Oppression Olympics

proper noun

Competition between marginalized groups to be considered the most subject to oppression.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

proper nounthe Oppression Olympics
  1. derogatoryslangCompetition between marginalized groups to be considered the most subject to oppression.

    [ELIZABETH] MARTÍNEZ: […] But the general idea is no competition of hierarchies should prevail. No “Oppression Olympics”!

    1993 May 12, Angela Y. Davis, Elizabeth Martínez, “Coalition Building Among People of Color”, in María Ochoa, Teresia Teaiwa, editors, Enunciating Our Terms: Women of Color in Collaboration and Conflict (Inscriptions), volume 7, University of California: Santa Cruz Center for Cultural Studies, published 1994

Origin

First attested in 1993, see quotation below, but one source describes it as being in use "several years" before 1995. Attributions include unidentified students and Elizabeth V. Spelman.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Oppression Olympics. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Oppression%20Olympics

MLA

“Oppression Olympics.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Oppression%20Olympics. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Oppression Olympics,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Oppression%20Olympics.

Source: Oppression Olympics on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.