“From ‘it’s not possible’ to ‘how we can do it’”. Challenges, opportunities and proposals to adopt intersectionality in local administration

Abstract

The growing interest in the incorporation of intersectionality in public policies, combined with the lack of tools, entails two risks: the rhetoric use of the term and its depoliticization. The present article seeks to analyse the obstacles and facilitating factors for intersectional mainstreaming in the local administration, based on the study case of Terrassa City Council (Spain), which spearheaded a European project to promote bringing intersectionality to local policies. The article, based on the analysis of 16 interviews, and the responses of 4 questionnaires and 13 reports, identifies three challenges: the lack of definition, lack of applicability and complexity of the intersectional perspective; the clash between the dynamics of the public administration and the intersectional proposal; and the segmented structure of the administration. Each challenge is associated with opportunities and specific proposals that emerged in the fieldwork.