackling representation challenges head-on. By participating in or supporting community-based efforts, you lend your voice to important issues that might otherwise go unheard.

Taking part in or organizing petitions is a great way to make sure that your concerns are addressed by decision-makers. These actions can bring attention to inequalities and conflicts within your community, prompting discussions on how to address issues related to representation.

Finally, remember that improving representation often involves navigating complex power dynamics and addressing long-standing inequities. By approaching these challenges with a friendly attitude and a spirit of cooperation, you can be a positive force for change, both in your community and beyond.

The Future of Representation in Politics

As you navigate the world of politics, keep in mind the importance of representation. It serves a crucial purpose in building confidence and ensuring that all interests are fairly considered. Striving for diverse representation in political spaces allows for better-informed decision-making and fosters progress in society.

By being mindful of representation and promoting inclusive policies, you can contribute to a brighter and more equitable future for all.

Final Thoughts on the Importance of Representation

In conclusion, upholding representation is essential in fostering a more inclusive society where everyone’s interests are considered. Focusing on proper representation ensures that individuals from all backgrounds and walks of life feel seen, heard, and valued.

So as you continue to engage with the world around you, champion representation and celebrate the myriad perspectives that people bring to the table. Remember, it’s through our collective efforts that we can create lasting change and build a better future for everyone.

Writing the Other

Learn to write characters very different from you sensitively and convincingly, representation matters: a literary call to arms by k. tempest bradford.

Books are sometimes windows, offering views of worlds that may be real or imagined, familiar or strange. These windows are also sliding glass doors, and readers have only to walk through in imagination to become part of whatever world has been created or recreated by the author. When lighting conditions are just right, however, a window can also be a mirror. Literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection we can see our own lives and experiences as part of the larger human experience. Reading, then, becomes a means of self-affirmation, and readers often seek their mirrors in books. — Rudine Sims Bishop , “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors” from Perspectives: Choosing and Using Books for the Classroom . vol. 6, no. 3. Summer 1990

For writers and other creators of fictional worlds, 2023 and beyond needs to be about crafting characters and narratives that don’t support or excuse or ignore colonialism, marginalization, and other forms of oppression. That means creating inclusive fiction that reflects of the diversity of the world we all live in.

Representation is key to good writing. This is true whether you’re a novelist, a game writer, a playwright, or a screenwriter; whether you work in television, in game development, or new media. All narrative has the power to impact culture and individuals in a positive way or a negative one. It’s up to creators to choose.

Writers often run into difficulties when attempting to represent people from identities very different from their own. It’s not an easy skill to learn, and creators are often afraid of getting it wrong. That fear is a valid one, but representation is so important—too important to ignore. This is why I teach classes on Writing the Other alongside Nisi Shawl, co-author of the foundational book on the subject. We start our classes with this topic, relying heavily on the Invisible anthologies , collections of personal essays on representation edited by Jim C. Hines.

Why Is Representation Important?

For readers and viewers, seeing themselves represented on the page or screen can open up to them what’s possible. For some, it’s a lifeline.

…at the time, I needed to see those multitudes of reactions. At the time, I needed an idea of what might happen when I came out… I needed to know that coming out – after years of silence – was an option. I needed to be told it wouldn’t kill my family or my friends and that there would be people who loved me at the end of that day. —Joie Young, “Options” Invisible vol 1

This is particularly important for writers who create media for young people. If kids and teens feel excluded, alone, or like there is no one with their same or similar headspace, fiction can show them that this isn’t true.

When I was younger, reading about shy and introverted characters helped me feel like I wasn’t the only shy, introverted person alive in the world, and like those traits were just personality differences, not flaws I had to fix. I have every reason to believe that, if I’d had the chance to read more books about non-binary characters as a teen or young adult, I could have understood and accepted my gender identity many years ago. —Morgan Dambergs, “Non-binary and Not Represented” Invisible vol 1

Seeing oneself reflected in fiction, even if partially, is important for people from marginalized communities and identities. It’s also important for people who align with the dominant paradigm as well. It allows them to see and understand that people who aren’t like them exist outside of narrow stereotypes and also outside of the confines of their own narrow understanding.

One of the arguments against being more representative or inclusive in fiction is that authors and creators are including non-white, non-male, non-straight, non-able-bodied, etc. characters in settings where they don’t belong. See anger over the casting of Angel Coulby in the role of Guinevere in BBC’s Merlin , or pushback to the very idea that Marvel’s Agent Carter needed to step up its diversity , or discussions of how Disney’s Frozen could have been more inclusive , but wasn’t. There is always someone ready to place restrictions or boundaries on creators due to genre, time period, or location, but they’re often based not on what is actually possible, but what people think is possible based on faulty information, lack of representative examples, or just plain bigotry. Writers should reject these restrictions.

Because accepting these poorly supported boundaries results in what author Justina Ireland calls An Apartheid of the Imagination :

In all of my reading and book devouring, not once did I read a book that featured a black girl or woman. There were no black girls slipping into fantastical worlds and saving prophesied kings. There were no dark-skinned girls facing down their serial killer boyfriends or black women falling in love with their millionaire bosses… Magic, love, and heart-stopping action just didn’t happen for black girls. We didn’t exist in those spaces, in those books. It was an apartheid of a different kind, a literary genocide for black women, and by extension, an apartheid of the imagination. By reading those books, I began to believe that those things also didn’t and couldn’t exist for me.

Reject the idea that you can’t include a type of character in your fiction and instead, like author Anne Lyle , work on finding ways that you can.

Just don’t fall into the trap of thinking that any representation should be welcomed by groups who lack it.

Bad Representation: Like Water In The Desert

When readers and scholars from multiple Native American Nations spoke out about the many problems with J. K. Rowling’s Magic in North America stories , one of the comebacks I saw often from angry fans was: You should be glad she included you at all!

This is a common argument, and one that should be ignored.

It is true that if you never or rarely see yourself in fiction or other media, any representation that matches you, even a little, can feel welcome at first. It’s like coming across water in the desert after a day without it. Doesn’t matter how foul or gross looking the water is, you’re gonna drink it if you’re dying of thirst.

In retrospect it’s incredibly offensive, and even at the time it wasn’t very funny. But at the time I thought to myself, ah! This is what I am! —Susan Jane Bigelow, “Clicking” Invisible vol 1

The problem with accepting bad representation as the norm or as desirable going forward is that it leads to more bad representation, more stereotypes, more offensive caricatures. And that has a negative psychological effect on the people represented.

Scholar and activist Debbie Reese introduced me to this study: Of Warrior Chiefs and Indian Princesses: The Psychological Consequences of American Indian Mascots . You can read it in full at the link, but here’s the takeaway: The study measured Native American students’ self-esteem, community worth, and their sense of achievement-related possibilities before and then after being exposed to common American Indian stereotypical images such as Pocahontas and sports mascots like Chief Wahoo and Chief Illinwek. Before, their self esteem, etc. was high. The study found that after exposure to these images and stereotypes, the students felt less good about themselves, their communities, and their future. On the other side, the self-esteem, etc. of white, Western children exposed to the same images went up .

Bad representation has a direct negative effect on the groups being represented.

It also affects how gatekeepers judge a piece of media. If an editor, producer, or lead developer is convinced that characters from an identity group must act or be a certain way in order to be realistic, and those ways of being are reinforced by stereotypical representation, then they force those ideas onto writers. All Native Americans must struggle with alcoholism! All young Black men must come from a broken home and be in or attracted to gangs! All women must have a desire to be mothers and must be devastated to discover that they can’t bear children! All trans people must be unhappy and self-loathing unless and until they can medically transition and pass as cisgender!

Writers can combat this by working toward including nuanced and realistic representation in their own work whenever possible and resisting the pressure to change it. Arm yourself with knowledge on the subject, find experts to back you up, get your agent or your team to back you up. It’s not going to be easy. But it’s crucial for you to hold firm about not allowing someone else, no matter how powerful they seem, to introduce harmful stereotypes into your work because they lack understanding.

Representation Needs Change Over Time

There’s an aspect of the Water In The Desert discussion of representation that I address with our students when they ask: But What If I Get It Wrong?

Here’s an uncomfortable truth: You’re Going To Get It Wrong, Sometimes. Even if you try your best. No one is perfect, this work is not the work of a month or a year or, for some, a decade. It’s ongoing, and sometimes the needs of the people you’re representing are going to change around you.

A famous case to study: Neil Gaiman’s Sandman: A Game Of You . If you’re not familiar with this graphic novel, I suggest you read this plot summary on Wikipedia .

The collected comics were first published in 1991 and 1992, and at that time there was a dearth of transgender people in media anywhere. A Game of You features one as a main character: Wanda. Many trans people, especially ones who first read the comic in the 90s, love Wanda. Many trans people think the character and the story are steeped in transmisogyny and transphobia.

There are many examinations and criticisms of the story on the Internet. The one I point my students to is by author Imogen Binnie . The essay is long, very detailed, and contains too many good points to quote faithfully here. Binnie starts by pointing out that, up to this moment in the comics, there have already been eight trans women mentioned or shown in the Sandman series, all of whom were dead. Wanda is the first full-fledged trans character with lines. Despite this being groundbreaking by admission, Binnie still finds Wanda “a boring caricature of a trans woman” whose freakishness is often highlighted in opposition to the “normative cis[gender] femininity” of most of the other major characters.

In the course of the story, Wanda is denied access to the quest her friends embark on because the Moon (which represents anti-trans Dianic Paganism) won’t allow her to walk on the Moon’s Road because “she’s a man.”

While her cis women friends are off on their adventure, a hurricane destroys their apartment building and Wanda dies. (This is a very, very brief summary that doesn’t do any of the story justice, so please do read the summary and Binnie’s essay in full.)

After this, Wanda’s best friend Barbara tells us:

“I dream of Wanda. Only she’s perfect… And when I say perfect, I mean perfect. Drop-dead gorgeous. There’s nothing camp about her, nothing artificial. And she looks happy.”

Binnie’s commentary dissects the takeaway as:

See, Wanda is happy because now that she is dead, she looks cis. Again: not only does this reinforce cissupremecist beauty standards, but what does this say to a trans person who’s reading this: you will look pretty when you’re dead, but since you’re alive right now, … that must suck for you? It breaks my heart to re-read this because this was my favorite scene in the whole series when I was younger. I felt SO FUCKED UP when I read it. It was SO BEAUTIFUL, she finally got to be pretty, she finally didn’t have to be trans any more, she got to wear a pretty pink princess dress (like Barbie!) and wear subtle makeup and her big red hair didn’t look absurd, it looked natural!

Imogen is far from the only person to point out these aspects of the story and characterization as a problem. There are also very staunch defenders of this story and Wanda in specific. The two I’m going to quote are close friends of Neil Gaiman. This might make you think their views are too biased to be useful in this context—in this case, not so.

When creating the character of Wanda, Gaiman did all the things Nisi and I and dozens of other people who encourage authors to write the Other to do: Talk to people from the group you’re trying to represent. Understand their struggles and concerns and what they want to see in characters that represent some part of them. Show these people your work and get their honest feedback.

