Identity politics is not a complex concept; however, it has become somewhat of a “hard-to-define” concept due to how it has been corrupted by “American conservatives.” Identity politics stems from power, which as Garza states, is truly not at all on par with what feeling empowered is. As I was reading Garza’s reading, I came to realize the reality of the disparity between power and what it means to feel empowered. Garza made a concise and appropriate analogy that truly hit the nail: he compared empowerment to one’s freedom to choose what to eat for breakfast, whilst power belongs to those who are in charge of making these options available to us (or not available.) This expands what I thought power was, bringing to light that identity politics is vital because our power is not as profound as I thought it to be and as Garza states in her article, “A lack of understanding of power is central to how power operates.”        In Garza’s reading, she made a powerful statement that made me pause and think about where power lies in our day to day, personally speaking as a woman of color. This is the statement, “Power prefers to operate in obscurity; if how power operates was fully transparent, I suspect many of us would rebel against it.” Is all of what we know to be power, more-so a fabricated and controlled illusion? Do we truly have the power to make choices that benefit us, and only us? This is why identity politics is so important. This is why conversations like the blonde’s infuriate me, because as a woman of color, no one can speak my truth for me and certainly no one can boil down my identity to an inability to identity with a nation and not my race.