To turn outward -to engage in politics- we must first turn inward to establish our identity.
However, this once introspective process of establishing character based on transcendent ideals can move from the internal and latch onto the external pre-existing, immutable markers like race, ethnicity, and gender as primary characteristics.
This reverses the process: instead of “I am Y, thus I align with X politics,” it becomes “I identify as X, therefore this is my politics.” We’re not truly seeking identity but grasping at given markers: we are not pushing back against the apparent, but refusing to seek as we declare we are found.