Cheryl Morgan and Roz Kaveney , trans authors, editors, and activists, are among the loudest voices who consistently defend Wanda and Gaiman’s portrayal of her against criticism, both unwarranted and thoughtful . These quotes are from a discussion on the subject from Facebook (no link for privacy, included by permission):

Roz Kaveney:

Neil’s portrait of Wanda in A GAME OF YOU drew extensively on the experiences of various trans women – it’s of its time, the early 90s and is open to criticism some twenty years later. It was ground-breaking – Wanda was one of the first major trans characters in popular culture – and it was not ill-informed. …The claim that Neil is in any way transphobic is an insult to all the close trans friends he had long before he became a star.

In response to the essay linked above:

I am not discounting Imogen’s reading, just saying that it doesn’t invalidate other readings by other trans women.

Cheryl Morgan added:

I can totally see where Imogen is coming from. The story is not an easy thing to read, especially if you are a trans woman. Where I might disagree is in labeling the story transphobic. It is very much a story about transphobia. It has TERFS, it has religious fundamentalists, it has horrible parents. Inevitably it is very triggery. … By the way, the reason that Roz and I are so protective of Neil is that he has been a loyal and supportive friend to both of us for many decades, when many other people we might have expected to rely on have been far less accepting of our trans status.

From everything I’ve read and heard on this subject, it seems clear to me that Gaiman tried to create a character that honored and represented his trans friends. And yet, for some trans people, the character still comes off as harmful.

Gaiman has been asked about Wanda many times. In 2014, he answered one of his critics on Tumblr by saying:

If I were writing it today, rather than in 1989, when there weren’t any Trans characters in comics, it would be a different story, I have no doubt. But that was the story I wrote in 1989.

What comes off as good, or good enough, will sometimes depend on where the culture is at the moment. The first representation can be exhilarating, as Binnie points out. That doesn’t mean it will always be good enough, or even celebrated forever. And it’s not entirely in your control as the creator. You may go years, decades with people from the identity group you’re representing who think the portrayal is on point, even a needed lifeline, and then later find other people from that group saying your character is harmful and doing the opposite of what you wanted. Sometimes that will be because the culture has changed for the better.

How do you avoid this?

What To Avoid, and What To Strive For

I’ll say again: You’re Going To Get It Wrong, Sometimes. Be prepared for that. However, there are things to watch out for that could help future-proof your characters.

The Perpetual Victim

Avoid only including marginalized characters who are victims or only exist to be victimized.

Even if they are done well (such as by Guy Davis in his old Baker Street comics), it seems like victimisation is inevitable. Murder, assault, being outcast, etc. are all common situations applied to trans* characters… and even if they survive the story it’s often not without some sort of violent conflict. —Katie, “Gender in Genre” Invisible vol 1

It’s easy for writers to fall into this because many marginalized people in the real world do suffer from oppression. You shouldn’t ignore that, but you also shouldn’t make that the only way you include them as characters in your work. People are complex, live complex lives, and experience awesomeness as well as pain. If the only narratives you can imagine for marginalized characters focus on the pain, then you’re not going deep enough.

Characters in Isolation

When creating characters from under-represented groups, remember that they shouldn’t be the only person from that identity in the work. The majority of characters don’t spring fully-formed from the head of Zeus. That person had to come from somewhere. They have People. A family, a community, a group they’ve forged themselves. They also weren’t the only person to arise from that culture, group, or family. If your inclination is to make any marginalized character isolated, interrogate that inclination. Ask why.

This is not only more realistic, it will also give you more wiggle room when it comes to reader reactions to these characters. When discussing this essay with Cheryl Morgan, she pointed out that: “…if you put a representative of a minority group in a story, then readers who come from that minority group will probably identify strongly with that character. And if bad things happen to that character, even if that’s entirely justified within the story, those readers will feel that as an attack on them. Neither you, nor any other reader who is not part of that group, will read the story in the same way, because it isn’t so personal for you.”

You don’t have to make every character from a particular identity a prominent one to combat this problem. However, if you have a limited cast to work with, remember that, like people, characters aren’t only one thing. A trans person is not only their gender or gender presentation, they have a race or ethnicity, may be abled or disabled, hold religious beliefs, and can come from a variety of class backgrounds, like any other type of person. Including multiple transgender characters in one work doesn’t mean only including people from the exact same background and experience.

Villains and Saints

Another trope to avoid is only including marginalized characters as villains. This is explored in depth in “ Evil Albino Trope is Evil ” by Nalini Haynes:

The evil albino trope is lazy writing, creating a sense of ‘other’ by victimising a small minority group. The evil albino trope alienates albinos… Reinforcing perceptions of incompetence and evil-ness in this people group is discrimination and victimisation.

Not that all minority/marginalized characters must be the ultimate paragons of good—that’s also a problem. As we tell our students: reject the binary. The answer is rarely either/or. It’s more complex.

If you’re going to make the marginalized character the antagonist or even evil, take care to ensure they are not the only person of that identity prominent in your work. Again, avoid characters in isolation.

I See (Only) Dead People

Avoid killing all the people who represent marginalized or minority identities in your work of fiction. That doesn’t mean some can’t die, but if all the characters who aren’t the white, cisgender, able-bodied hero types die, that represents a problem. Wanda was the tenth trans person to die by the end of Sandman #5; none of the trans people mentioned or shown up to that point got to live. Wanda’s death may have been narratively apt or even necessary, that doesn’t mean it should or will only be viewed on its own.

Marginalized characters often die while characters that hew closer to the dominant paradigm (white, cisgender, able-bodied, heterosexual, or male) go on. Consider very carefully when you make this choice as a creator.

That’s a bunch about what you shouldn’t do, here’s some of what you should do.

Create Complex Characters

That may sound simple and obvious. It is. It’s just not always easy when the characters are very different from you. It requires empathy, understanding, willingness to do hard work, to examine yourself as deeply as you examine others, and sometimes a good deal of research. It’s not impossible.

Educate Yourself

Whenever possible, learn about the stereotypes and tropes already present in media about the groups you’re trying to represent. TVTropes is an excellent place to start if you are at the very beginning of your search, just don’t let that be where you stop. Find articles, essays, blog posts, social media threads where media critics and activists dissect books, TV shows, and movies with characters from the groups you’re learning about. Look at the mistakes others have made, understand why people in the group see them as mistakes, then don’t make the same ones yourself.

If you want some guidance on how to start, we have a whole section of Resources on this website, many of them free. You’ll find links to books, online essays, and videos that go into the topic. You can also take one of our live classes , or an On Demand one. There are a range of offerings from foundations in writing inclusive fiction to master classes on writing characters from specific identity groups.

There is all kinds of help out there beyond our website. Find it, utilize it, and always strive to do better.

Change and Grow as a Creator Over Time

No writer or artist starts out perfect. And no writer, no matter how talented and skilled , can rest on their laurels when it comes to improving their craft. You should never stop learning how to do representation better, even if you feel you got it right once. Neil Gaiman is, again, an excellent example.

In 2022 The Sandman was finally adapted to the screen after over a decade of trying. When the first season was still in production, Gaiman had a conversation with fellow fantasy writer N. K. Jemisin about his approach to writing about social issues and how that has changed over the course of his career. He spoke about Wanda and the TV series, stating:

“My biggest request to the Sandman showrunner for when we get to the season with ‘Game of You’ in it is that we have trans men and trans women in the writers’ room… Not as consultants, but as writers.”

Before there was confirmation of a Season 2, Gaiman said : “Wanda is an absolutely integral part of The Sandman universe and ‘A Game of You.’ And if we’re lucky enough to make Season 2, Wanda will be a huge, huge part… It’s going to be so much fun casting fabulous trans actors.”

Gaiman could have ignored his critics, stubbornly stuck to his original characterization, and refused calls to have trans people as part of the writing team. Plenty of other big name creators have done one or all of those things. Instead, he listened to criticisms, recognized that the representations good enough for 1991 are not good enough for 2021, and ensured that he included the voices and lived experience of the people he wants to represent.

Not all creators get an opportunity to redo a narrative they’ve already released or published. If you do, make sure that you’ve had enough growth as a creator to update your understanding of best practices for representation and bring in people from the groups you want to represent, if possible.

Even if you don’t get the opportunity to adapt your work to a new medium or republish an updated edition, you can still show your growth by the new work you produce. That matters even more.

Because each of us who strive to do better and be better each time strip the power from those committed to cultural toxicity. By creating more mirrors and opening more sliding glass doors for more people you’re actively engaging in what narrative does best: changing the world.

K. Tempest Bradford is an award-winning teacher, media critic, and author of fantasy and science fiction steeped in Black Girl Magic.She’s one of the primary teachers for Writing the Other and has taught classes and given talks on representation and creating diverse narratives for Clarion West, LitReactor, universities, and entertainment companies.

Tempest’s media criticism and essays on diversity and representation have been published at NPR, io9,  Ebony Magazine , and more. Her short fiction has appeared in multiple anthologies and magazines, including  In The Shadow of the Towers  and New Suns 2 . Her debut middle grade novel,  Ruby Finley vs. the Interstellar Invasion, features a young Black genius who loves science and bugs. It’s been nominated for the IGNYTE Award for Middle Grade fiction and is winner of the 2022 Andre Norton Nebula Award.

She’s also the recipient of the 2020 LOCUS  Special Award for Inclusivity and Representation Education and the 2022 Lemonade Award. She’s been nominated for  FIYAH Magazine ‘s IGNYTE Community and Ember Awards.

A version of this essay originally appeared on LitReactor.

Representation Matters: Leaders Share Racial Equality Quotes

We asked nearly 30 speakers from the Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ tech community — founders, CEOs, executives, authors, activists, musicians, and more — about what it means to drive racial equality. This is what they shared.

Jameelah Nasheed

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Over the last year, our society experienced a racial reckoning that was long overdue where deep inequalities were underscored. This was the tone of our fourth annual racial equality event summit, Representation Matters , presented by Deloitte Digital, on July 22, 2021. Our company focused on courageous conversations around racial equality and using our platform to elevate voices from underrepresented communities . 

The virtual event serves as a platform to elevate tech’s most underrepresented communities — Black , Latinx , Indigenous , and LGBTQ+ . We learned from an inspiring lineup of Trailblazers, including executives, social justice activists, mental health advocates, and founders. We heard first-hand industry experience from Morgan Stanley, Blavity, Backstage Capital, We Are All Human, and more.

Representation Matters: ​​Watch the panel discussion

Get inspired by nearly 30 executives, advocates, and leaders in the Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ tech community.

Systemic change and an increase in representation requires more than conversation; it takes action. And we are dedicated to being guided by and amplifying the voices of Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ community members to get to where we need to be. We’re not just making space. We’re changing the space.

It’s important to lead and increase access to the technology industry and business for communities of color and members of the LGBTQ+ community — people who have been “underestimated” as our panelist, Arlan Hamilton, author, venture catalyst and founder, Backstage Capital , said. 

Below are highlights from this year’s Representation Matters, our annual racial equality summit.

Why does representation matter?

“Representation, to me, is so important in all lines of work, especially in what I do. What if all lines of work resembled what the world looks like? It would make what we’re doing better, more impactful, and relatable to more people.” 

– Anthony Ramos , Grammy Award-winning and Emmy-nominated actor / singer and star of the film, “In The Heights”

“I noticed that when I started shifting and using the word ‘underestimated’ [versus underrepresented]…people’s ears perked up. That competitive nature that brought them to venture capital to begin with – you could see that being awakened. Because if you’re underestimated, they’re thinking, ‘Well, what am I missing?’ You are underrepresented if there are not enough of you representing. But to say, ‘Wait, I’m underestimated’ – that instills a certain empowerment to the person themselves. And I think that’s where the real change happens.”

 – Arlan Hamilton , author, venture catalyst, and founder, Backstage Capital 

How do you use your platform for change?

“At the end of the day, when you look back in hindsight over your life, you will realize the moment you woke up to your own personal power was the moment things really started to shift.”

– Angelica Ross, Emmy-nominated actress, producer, advocate, and founder, TransTech Social Enterprises

Why align your career with purpose?

“When you’re fighting for representation and you’re fighting for space it’s exhausting, and it can be draining. It’s important to always be refilling your own cup, because if your cup is not full then you cannot possibly have enough to share.”

– Lupita Nyong’o , actress, producer, and author

“We need to create new opportunities for the world to understand what visions we have for the future, how we see ourselves, our people, and our communities.” 

– Xiuhtezcatl Martinez , advocate, leader, activist, and hip-hop artist

“It’s so important that Blavity and other media companies who are coming after us know that we don’t need other people’s permission to tell our own stories. We can do it on our own. We can work with great companies and corporations who care about Black people, Black consumers, and the Black audience in an authentic way. And we don’t necessarily have to ask for permission anymore because of our power collectively. ” 

– Morgan DeBaun, founder and CEO, Blavity Inc.

How can we all close the racial wealth gap?

“We have to move beyond that charitable mindset of sprinkling resources. Getting backpacks to kids is good, but we also have to go deeper in our analysis about the historical and systemic problems that are in place that actually lead to disparities in education for kids of color.”

– Edgar Villanueva, author, philanthropist, and founder, Decolonizing Wealth Project

What’s the meaning of Black excellence?

“Black excellence does not mean you’re perfect; it means you are living the life that you feel is most true to you. Black excellence is poetry. It’s rest. It’s Black style. It’s Black entrepreneurs and Black people who are working at a company. Black excellence looks like a lot of different things.” 

– Luvvie Ajayi , New York Times best-selling author, podcast host, and professional troublemaker

“Being a leader is about thinking of all the others that you can help bring along. Excellence is broader than just you as an individual, but how you bring your true self and really advance others.” 

– Robin Washington, strategic adviser and board member

“Black excellence is a state of mind. It’s a state of being. I think it could be a set of actions or accomplishments. I think, at its best, it creates space for other Black folk, creates opportunities, can instill a sense of possibility. I also want to say it could be simply solidarity, it could be self love. I don’t want to put Black excellence in a box because Black people cannot be put in a box.”   

– Elaine Welteroth , co-host of CBS’s “The Talk,” New York Time best-selling author, award-winning journalist, and former editor-in-chief of Teen Vogue

At Salesforce, equality is a core value and we are committed to driving equality for all — that includes equal opportunities and creating a workplace that reflects our society. There is still work to be done on this path toward equality, and using our platform for these important discussions is only one step along this path. In 2020, we established the Racial Equality and Justice Taskforce to help drive systemic change in our workplace and community, and we will continue to provide updates on our equality efforts. Learn more at Salesforce.com/Equality .

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Jameelah Nasheed is an Equality content manager. She has a background in journalism and passion for diversity, inclusion, and social justice. She supports the Equality content strategy and explores ways to innovate and share Equality content via Trailhead modules, blogs, research reports, social media, podcasts, and events.

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Political Representation

The concept of political representation is misleadingly simple: everyone seems to know what it is, yet few can agree on any particular definition. In fact, there is an extensive literature that offers many different definitions of this elusive concept. [Classic treatments of the concept of political representations within this literature include Pennock and Chapman 1968; Pitkin, 1967 and Schwartz, 1988.] Hanna Pitkin (1967) provides, perhaps, one of the most straightforward definitions: to represent is simply to “make present again.” On this definition, political representation is the activity of making citizens’ voices, opinions, and perspectives “present” in public policy making processes. Political representation occurs when political actors speak, advocate, symbolize, and act on the behalf of others in the political arena. In short, political representation is a kind of political assistance. This seemingly straightforward definition, however, is not adequate as it stands. For it leaves the concept of political representation underspecified. Indeed, as we will see, the concept of political representation has multiple and competing dimensions: our common understanding of political representation is one that contains different, and conflicting, conceptions of how political representatives should represent and so holds representatives to standards that are mutually incompatible. In leaving these dimensions underspecified, this definition fails to capture this paradoxical character of the concept.

This encyclopedia entry has three main goals. The first is to provide a general overview of the meaning of political representation, identifying the key components of this concept. The second is to highlight several important advances that have been made by the contemporary literature on political representation. These advances point to new forms of political representation, ones that are not limited to the relationship between formal representatives and their constituents. The third goal is to reveal several persistent problems with theories of political representation and thereby to propose some future areas of research.

1.1 Delegate vs. Trustee

1.2 pitkin’s four views of representation, 2. changing political realities and changing concepts of political representation, 3. contemporary advances, 4. future areas of study, a. general discussions of representation, b. arguments against representation, c. non-electoral forms of representation, d. representation and electoral design, e. representation and accountability, f. descriptive representation, other internet resources, related entries, 1. key components of political representation.

Political representation, on almost any account, will exhibit the following five components:

• some party that is representing (the representative, an organization, movement, state agency, etc.);
• some party that is being represented (the constituents, the clients, etc.);
• something that is being represented (opinions, perspectives, interests, discourses, etc.); and
• a setting within which the activity of representation is taking place (the political context).
• something that is being left out (the opinions, interests, and perspectives not voiced).

Theories of political representation often begin by specifying the terms for the first four components. For instance, democratic theorists often limit the types of representatives being discussed to formal representatives — that is, to representatives who hold elected offices. One reason that the concept of representation remains elusive is that theories of representation often apply only to particular kinds of political actors within a particular context. How individuals represent an electoral district is treated as distinct from how social movements, judicial bodies, or informal organizations represent. Consequently, it is unclear how different forms of representation relate to each other. Andrew Rehfeld (2006) has offered a general theory of representation which simply identifies representation by reference to a relevant audience accepting a person as its representative. One consequence of Rehfeld’s general approach to representation is that it allows for undemocratic cases of representation.

However, Rehfeld’s general theory of representation does not specify what representative do or should do in order to be recognized as a representative. And what exactly representatives do has been a hotly contested issue. In particular, a controversy has raged over whether representatives should act as delegates or trustees .

Historically, the theoretical literature on political representation has focused on whether representatives should act as delegates or as trustees . Representatives who are delegates simply follow the expressed preferences of their constituents. James Madison (1787–8) describes representative government as “the delegation of the government...to a small number of citizens elected by the rest.” Madison recognized that “Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm.” Consequently, Madison suggests having a diverse and large population as a way to decrease the problems with bad representation. In other words, the preferences of the represented can partially safeguard against the problems of faction.

In contrast, trustees are representatives who follow their own understanding of the best action to pursue. Edmund Burke (1790) is famous for arguing that

Parliament is not a congress of ambassadors from different and hostile interests, which interest each must maintain, as an agent and advocate, against other agents and advocates; but Parliament is a deliberative assembly of one nation, with one interest, that of the whole… You choose a member, indeed; but when you have chosen him he is not a member of Bristol, but he is a member of Parliament (115).

The delegate and the trustee conception of political representation place competing and contradictory demands on the behavior of representatives. [For a discussion of the similarities and differences between Madison’s and Burke’s conception of representation, see Pitkin 1967, 191–192.] Delegate conceptions of representation require representatives to follow their constituents’ preferences, while trustee conceptions require representatives to follow their own judgment about the proper course of action. Any adequate theory of representation must grapple with these contradictory demands.

Famously, Hanna Pitkin argues that theorists should not try to reconcile the paradoxical nature of the concept of representation. Rather, they should aim to preserve this paradox by recommending that citizens safeguard the autonomy of both the representative and of those being represented. The autonomy of the representative is preserved by allowing them to make decisions based on his or her understanding of the represented’s interests (the trustee conception of representation). The autonomy of those being represented is preserved by having the preferences of the represented influence evaluations of representatives (the delegate conception of representation). Representatives must act in ways that safeguard the capacity of the represented to authorize and to hold their representatives accountable and uphold the capacity of the representative to act independently of the wishes of the represented.

Objective interests are the key for determining whether the autonomy of representative and the autonomy of the represented have been breached. However, Pitkin never adequately specifies how we are to identify constituents’ objective interests. At points, she implies that constituents should have some say in what are their objective interests, but ultimately she merely shifts her focus away from this paradox to the recommendation that representatives should be evaluated on the basis of the reasons they give for disobeying the preferences of their constituents. For Pitkin, assessments about representatives will depend on the issue at hand and the political environment in which a representative acts. To understand the multiple and conflicting standards within the concept of representation is to reveal the futility of holding all representatives to some fixed set of guidelines. In this way, Pitkin concludes that standards for evaluating representatives defy generalizations. Moreover, individuals, especially democratic citizens, are likely to disagree deeply about what representatives should be doing.

Pitkin offers one of the most comprehensive discussions of the concept of political representation, attending to its contradictory character in her The Concept of Representation . This classic discussion of the concept of representation is one of the most influential and oft-cited works in the literature on political representation. (For a discussion of her influence, see Dovi 2016). Adopting a Wittgensteinian approach to language, Pitkin maintains that in order to understand the concept of political representation, one must consider the different ways in which the term is used. Each of these different uses of the term provides a different view of the concept. Pitkin compares the concept of representation to “ a rather complicated, convoluted, three–dimensional structure in the middle of a dark enclosure.” Political theorists provide “flash-bulb photographs of the structure taken from different angles” [1967, 10]. More specifically, political theorists have provided four main views of the concept of representation. Unfortunately, Pitkin never explains how these different views of political representation fit together. At times, she implies that the concept of representation is unified. At other times, she emphasizes the conflicts between these different views, e.g. how descriptive representation is opposed to accountability. Drawing on her flash-bulb metaphor, Pitkin argues that one must know the context in which the concept of representation is placed in order to determine its meaning. For Pitkin, the contemporary usage of the term “representation” can signficantly change its meaning.

For Pitkin, disagreements about representation can be partially reconciled by clarifying which view of representation is being invoked. Pitkin identifies at least four different views of representation: formalistic representation, descriptive representation, symbolic representation, and substantive representation. (For a brief description of each of these views, see chart below.) Each view provides a different approach for examining representation. The different views of representation can also provide different standards for assessing representatives. So disagreements about what representatives ought to be doing are aggravated by the fact that people adopt the wrong view of representation or misapply the standards of representation. Pitkin has in many ways set the terms of contemporary discussions about representation by providing this schematic overview of the concept of political representation.

1. Formalistic Representation : Brief Description . The institutional arrangements that precede and initiate representation. Formal representation has two dimensions: authorization and accountability. Main Research Question . What is the institutional position of a representative? Implicit Standards for Evaluating Representatives . None. ( Authorization ): Brief Description . The means by which a representative obtains his or her standing, status, position or office. Main Research Questions . What is the process by which a representative gains power (e.g., elections) and what are the ways in which a representative can enforce his or her decisions? Implicit Standards for Evaluating Representatives . No standards for assessing how well a representative behaves. One can merely assess whether a representative legitimately holds his or her position. pdf include--> ( Accountability ): Brief Description . The ability of constituents to punish their representative for failing to act in accordance with their wishes (e.g. voting an elected official out of office) or the responsiveness of the representative to the constituents. Main Research Question . What are the sanctioning mechanisms available to constituents? Is the representative responsive towards his or her constituents’ preferences? Implicit Standards for Evaluating Representatives . No standards for assessing how well a representative behaves. One can merely determine whether a representative can be sanctioned or has been responsive.

Brief Description . The ways that a representative “stands for” the represented — that is, the meaning that a representative has for those being represented.

Main Research Question . What kind of response is invoked by the representative in those being represented?

Implicit Standards for Evaluating Representatives . Representatives are assessed by the degree of acceptance that the representative has among the represented.

Brief Description . The extent to which a representative resembles those being represented.

Main Research Question . Does the representative look like, have common interests with, or share certain experiences with the represented?

Implicit Standards for Evaluating Representatives . Assess the representative by the accuracy of the resemblance between the representative and the represented.

Brief Description . The activity of representatives—that is, the actions taken on behalf of, in the interest of, as an agent of, and as a substitute for the represented.

Main Research Question . Does the representative advance the policy preferences that serve the interests of the represented?

Implicit Standards for Evaluating Representatives . Assess a representative by the extent to which policy outcomes advanced by a representative serve “the best interests” of their constituents.

One cannot overestimate the extent to which Pitkin has shaped contemporary understandings of political representation, especially among political scientists. For example, her claim that descriptive representation opposes accountability is often the starting point for contemporary discussions about whether marginalized groups need representatives from their groups.

Similarly, Pitkin’s conclusions about the paradoxical nature of political representation support the tendency among contemporary theorists and political scientists to focus on formal procedures of authorization and accountability (formalistic representation). In particular, there has been a lot of theoretical attention paid to the proper design of representative institutions (e.g. Amy 1996; Barber, 2001; Christiano 1996; Guinier 1994). This focus is certainly understandable, since one way to resolve the disputes about what representatives should be doing is to “let the people decide.” In other words, establishing fair procedures for reconciling conflicts provides democratic citizens one way to settle conflicts about the proper behavior of representatives. In this way, theoretical discussions of political representation tend to depict political representation as primarily a principal-agent relationship. The emphasis on elections also explains why discussions about the concept of political representation frequently collapse into discussions of democracy. Political representation is understood as a way of 1) establishing the legitimacy of democratic institutions and 2) creating institutional incentives for governments to be responsive to citizens.

David Plotke (1997) has noted that this emphasis on mechanisms of authorization and accountability was especially useful in the context of the Cold War. For this understanding of political representation (specifically, its demarcation from participatory democracy) was useful for distinguishing Western democracies from Communist countries. Those political systems that held competitive elections were considered to be democratic (Schumpeter 1976). Plotke questions whether such a distinction continues to be useful. Plotke recommends that we broaden the scope of our understanding of political representation to encompass interest representation and thereby return to debating what is the proper activity of representatives. Plotke’s insight into why traditional understandings of political representation resonated prior to the end of the Cold War suggests that modern understandings of political representation are to some extent contingent on political realities. For this reason, those who attempt to define political representation should recognize how changing political realities can affect contemporary understandings of political representation. Again, following Pitkin, ideas about political representation appear contingent on existing political practices of representation. Our understandings of representation are inextricably shaped by the manner in which people are currently being represented. For an informative discussion of the history of representation, see Monica Brito Vieira and David Runican’s Representation .

As mentioned earlier, theoretical discussions of political representation have focused mainly on the formal procedures of authorization and accountability within nation states, that is, on what Pitkin called formalistic representation. However, such a focus is no longer satisfactory due to international and domestic political transformations. [For an extensive discussion of international and domestic transformations, see Mark Warren and Dario Castioglione (2004).] Increasingly international, transnational and non-governmental actors play an important role in advancing public policies on behalf of democratic citizens—that is, acting as representatives for those citizens. Such actors “speak for,” “act for” and can even “stand for” individuals within a nation-state. It is no longer desirable to limit one’s understanding of political representation to elected officials within the nation-state. After all, increasingly state “contract out” important responsibilities to non-state actors, e.g. environmental regulation. As a result, elected officials do not necessarily possess “the capacity to act,” the capacity that Pitkin uses to identify who is a representative. So, as the powers of nation-state have been disseminated to international and transnational actors, elected representatives are not necessarily the agents who determine how policies are implemented. Given these changes, the traditional focus of political representation, that is, on elections within nation-states, is insufficient for understanding how public policies are being made and implemented. The complexity of modern representative processes and the multiple locations of political power suggest that contemporary notions of accountability are inadequate. Grant and Keohane (2005) have recently updated notions of accountability, suggesting that the scope of political representation needs to be expanded in order to reflect contemporary realities in the international arena. Michael Saward (2009) has proposed an innovative type of criteria that should be used for evaluating non-elective representative claims. John Dryzek and Simon Niemayer (2008) has proposed an alternative conception of representation, what he calls discursive representation, to reflect the fact that transnational actors represent discourses, not real people. By discourses, they mean “a set of categories and concepts embodying specific assumptions, judgments, contentions, dispositions, and capabilities.” The concept of discursive representation can potentially redeem the promise of deliberative democracy when the deliberative participation of all affected by a collective decision is infeasible.

Domestic transformations also reveal the need to update contemporary understandings of political representation. Associational life — social movements, interest groups, and civic associations—is increasingly recognized as important for the survival of representative democracies. The extent to which interest groups write public policies or play a central role in implementing and regulating policies is the extent to which the division between formal and informal representation has been blurred. The fluid relationship between the career paths of formal and informal representatives also suggests that contemporary realities do not justify focusing mainly on formal representatives. Mark Warren’s concept of citizen representatives (2008) opens up a theoretical framework for exploring how citizens represent themselves and serve in representative capacities.

Given these changes, it is necessary to revisit our conceptual understanding of political representation, specifically of democratic representation. For as Jane Mansbridge has recently noted, normative understandings of representation have not kept up with recent empirical research and contemporary democratic practices. In her important article “Rethinking Representation” Mansbridge identifies four forms of representation in modern democracies: promissory, anticipatory, gyroscopic and surrogacy. Promissory representation is a form of representation in which representatives are to be evaluated by the promises they make to constituents during campaigns. Promissory representation strongly resembles Pitkin’s discussion of formalistic representation. For both are primarily concerned with the ways that constituents give their consent to the authority of a representative. Drawing on recent empirical work, Mansbridge argues for the existence of three additional forms of representation. In anticipatory representation, representatives focus on what they think their constituents will reward in the next election and not on what they promised during the campaign of the previous election. Thus, anticipatory representation challenges those who understand accountability as primarily a retrospective activity. In gyroscopic representation, representatives “look within” to derive from their own experience conceptions of interest and principles to serve as a basis for their action. Finally, surrogate representation occurs when a legislator represents constituents outside of their districts. For Mansbridge, each of these different forms of representation generates a different normative criterion by which representatives should be assessed. All four forms of representation, then, are ways that democratic citizens can be legitimately represented within a democratic regime. Yet none of the latter three forms representation operates through the formal mechanisms of authorization and accountability. Recently, Mansbridge (2009) has gone further by suggesting that political science has focused too much on the sanctions model of accountability and that another model, what she calls the selection model, can be more effective at soliciting the desired behavior from representatives. According to Mansbridge, a sanction model of accountability presumes that the representative has different interests from the represented and that the represented should not only monitor but reward the good representative and punish the bad. In contrast, the selection model of accountability presumes that representatives have self-motivated and exogenous reasons for carrying out the represented’s wishes. In this way, Mansbridge broadens our understanding of accountability to allow for good representation to occur outside of formal sanctioning mechanisms.

Mansbridge’s rethinking of the meaning of representation holds an important insight for contemporary discussions of democratic representation. By specifying the different forms of representation within a democratic polity, Mansbridge teaches us that we should refer to the multiple forms of democratic representation. Democratic representation should not be conceived as a monolithic concept. Moreover, what is abundantly clear is that democratic representation should no longer be treated as consisting simply in a relationship between elected officials and constituents within her voting district. Political representation should no longer be understood as a simple principal-agent relationship. Andrew Rehfeld has gone farther, maintaining that political representation should no longer be territorially based. In other words, Rehfeld (2005) argues that constituencies, e.g. electoral districts, should not be constructed based on where citizens live.

Lisa Disch (2011) also complicates our understanding of democratic representation as a principal-agent relationship by uncovering a dilemma that arises between expectations of democratic responsiveness to constituents and recent empirical findings regarding the context dependency of individual constituents’ preferences. In response to this dilemma, Disch proposes a mobilization conception of political representation and develops a systemic understanding of reflexivity as the measure of its legitimacy.

By far, one of the most important shifts in the literature on representation has been the “constructivist turn.” Constructivist approaches to representation emphasize the representative’s role in creating and framing the identities and claims of the represented. Here Michael Saward’s The Representative Claim is exemplary. For Saward, representation entails a series of relationships: “A maker of representations (M) puts forward a subject (S) which stands for an object (O) which is related to a referent (R) and is offered to an audience (A)” (2006, 302). Instead of presuming a pre-existing set of interests of the represented that representatives “bring into” the political arena, Saward stresses how representative claim-making is a “deeply culturally inflected practice.” Saward explicitly denies that theorists can know what are the interests of the represented. For this reason, the represented should have the ultimate say in judging the claims of the representative. The task of the representative is to create claims that will resonate with appropriate audiences.

Saward therefore does not evaluate representatives by the extent to which they advance the preferences or interests of the represented. Instead he focuses on the institutional and collective conditions in which claim-making takes place. The constructivist turn examines the conditions for claim-making, not the activities of particular representatives.

Saward’s “constructivist turn” has generated a new research direction for both political theorists and empirical scientists. For example, Lisa Disch (2015) considers whether the constructivist turn is a “normative dead” end, that is, whether the epistemological commitments of constructivism that deny the ability to identify interests will undermine the normative commitments to democratic politics. Disch offers an alternative approach, what she calls “the citizen standpoint”. This standpoint does not mean taking at face value whomever or whatever citizens regard as representing them. Rather, it is “an epistemological and political achievement that does not exist spontaneously but develops out of the activism of political movements together with the critical theories and transformative empirical research to which they give rise” (2015, 493). (For other critical engagements with Saward’s work, see Schaap et al, 2012 and Nässtrom, 2011).

There have been a number of important advances in theorizing the concept of political representation. In particular, these advances call into question the traditional way of thinking of political representation as a principal-agent relationship. Most notably, Melissa Williams’ recent work has recommended reenvisioning the activity of representation in light of the experiences of historically disadvantaged groups. In particular, she recommends understanding representation as “mediation.” In particular, Williams (1998, 8) identifies three different dimensions of political life that representatives must “mediate:” the dynamics of legislative decision-making, the nature of legislator-constituent relations, and the basis for aggregating citizens into representable constituencies. She explains each aspect by using a corresponding theme (voice, trust, and memory) and by drawing on the experiences of marginalized groups in the United States. For example, drawing on the experiences of American women trying to gain equal citizenship, Williams argues that historically disadvantaged groups need a “voice” in legislative decision-making. The “heavily deliberative” quality of legislative institutions requires the presence of individuals who have direct access to historically excluded perspectives.

In addition, Williams explains how representatives need to mediate the representative-constituent relationship in order to build “trust.” For Williams, trust is the cornerstone for democratic accountability. Relying on the experiences of African-Americans, Williams shows the consistent patterns of betrayal of African-Americans by privileged white citizens that give them good reason for distrusting white representatives and the institutions themselves. For Williams, relationships of distrust can be “at least partially mended if the disadvantaged group is represented by its own members”(1998, 14). Finally, representation involves mediating how groups are defined. The boundaries of groups according to Williams are partially established by past experiences — what Williams calls “memory.” Having certain shared patterns of marginalization justifies certain institutional mechanisms to guarantee presence.

Williams offers her understanding of representation as mediation as a supplement to what she regards as the traditional conception of liberal representation. Williams identifies two strands in liberal representation. The first strand she describes as the “ideal of fair representation as an outcome of free and open elections in which every citizen has an equally weighted vote” (1998, 57). The second strand is interest-group pluralism, which Williams describes as the “theory of the organization of shared social interests with the purpose of securing the equitable representation … of those groups in public policies” ( ibid .). Together, the two strands provide a coherent approach for achieving fair representation, but the traditional conception of liberal representation as made up of simply these two strands is inadequate. In particular, Williams criticizes the traditional conception of liberal representation for failing to take into account the injustices experienced by marginalized groups in the United States. Thus, Williams expands accounts of political representation beyond the question of institutional design and thus, in effect, challenges those who understand representation as simply a matter of formal procedures of authorization and accountability.

Another way of reenvisioning representation was offered by Nadia Urbinati (2000, 2002). Urbinati argues for understanding representation as advocacy. For Urbinati, the point of representation should not be the aggregation of interests, but the preservation of disagreements necessary for preserving liberty. Urbinati identifies two main features of advocacy: 1) the representative’s passionate link to the electors’ cause and 2) the representative’s relative autonomy of judgment. Urbinati emphasizes the importance of the former for motivating representatives to deliberate with each other and their constituents. For Urbinati the benefit of conceptualizing representation as advocacy is that it improves our understanding of deliberative democracy. In particular, it avoids a common mistake made by many contemporary deliberative democrats: focusing on the formal procedures of deliberation at the expense of examining the sources of inequality within civil society, e.g. the family. One benefit of Urbinati’s understanding of representation is its emphasis on the importance of opinion and consent formation. In particular, her agonistic conception of representation highlights the importance of disagreements and rhetoric to the procedures, practices, and ethos of democracy. Her account expands the scope of theoretical discussions of representation away from formal procedures of authorization to the deliberative and expressive dimensions of representative institutions. In this way, her agonistic understanding of representation provides a theoretical tool to those who wish to explain how non-state actors “represent.”

Other conceptual advancements have helped clarify the meaning of particular aspects of representation. For instance, Andrew Rehfeld (2009) has argued that we need to disaggregate the delegate/trustee distinction. Rehfeld highlights how representatives can be delegates and trustees in at least three different ways. For this reason, we should replace the traditional delegate/trustee distinction with three distinctions (aims, source of judgment, and responsiveness). By collapsing these three different ways of being delegates and trustees, political theorists and political scientists overlook the ways in which representatives are often partial delegates and partial trustees.

Other political theorists have asked us to rethink central aspects of our understanding of democratic representation. In Inclusion and Democracy Iris Marion Young asks us to rethink the importance of descriptive representation. Young stresses that attempts to include more voices in the political arena can suppress other voices. She illustrates this point using the example of a Latino representative who might inadvertently represent straight Latinos at the expense of gay and lesbian Latinos (1986, 350). For Young, the suppression of differences is a problem for all representation (1986, 351). Representatives of large districts or of small communities must negotiate the difficulty of one person representing many. Because such a difficulty is constitutive of representation, it is unreasonable to assume that representation should be characterized by a “relationship of identity.” The legitimacy of a representative is not primarily a function of his or her similarities to the represented. For Young, the representative should not be treated as a substitute for the represented. Consequently, Young recommends reconceptualizing representation as a differentiated relationship (2000, 125–127; 1986, 357). There are two main benefits of Young’s understanding of representation. First, her understanding of representation encourages us to recognize the diversity of those being represented. Second, her analysis of representation emphasizes the importance of recognizing how representative institutions include as well as they exclude. Democratic citizens need to remain vigilant about the ways in which providing representation for some groups comes at the expense of excluding others. Building on Young’s insight, Suzanne Dovi (2009) has argued that we should not conceptualize representation simply in terms of how we bring marginalized groups into democratic politics; rather, democratic representation can require limiting the influence of overrepresented privileged groups.

Moreover, based on this way of understanding political representation, Young provides an alterative account of democratic representation. Specifically, she envisions democratic representation as a dynamic process, one that moves between moments of authorization and moments of accountability (2000, 129). It is the movement between these moments that makes the process “democratic.” This fluidity allows citizens to authorize their representatives and for traces of that authorization to be evident in what the representatives do and how representatives are held accountable. The appropriateness of any given representative is therefore partially dependent on future behavior as well as on his or her past relationships. For this reason, Young maintains that evaluation of this process must be continuously “deferred.” We must assess representation dynamically, that is, assess the whole ongoing processes of authorization and accountability of representatives. Young’s discussion of the dynamic of representation emphasizes the ways in which evaluations of representatives are incomplete, needing to incorporate the extent to which democratic citizens need to suspend their evaluations of representatives and the extent to which representatives can face unanticipated issues.

Another insight about democratic representation that comes from the literature on descriptive representation is the importance of contingencies. Here the work of Jane Mansbridge on descriptive representation has been particularly influential. Mansbridge recommends that we evaluate descriptive representatives by contexts and certain functions. More specifically, Mansbridge (1999, 628) focuses on four functions and their related contexts in which disadvantaged groups would want to be represented by someone who belongs to their group. Those four functions are “(1) adequate communication in contexts of mistrust, (2) innovative thinking in contexts of uncrystallized, not fully articulated, interests, … (3) creating a social meaning of ‘ability to rule’ for members of a group in historical contexts where the ability has been seriously questioned and (4) increasing the polity’s de facto legitimacy in contexts of past discrimination.” For Mansbridge, descriptive representatives are needed when marginalized groups distrust members of relatively more privileged groups and when marginalized groups possess political preferences that have not been fully formed. The need for descriptive representation is contingent on certain functions.

Mansbridge’s insight about the contingency of descriptive representation suggests that at some point descriptive representatives might not be necessary. However, she doesn’t specify how we are to know if interests have become crystallized or trust has formed to the point that the need for descriptive representation would be obsolete. Thus, Mansbridge’s discussion of descriptive representation suggests that standards for evaluating representatives are fluid and flexible. For an interesting discussion of the problems with unified or fixed standards for evaluating Latino representatives, see Christina Beltran’s The Trouble with Unity .

Mansbridge’s discussion of descriptive representation points to another trend within the literature on political representation — namely, the trend to derive normative accounts of representation from the representative’s function. Russell Hardin (2004) captured this trend most clearly in his position that “if we wish to assess the morality of elected officials, we must understand their function as our representatives and then infer how they can fulfill this function.” For Hardin, only an empirical explanation of the role of a representative is necessary for determining what a representative should be doing. Following Hardin, Suzanne Dovi (2007) identifies three democratic standards for evaluating the performance of representatives: those of fair-mindedness, critical trust building, and good gate-keeping. In Ruling Passions , Andrew Sabl (2002) links the proper behavior of representatives to their particular office. In particular, Sabl focuses on three offices: senator, organizer and activist. He argues that the same standards should not be used to evaluate these different offices. Rather, each office is responsible for promoting democratic constancy, what Sabl understands as “the effective pursuit of interest.” Sabl (2002) and Hardin (2004) exemplify the trend to tie the standards for evaluating political representatives to the activity and office of those representatives.

There are three persistent problems associated with political representation. Each of these problems identifies a future area of investigation. The first problem is the proper institutional design for representative institutions within democratic polities. The theoretical literature on political representation has paid a lot of attention to the institutional design of democracies. More specifically, political theorists have recommended everything from proportional representation (e.g. Guinier, 1994 and Christiano, 1996) to citizen juries (Fishkin, 1995). However, with the growing number of democratic states, we are likely to witness more variation among the different forms of political representation. In particular, it is important to be aware of how non-democratic and hybrid regimes can adopt representative institutions to consolidate their power over their citizens. There is likely to be much debate about the advantages and disadvantages of adopting representative institutions.

This leads to a second future line of inquiry — ways in which democratic citizens can be marginalized by representative institutions. This problem is articulated most clearly by Young’s discussion of the difficulties arising from one person representing many. Young suggests that representative institutions can include the opinions, perspectives and interests of some citizens at the expense of marginalizing the opinions, perspectives and interests of others. Hence, a problem with institutional reforms aimed at increasing the representation of historically disadvantaged groups is that such reforms can and often do decrease the responsiveness of representatives. For instance, the creation of black districts has created safe zones for black elected officials so that they are less accountable to their constituents. Any decrease in accountability is especially worrisome given the ways citizens are vulnerable to their representatives. Thus, one future line of research is examining the ways that representative institutions marginalize the interests, opinions and perspectives of democratic citizens.

In particular, it is necessary for to acknowledge the biases of representative institutions. While E. E. Schattschneider (1960) has long noted the class bias of representative institutions, there is little discussion of how to improve the political representation of the disaffected — that is, the political representation of those citizens who do not have the will, the time, or political resources to participate in politics. The absence of such a discussion is particularly apparent in the literature on descriptive representation, the area that is most concerned with disadvantaged citizens. Anne Phillips (1995) raises the problems with the representation of the poor, e.g. the inability to define class, however, she argues for issues of class to be integrated into a politics of presence. Few theorists have taken up Phillip’s gauntlet and articulated how this integration of class and a politics of presence is to be done. Of course, some have recognized the ways in which interest groups, associations, and individual representatives can betray the least well off (e.g. Strolovitch, 2004). And some (Dovi, 2003) have argued that descriptive representatives need to be selected based on their relationship to citizens who have been unjustly excluded and marginalized by democratic politics. However, it is unclear how to counteract the class bias that pervades domestic and international representative institutions. It is necessary to specify the conditions under which certain groups within a democratic polity require enhanced representation. Recent empirical literature has suggested that the benefits of having descriptive representatives is by no means straightforward (Gay, 2002).

A third and final area of research involves the relationship between representation and democracy. Historically, representation was considered to be in opposition with democracy [See Dahl (1989) for a historical overview of the concept of representation]. When compared to the direct forms of democracy found in the ancient city-states, notably Athens, representative institutions appear to be poor substitutes for the ways that citizens actively ruled themselves. Barber (1984) has famously argued that representative institutions were opposed to strong democracy. In contrast, almost everyone now agrees that democratic political institutions are representative ones.

Bernard Manin (1997)reminds us that the Athenian Assembly, which often exemplifies direct forms of democracy, had only limited powers. According to Manin, the practice of selecting magistrates by lottery is what separates representative democracies from so-called direct democracies. Consequently, Manin argues that the methods of selecting public officials are crucial to understanding what makes representative governments democratic. He identifies four principles distinctive of representative government: 1) Those who govern are appointed by election at regular intervals; 2) The decision-making of those who govern retains a degree of independence from the wishes of the electorate; 3) Those who are governed may give expression to their opinions and political wishes without these being subject to the control of those who govern; and 4) Public decisions undergo the trial of debate (6). For Manin, historical democratic practices hold important lessons for determining whether representative institutions are democratic.

While it is clear that representative institutions are vital institutional components of democratic institutions, much more needs to be said about the meaning of democratic representation. In particular, it is important not to presume that all acts of representation are equally democratic. After all, not all acts of representation within a representative democracy are necessarily instances of democratic representation. Henry Richardson (2002) has explored the undemocratic ways that members of the bureaucracy can represent citizens. [For a more detailed discussion of non-democratic forms of representation, see Apter (1968). Michael Saward (2008) also discusses how existing systems of political representation do not necessarily serve democracy.] Similarly, it is unclear whether a representative who actively seeks to dismantle democratic institutions is representing democratically. Does democratic representation require representatives to advance the preferences of democratic citizens or does it require a commitment to democratic institutions? At this point, answers to such questions are unclear. What is certain is that democratic citizens are likely to disagree about what constitutes democratic representation.

One popular approach to addressing the different and conflicting standards used to evaluate representatives within democratic polities, is to simply equate multiple standards with democratic ones. More specifically, it is argued that democratic standards are pluralistic, accommodating the different standards possessed and used by democratic citizens. Theorists who adopt this approach fail to specify the proper relationship among these standards. For instance, it is unclear how the standards that Mansbridge identifies in the four different forms of representation should relate to each other. Does it matter if promissory forms of representation are replaced by surrogate forms of representation? A similar omission can be found in Pitkin: although Pitkin specifies there is a unified relationship among the different views of representation, she never describes how the different views interact. This omission reflects the lacunae in the literature about how formalistic representation relates to descriptive and substantive representation. Without such a specification, it is not apparent how citizens can determine if they have adequate powers of authorization and accountability.

Currently, it is not clear exactly what makes any given form of representation consistent, let alone consonant, with democratic representation. Is it the synergy among different forms or should we examine descriptive representation in isolation to determine the ways that it can undermine or enhance democratic representation? One tendency is to equate democratic representation simply with the existence of fluid and multiple standards. While it is true that the fact of pluralism provides justification for democratic institutions as Christiano (1996) has argued, it should no longer presumed that all forms of representation are democratic since the actions of representatives can be used to dissolve or weaken democratic institutions. The final research area is to articulate the relationship between different forms of representation and ways that these forms can undermine democratic representation.

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• Dryzek, John and Simon Niemeyer, 2008. “Discursive Representation,” American Political Science Review , 102(4): 481–493.
• Hardin, Russell, 2004. “Representing Ignorance,” Social Philosophy and Policy , 21: 76–99.
• Lublin, David, 1999. The Paradox of Representation: Racial Gerrymandering and Minority Interests in Congress , Princeton: Princeton University Press.
• Madison, James, Alexander Hamilton and John Jay, 1787–8 [1987]. The Federalist Papers , Isaac Kramnick (ed.), Harmondsworth: Penguin.
• Mansbridge, Jane, 2003. “Rethinking Representation,” American Political Science Review , 97(4): 515–28.
• Manin, Bernard, 1997. The Principles of Representative Government , Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Nässtrom, Sofia, 2011. “Where is the representative turn going?” European journal of political theory, , 10(4): 501–510.
• Pennock, J. Roland and John Chapman (eds.), 1968. Representation , New York: Atherton Press.
• Pitkin, Hanna Fenichel, 1967. The Concept of Representation , Berkeley: University of California.
• Plotke, David, 1997. “Representation is Democracy,” Constellations , 4: 19–34.
• Rehfeld, Andrew, 2005. The Concept of Constituency: Political Representation, Democratic Legitimacy and Institutional Design , Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• –––, 2006. “Towards a General Theory of Political Representation,” The Journal of Politics , 68: 1–21.
• Rosenstone, Steven and John Hansen, 1993. Mobilization, Participation, and Democracy in America , New York: MacMillian Publishing Company.
• Runciman, David, 2007. “The Paradox of Political Representation,” Journal of Political Philosophy , 15: 93–114.
• Saward, Michael, 2014. “Shape-shifting representation”. American Political Science Review , 108(4): 723–736.
• –––, 2010. The Representative Claim , Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• –––, 2008. “Representation and democracy: revisions and possibilities,” Sociology compass , 2(3): 1000–1013.
• –––, 2006. “The representative claim”. Contemporary political theory , 5(3): 297–318.
• Sabl, Andrew, 2002. Ruling Passions: Political Offices and Democratic Ethics , Princeton: Princeton University Press.
• Schaap, Andrew, Thompson, Simon, Disch, Lisa, Castiglione, Dario and Saward, Michael, 2012. “Critical exchange on Michael Saward’s The Representative Claim,” Contemporary Political Theory , 11(1): 109–127.
• Schattschneider, E. E., 1960. The Semisovereign People , New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.
• Schumpeter, Joseph, 1976. Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy , London: Allen and Unwin.
• Schwartz, Nancy, 1988. The Blue Guitar: Political Representation and Community , Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
• Shapiro, Ian, Susan C. Stokes, Elisabeth Jean Wood and Alexander S. Kirshner (eds.), 2009. Political Representation , Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Urbinati, Nadia, 2000. “Representation as Advocacy: A Study of Democratic Deliberation,” Political Theory , 28: 258–786.
• Urbinati, Nadia and Mark Warren, 2008. “The Concept of Representation in Contemporary Democratic Theory,” Annual Review of Political Science , 11: 387–412
• Vieira, Monica and David Runciman, 2008. Representation , Cambridge: Polity Press.
• Vieira, Monica (ed.), 2017. Reclaiming Representation: Contemporary Advances in the Theory of Political Representation , New York: Routledge Press.
• Warren, Mark and Dario Castiglione, 2004. “The Transformation of Democratic Representation,” Democracy and Society , 2(1): 5–22.
• Barber, Benjamin, 1984. Strong Democracy , Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press.
• Dryzek, John, 1996. “Political Inclusion and the Dynamics of Democratization,” American Political Science Review , 90 (September): 475–487.
• Pateman, Carole, 1970. Participation and Democratic Theory , Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Rousseau, Jean Jacques, 1762, The Social Contract , Judith Masters and Roger Masters (trans.), New York: St. Martins Press, 1978.
• Saward, Michael, 2008. “Representation and Democracy: Revisions and Possibilities,” Sociology Compass , 2: 1000–1013.
• Apter, David, 1968. “Notes for a Theory of Nondemocratic Representation,” in Nomos X , Chapter 19, pp. 278–317.
• Brown, Mark, 2006. “Survey Article: Citizen Panels and the Concept of Representation,” Journal of Political Philosophy , 14: 203–225.
• Cohen, Joshua and Joel Rogers, 1995. Associations and Democracy (The Real Utopias Project: Volume 1), Erik Olin Wright (ed.), London: Verso.
• Dalton, Russell J., and Martin P. Wattenberg (eds.), 2002. Parties without partisans: Political change in advanced industrial democracies , Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Montanaro, L., 2012. “The Democratic Legitimacy of Self-appointed Representatives,” The Journal of Politics , 74(4): 1094–1107.
• Ryden, David K., 1996. Representation in Crisis: The Constitution, Interest Groups, and Political Parties , Albany: State University of New York Press.
• Truman, David, 1951. The Governmental Process , New York: Knopf.
• Saward, Michael, 2009. “ Authorisation and Authenticity: Representation and the Unelected,” Journal of Political Philosophy , 17: 1–22.
• Steunenberg, Bernard and J. J. A.Thomassen, 2002. The European Parliament : Moving Toward Democracy in the EU , Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield.
• Schmitter, Philippe, 2000. “Representation,” in How to democratize the European Union and Why Bother? , Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, Ch. 3. pp. 53–74.
• Street, John, 2004. “Celebrity politicians: popular culture and political representation,” The British Journal of Politics and International Relations , 6(4): 435–452.
• Strolovitch, Dara Z., 2007. Affirmative Advocacy: Race, Class, and Gender in Interest Group Politics , Chicago: Chicago University Press.
• Tormey, S., 2012. “Occupy Wall Street: From representation to post-representation,” Journal of Critical Globalisation Studies , 5: 132–137.
• Richardson, Henry, 2002. “Representative government,” in Democratic Autonomy , Oxford: Oxford University Press, Ch. 14, pp. 193–202
• Runciman, David, 2010. “Hobbes’s Theory of Representation: anti-democratic or protodemoratic,” in Political Representation , Ian Shapiro, Susan C. Stokes, Elisabeth Jean Wood, and Alexander Kirshner (eds.), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Warren, Mark, 2001. Democracy and Association , Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
• –––, 2008. “Citizen Representatives,” in Designing Deliberative Democracy: The British ColumbiaCitizens’ Assembly , Mark Warren and Hilary Pearse (eds.), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 50–69.
• Warren, Mark and Dario Castiglione, 2004. “The Transformation of Democratic Representation,” Democracy and Society , 2(I): 5, 20–22.
• Amy, Douglas, 1996. Real Choices/New Voices: The Case for Proportional Elections in the United States , New York: Columbia University Press.
• Barber, Kathleen, 2001. A Right to Representation: Proportional Election Systems for the 21 st Century , Columbia: Ohio University Press.
• Canon, David, 1999. Race, Redistricting, and Representation: The Unintended Consequences of Black Majority Districts , Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
• Christiano, Thomas, 1996. The Rule of the Many , Boulder: Westview Press.
• Cotta, Maurizio and Heinrich Best (eds.), 2007. Democratic Representation in Europe Diversity, Change, and Convergence , Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Guinier, Lani, 1994. The Tyranny of the Majority: Fundamental Fairness in Representative Democracy , New York: Free Press.
• Przworksi, Adam, Susan C. Stokes, and Bernard Manin (eds.), 1999. Democracy, Accountability, and Representation , Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Thompson, Dennis, 2002. Just Elections , Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
• Jacobs, Lawrence R. and Robert Y. Shapiro, 2000. Politicians Don’t Pander: Political Manipulation and the Loss of Democratic Responsiveness , Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
• Grant, Ruth and Robert O. Keohane, 2005. “Accountability and Abuses of Power in World Politics,” American Political Science Review , 99 (February): 29–44.
• Mansbridge, Jane, 2004. “Representation Revisited: Introduction to the Case Against Electoral Accountability,” Democracy and Society , 2(I): 12–13.
• –––, 2009. “A Selection Model of Representation,” Journal of Political Philosophy , 17(4): 369–398.
• Pettit, Philip, 2010. “Representation, Responsive and Indicative,” Constellations , 17(3): 426–434.
• Fishkin, John, 1995. The Voice of the People: Public Opinion and Democracy , New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
• Gutmann, Amy and Dennis Thompson, 2004. Why Deliberative Democracy? , Princeton: Princeton University Press.
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• Saward, Michael (ed.), 2000. Democratic Innovation: Deliberation, Representation and Association , London: Routledge.
• Severs, E., 2010. “Representation As Claims-Making. Quid Responsiveness?” Representation , 46(4): 411–423.
• Williams, Melissa, 2000. “The Uneasy Alliance of Group Representation and Deliberative Democracy,” in Citizenship in Diverse Societies , W. Kymlicka and Wayne Norman (eds.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, Ch 5. pp. 124–153.
• Young, Iris Marion, 1999. “Justice, Inclusion, and Deliberative Democracy” in Deliberative Politics , Stephen Macedo (ed.), Oxford: Oxford University.
• Bentran, Cristina, 2010. The Trouble with Unity: Latino Politics and the Creation of Identity , Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Celis, Karen, Sarah Childs, Johanna Kantola and Mona Lena Krook, 2008, “Rethinking Women’s Substantive Representation,” Representation , 44(2): 99–110.
• Childs Sarah, 2008. Women and British Party Politics: Descriptive, Substantive and Symbolic Representation , London: Routledge.
• Dovi, Suzanne, 2002. “Preferable Descriptive Representatives: Or Will Just Any Woman, Black, or Latino Do?,” American Political Science Review , 96: 745–754.
• –––, 2007. “Theorizing Women’s Representation in the United States?,” Politics and Gender , 3(3): 297–319. doi: 10.1017/S1743923X07000281
• –––, 2009. “In Praise of Exclusion,” Journal of Politics , 71 (3): 1172–1186.
• –––, 2016. “Measuring Representation: Rethinking the Role of Exclusion” Political Representation , Marc Bühlmann and Jan Fivaz (eds.), London: Routledge.
• Fenno, Richard F., 2003. Going Home: Black Representatives and Their Constituents , Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
• Gay, Claudine, 2002. “Spirals of Trust?,” American Journal of Political Science , 4: 717–32.
• Gould, Carol, 1996. “Diversity and Democracy: Representing Differences,” in Democracy and Difference: Contesting the Boundaries of the Political , Seyla Benhabib (ed.), Princeton: Princeton University, pp. 171–186.
• Htun, Mala, 2004. “Is Gender like Ethnicity? The Political Representation of Identity Groups,” Perspectives on Politics , 2: 439–458.
• Mansbridge, Jane, 1999. “Should Blacks Represent Blacks and Women Represent Women? A Contingent ‘Yes’,” The Journal of Politics , 61: 628–57.
• –––, 2003. “Rethinking Representation,” American Political Science Review , 97: 515–528.
• Phillips, Anne, 1995. Politics of Presence , New York: Clarendon.
• –––, 1998. “Democracy and Representation: Or, Why Should It Matter Who Our Representatives Are?,” in Feminism and Politics , Oxford: Oxford University. pp. 224–240.
• Pitkin, Hanna, 1967. The Concept of Representation , Los Angeles: University of Press.
• Sapiro, Virginia, 1981. “When are Interests Interesting?,” American Political Science Review , 75 (September): 701–721.
• Strolovitch, Dara Z., 2004. “Affirmative Representation,” Democracy and Society , 2: 3–5.
• Swain, Carol M., 1993. Black Faces, Black Interests: The Representation of African Americans in Congress , Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.
• Thomas, Sue, 1991. “The Impact of Women on State Legislative Policies,” Journal of Politics , 53 (November): 958–976.
• –––, 1994. How Women Legislate , New York: Oxford University Press.
• Weldon, S. Laurel, 2002. “Beyond Bodies: Institutional Sources of Representation for Women in Democratic Policymaking,” Journal of Politics , 64(4): 1153–1174.
• Williams, Melissa, 1998. Voice, Trust, and Memory: Marginalized Groups and the Failings of Liberal Representation , Princeton, NJ: Princeton University.
• Young, Iris Marion, 1986. “Deferring Group Representation,” Nomos: Group Rights , Will Kymlicka and Ian Shapiro (eds.), New York: New York University Press, pp. 349–376.
• –––, 1990. Justice and the Politics of Difference , Princeton, NJ: Princeton University
• –––, 2000. Inclusion and Democracy , Oxford: Oxford University Press.

G. Democratic Representation

• Castiglione, D., 2015. “Trajectories and Transformations of the Democratic Representative System”. Global Policy , 6(S1): 8–16.
• Disch, Lisa, 2011. “Toward a Mobilization Conception of Democratic Representation,” American Political Science Review , 105(1): 100–114.
• –––, 2012. “Democratic representation and the constituency paradox,” Perspectives on Politics , 10(3): 599–616.
• –––, 2016. “Hanna Pitkin, The Concept of Representation,” The Oxford Handbook of Classics in Contemporary Political Theory , Jacob Levy (ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press. doi: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198717133.013.24
• Mansbridge, Jane, 2003. “Rethinking Representation,” American Political Science Review , 97: 515–528.
• Näsström, Sofia, 2006. “Representative democracy as tautology: Ankersmit and Lefort on representation,” European Journal of Political Theory , 5(3): 321–342.
• Urbinati, Nadia, 2011. “Political Representation as Democratic Process,” Redescriptions (Yearbook of Political Thought and Conceptual History: Volume 10), Kari Palonen (ed.), Helsinki: Transaction Publishers.

How to cite this entry . Preview the PDF version of this entry at the Friends of the SEP Society . Look up topics and thinkers related to this entry at the Internet Philosophy Ontology Project (InPhO). Enhanced bibliography for this entry at PhilPapers , with links to its database.

• FairVote Program for Representative Government
• Proportional Representation Library , provides readings proportional representation elections created by Prof. Douglas J. Amy, Dept. of Politics, Mount Holyoke College
• Representation , an essay by Ann Marie Baldonado on the Postcolonial Studies website at Emory University.
• Representation: John Locke, Second Treatise, §§ 157–58 , in The Founders’ Constitution at the University of Chicago Press
• Popular Basis of Political Authority: David Hume, Of the Original Contract , in The Founders’ Constitution at the University of Chicago Press

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Law Firm Defending Trump Seeks to Withdraw From a Long-Running Case

The firm, LaRocca Hornik, has represented Donald Trump’s political operation in numerous suits dating to his first presidential run, including a pregnancy discrimination case in New York.

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By Ken Bensinger

A law firm that has long defended Donald J. Trump’s campaign and businesses from employment lawsuits has abruptly asked to withdraw from a yearslong case over what it calls an “irreparable breakdown in the attorney-client relationship.”

The firm — LaRocca, Hornik, Greenberg, Rosen, Kittridge, Carlin and McPartland — has represented Mr. Trump’s political operation in numerous suits dating to his first presidential run, helping secure several settlements and dismissals and billing nearly $3 million in the process.

But late on Friday, it asked a federal magistrate judge to allow it to withdraw from a suit filed by a former campaign communications adviser, A.J. Delgado, who says she was sidelined by the campaign in 2016 after revealing she was pregnant. The timing of the motion was notable, just two days after the same federal court had ordered the campaign to turn over in discovery all complaints of sexual harassment and gender or pregnancy discrimination from the 2016 and 2020 campaigns — materials that the defendants have long resisted handing over.

In the request , filed in federal court in Manhattan, the lead lawyer, Jared Blumetti, did not provide any details about the dispute, asking permission to “explain” the matter privately with the judge. Mr. Blumetti did not respond to a request for comment.

The apparent rupture with a long-trusted firm comes at a busy time, legally speaking, for the former president.

He is in the third week of a criminal trial in a 2016 campaign sex scandal cover-up case involving the porn star Stormy Daniels, and is facing additional criminal charges in Georgia as well as in two separate sets of federal indictments. Last week, the Supreme Court heard arguments about whether Mr. Trump is absolutely immune from criminal charges for actions he took while in the White House. And he is appealing judgments totaling more than $500 million in two civil verdicts from last year.

It was not immediately clear whether LaRocca Hornik, which has its offices inside 40 Wall Street, a building in downtown Manhattan that is owned by Mr. Trump, intends to cut all ties with him. But such a break would hardly be new. In January, one of Mr. Trump’s defense lawyers, Joe Tacopina, said he would no longer represent him. Last year, at least four of his other lawyers, representing him in a variety of civil and criminal cases, stepped aside.

Ms. Delgado, who is representing herself in the matter, objected to the withdrawal in a filing Monday, arguing it should not be allowed until the discovery process has been completed and calling the request a “scheme to avoid compliance.”

Magistrate Judge Katharine H. Parker said that LaRocca Hornik would have to continue to represent the campaign for the time being and that she would schedule a conference with the law firm and the campaign to discuss the matter.

The firm has represented Mr. Trump’s business interests for at least a decade, defending Trump Model Management in a wage case filed in 2014, for example. It also represented the campaign in both of Mr. Trump’s previous runs for the White House and was paid $1.8 million between September 2016 and December 2020, Federal Election Commission records show.

Since then, Make America Great Again PAC, a political action committee that has spent heavily on Mr. Trump’s legal expenses, has paid LaRocca Hornik an additional $990,000, including a payment of $15,103.90 on March 25.

In addition to the case filed by Ms. Delgado, the firm is still representing the campaign in a sexual discrimination and abuse lawsuit filed by Jessica Denson, a former Hispanic outreach coordinator for the 2016 campaign. The most recent filing in that suit, in a New York state court, was made on April 16 and makes no mention of a desire to end the legal relationship.

Last year, the firm helped the Trump campaign negotiate a $450,000 settlement in a separate lawsuit filed by Ms. Denson that challenged the validity of nondisclosure agreements that campaign workers were obliged to sign during the 2016 race.

And in 2022, it helped negotiate a settlement in a suit brought by protesters who claimed that Mr. Trump’s bodyguard Keith Schiller had in 2015 ripped up a sign that read “Trump: Make America Racist Again” and then hit one of them in the head.

Ms. Delgado brought her suit against the campaign, as well as against the former advisers Reince Priebus and Sean Spicer, in 2019, claiming sex and pregnancy discrimination.

While working for the campaign, she became pregnant by her supervisor, Jason Miller, a senior communications adviser and spokesman. When she revealed her pregnancy shortly after the 2016 election, her complaint said, she was relieved of most of her duties and “immediately and inexplicably stopped receiving emails and other communications.”

As part of the litigation, she has been seeking all other complaints of gender discrimination involving the campaign.

An earlier version of this article misstated the name of a group that has paid LaRocca Hornik. It is Make America Great Again PAC, not Make America Great Again Inc.

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Ken Bensinger covers right wing media and national political campaigns for The Times. More about Ken Bensinger

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia Star Rejects Jerry Seinfeld’s ‘PC’ Sitcom Criticism

Rob McElhenney has responded to Jerry Seinfeld's recent declaration that “the extreme left” is killing comedy.

• Rob McElhenney disagrees with Jerry Seinfeld's comments on modern comedy and political correctness.
• McElhenney used a character from " It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia " to counter Seinfeld's thoughts.
• Fans seem to agree that shows like " It's Always Sunny " disprove Seinfeld's notions about modern comedy.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia creator and star Rob McElhenney has responded to the recent comments made by Seinfeld star Jerry Seinfeld regarding “the extreme left” and the idea that “PC crap” is ruining comedy. Incidentally, McElhenney does not agree. Taking to social media to respond to Seinfeld’s criticism of modern comedy, the Always Sunny actor simply stated “Probably.” when addressing whether you could still make the same jokes that Seinfeld made in the 1990s.

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To drive his point home, McElhenney used a picture of the character “Rickety Cricket,” a man who started out as a priest but whose life has been slowly destroyed by the Always Sunny gang and is now a destitute crack addict.

And it seems many agree with McElhenney’s conclusion that the existence and storylines told in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia largely disprove Seinfeld’s thoughts on the matter. Commenting on McElhenney’s post, one user writes “It’s always the comedians like Seinfeld and that goatboy guy and Roseanne that have nothing going on who are whining about cancel culture,” while another adds, “He must not have seen IASIP, Rick & Morty, most of Curb Your Enthusiasm , among others. Lot of stuff on streaming, HBO, etc.”

Jerry Seinfeld Blames the Death of Sitcoms on 'P.C. Crap'

The star of the hugely popular sitcom, Seinfeld , as well as one of the most famous comedians of all time, Jerry Seinfeld made headlines recently with his condemnation of modern comedy and the influence of “the extreme left.”

“Where is it? Where is it? This is the result of the extreme left and P.C. crap and people worrying so much about offending other people. When you write a script, and it goes into four or five different hands, committees, groups – ‘Here’s our thought about this joke’ – well, that’s the end of your comedy. With certain comedians now, people are having fun with them stepping over the line, and us all laughing about it. But again, it’s the stand-ups that really have the freedom to do it because no one else gets the blame if it doesn’t go down well. He or she can take all the blame [themselves.]”

Dennis Reynolds' 10 Funniest Quotes from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Speaking on the New Yorker Radio Hour, Seinfeld went on to state that he did not think you’d be able to make the same jokes that Seinfeld made all those years ago today.

“[One would be] Kramer decides to start a business of having homeless people pull rickshaws because, as he says, ‘They’re outside anyway.’ Do you think I could get that episode on the air today?”

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is now the longest running live-action American sitcom and aired its 16th season last year. Starring Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton, Rob McElhenney, Kaitlin Olson, and Danny DeVito, the show was previously renewed for four more seasons, which will bring its total to 18. McElhenney is also due to return alongside Ryan Reynolds in the upcoming third season of the documentary series Welcome to Wrexham .

Jerry Seinfeld, meanwhile, will soon realize his dream project, Unfrosted , the story of how the Pop-Tart came to be. Unfrosted is set to be released on May 3, 2024, via Netflix.

BDIW Law Opens New Office in Edmond, OK, Expanding Access to Top-Tier Personal Injury Representation

In the heart of Edmond, Oklahoma, a new chapter unfolds as BDIW Law, a beacon of compassionate legal advocacy, establishes its presence. With their arrival, locals gain access to seasoned attorneys dedicated to championing their rights.

Edmond, OK, April 30, 2024—  BDIW Law, a leading Oklahoma personal injury law firm known for its compassionate and effective representation, is pleased to announce the opening of its new office in Edmond, OK. This expansion allows the firm to better serve clients with expert legal guidance and support throughout the Oklahoma City metro area and surrounding communities during challenging times.

The significance of this expansion lies in BDIW Law’s commitment to extending its reach and accessibility to individuals in need of top-tier legal representation. By establishing a presence in Edmond, the Personal Injury Lawyer  can now cater to a broader client base, ensuring that more individuals receive the personalized attention and effective legal solutions they deserve.

“We are thrilled to open our doors in Edmond,” says Brad Wicker, Partner at BDIW Law. “This new location will allow us to provide even greater accessibility to individuals injured due to negligence. We are committed to fighting for the rights of Oklahomans and ensuring they receive the compensation they deserve.”

The new Edmond office will offer the same high-quality legal services BDIW Law is known for, including representation in car accidents, workers’ compensation claims, social security disability, product liability, and more. The firm’s Personal Injury Lawyer Edmond  team is dedicated to providing personalized attention and aggressive advocacy for each client.

“We understand that being injured in an accident can be a stressful and overwhelming experience,” says James Devinney, another Partner at BDIW Law. “Our goal is to take the burden off our clients and allow them to focus on their recovery. We will handle all aspects of their case, from investigation to negotiation to litigation, if necessary.”

BDIW Law has a long-standing reputation for excellence in personal injury law. With over 65 years of combined legal experience, the firm’s attorneys have a proven track record of securing maximum compensation for clients.

“Our clients are more than just cases,” says Derek Ingle, a Partner at BDIW Law. “They are part of our community, and we are dedicated to fighting tirelessly for the justice they deserve. This new location strengthens our ability to offer personalized support to those in Edmond and surrounding areas.”

For individuals in Edmond and surrounding areas in need of legal assistance following personal injury or workplace-related incidents, BDIW Law offers a trusted ally and advocate. With its new location now open, the firm looks forward to serving the community and positively impacting its clients’ lives. Contact a Personal Injury Lawyer Oklahoma today for a free consultation and see how they can fight for you.

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BDIW Law is a compassionate and experienced personal injury law firm dedicated to helping Oklahomans injured due to negligence. With over 65 years of combined legal experience, the firm has a proven track record of obtaining significant compensation for its clients. BDIW Law is committed to making a difference in the community by holding negligent parties accountable and promoting a culture of safety. The firm offers a free case evaluation and works on a contingency fee basis, so clients only pay if they win.

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Originally posted On: https://syndication.cloud/bdiw-law-opens-new-office-in-edmond-ok-expanding-access-to-top-tier-personal-injury-representation/

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Knicks' Julius Randle Returns to Former Agent

New York Knicks All-Star Julius Randle is going back to his former representation.

• Author: Geoff Magliocchetti

In this story:

The New York Knicks' prodigal son has returned.

Creative Artists Agency's basketball division announced on Wednesday that All-Star forward Julius Randle would return to his former representation. The move back comes just over a half-year after Randle moved from CAA to the William Morris Endeavor, separating himself from the agency well-known for hosting current Knicks president Leon Rose's career as an agent.

Much like to move to WME, it's difficult to fully read into Randle's shift back to CAA, especially considering his current status on the injured list. Next season will be his last on a four-year, $117 million bestowed shortly after his metropolitan breakout, as the 2025-26 campaign is a $29.4 million player option, leaving him eligible for an extension in the near future.

Jan 23, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; New York Knicks forward Julius Randle (30) celebrates a dunk

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Randle posted typical numbers of his All-Star caliber after a slow start in his fifth season with the Knicks, overcoming a slow start to average 24 points and 9.2 rebounds and earning yet another exhibition invite. But Randle has been out since late January with a shoulder injury, one that proved to be season-ending.

Prior to his brief move to WME, Randle had been stationed with CAA since his NBA career began with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2014. Other current CAA clinetele include Randle's teammate and fellow All-Star Julius Randle, Tyrese Haliburton, and Cameron Brink, the second overall pick of last month's WNBA Draft.

Make sure you bookmark All Knicks for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

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‘ghosts’ finale: brandon scott jones & eps on isaac’s wedding, the puritan named patience, season 4 and more, breaking news.

• Disney+’s ‘Shardlake’ Star Opens Up About Disability Representation In TV

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The star of Disney+ ‘s Shardlake has addressed having a different disability to the character he portrays in the C.J. Sansom adaptation, which launches today.

Arthur Hughes , who was the first person with a disability to portray Richard III for the Royal Shakespeare Company, stressed that Shardlake was always going to have a disabled lead – whether him or another actor – coming as debate rages over authentic representation in TV and film.

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Hughes added that being disabled is the “least interesting” thing about Shardlake.

Directed by Justin Chadwick and penned by Stephen Butchard, the series follows Shardlake and his accomplice Jack Barak ( Anthony Boyle ), as they manoeuvre the political and religious machinations of 16th century England.

Exec producer Stevie Lee said the team decided that Shardlake would still have scoliosis in the TV adaptation. “Arthur has a different disability, which probably means that he has a lot of shared experience of how the world fits around him, but we would never ever have taken away from what [Sansom] wrote.” 

Butchard said the production had received “full backing” from disability societies.

Speaking to the commission, Lee Mason, Scripted Originals Director at Disney+, said that the project came along right when the streamer was looking for a “sexy sort of crime thriller.” Supporting characters include Sean Bean playing Thomas Cromwell, Ruby Ashbourne-Serkis as Alice and Babou Ceesay as Abbot Fabian.

Tragically, just a few days prior to the show’s premiere, Sansom died . He passed away on April 27 after being diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2012. Tributes flooded in from his agents, publishers and fans.

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Asian American, Pacific Islander consumers want better brand representation, Nielsen reports

As companies around the country roll out plans to honor May as Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, a new report out Wednesday suggests members of those communities are paying more attention than ever to representation

As companies around the country roll out plans to honor May as Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month , a report released Wednesday suggests members of those communities are paying more attention than ever to representation.

Nielsen researchers found that Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in the U.S., collectively, have $1.3 trillion in buying power or disposable income. Yet, advertisers are still learning the importance of nuanced cultural representation when it comes to branding and marketing. A majority of consumers of Asian and Pacific Islander descent are not willing to shrug off media and advertising that ridicules or mishandles their culture.

A strong share of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific islanders, 64%, stated they will stop buying from brands that devalue their identity group. Patricia Ratulangi, a vice president at Nielsen, was struck by the level of conviction.

“I think about how I grew up, my grandmother, my mother would have said, ‘Stop creating trouble,’” Ratulangi said. But in the last few years, she has noticed boomers joining young people in a “rallying cry in our community.”

Asian Americans are the fastest-growing demographic in the U.S., according to Nielsen. Census data indicates there are 22 million Asian Americans with roots in 20 countries. Their population is projected to balloon to 35.8 million by 2060. Despite their buying power, Asian Americans also have the largest wealth gap between highest and lowest incomes, 23.3%.

It is Ratulangi’s hope that the report opens the eyes of companies and other entities to the value in not just learning about cultures, but also understanding their struggles with issues like anti-Asian racism. Also, doing so not just in May.

“We’re Asian all year round,” Ratulangi said. “Knowing that there is this increased social justice awareness within the community is definitely an important aspect of understanding how to shape your outreach and your marketing to the community.”