I was recently scrolling though Pintrest when I came across
the following image titled, “I am a White man”
(see picture here: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/413416440764522157/)
It ignited a desire to learn
more, to discover what it means to be white. I did a Google search on white privilege
and found an intriguing blog post that a woman had made in which she created a
list of the privileges she felt she had. The blog post can be found here:
While hers is much more extensive, I attempted to really to
some thinking, to compile a list of privileges that I feel I have solely because
I am a white woman.
1.
I can buy or rent a house wherever I want if I
have the financial means
2.
I can shop at a grocery store without being
watched by security guards
3.
I constantly see people of my own race/color in
the media
4.
I can act wild and not have people judge me
based on the color of my skin
5.
I can swear and not have people attribute it to
the illiteracy of my race.
6.
I have confidence that I would never get more
harshly judged in a legal setting due to the stereotypes made about my race.
7.
I don’t feel as if my body shape is explicitly
defined by my race.
8.
I can speak openly in whatever manner I choose
without feeling stereotyped and judged.
9.
I can find medical bandages that are the color
of my skin.
10. I
do not feel as if my race makes it more difficult for me to obtain my
educational or career goals.
I often fail to forget about these privileges because they
are inherent. I forget that the world is unequal, that some people are not
innately granted these same privileges. This exercise really made me think, it
made me acknowledge that I serve to reproduce these inequalities and inherent
privileges without intentionally doing so.
While privilege is not the sole determinate of success, I do believe
that it is a huge asset that makes dreams and goals much more attainable. It’s
like having a toolbox that is already filled. I began to wonder, are the ways
to go about changing these dynamics? Can we fill the toolboxes of blacks, other
minorities?
Overcoming racial dynamics is a difficult task; however, it
is not impossible. Slaves were emancipated from the wraths of slavery, the
civil rights movement brought forms of justice and equality to the black
community, and many other narratives can be used to instill hope that these
dynamics can be changed. This difference
with white privilege is that whites must
engage in this strife for justice. During slavery and the civil rights
movement, white activism and engagement was sparse. However, it was present. It
often lurked in the backgrounds, afraid to been seen or heard, but it was
present. The Underground Railroad is an example of some whites desire to help
blacks attain racial equality. Many people are suggesting that the sole way to overcome
white privilege is to acknowledge it. To listen to the stories and narratives
that others tell and accept that we are subject to great privilege, despite our
wishes, hopes, and desires.
Works Cited
That picture is extremely powerful and eye opening. I was very privileged to grow up and go to a school with extreme diversity, where there was no white majority. If anything the white class was the majority compared to African Americans and Hispanics. I never felt in my urban city of Somerville, Ma right outside of Boston, that there was a precedent of white privileges. That all changed until I came to the south and lived in Memphis and a summer in Charleston, SC. I definitely became aware that there is still racism that allows the color of ones skin to give certain people privileges that others do not get to have. I think in some areas of the country, from personal experience, people have different views and perspectives that are sometimes taken more seriously in other areas of the country like the south. If I can rent a house in any part of the state then so should a person of color. Just because people have white skin does not give them a higher standard than anyone else. I do think things will change, sadly it is a slow change but there is always progress. I don’t see us moving backwards on racism. There will always be preconceived notions of certain issues but hopefully one day race won’t be one of them.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that things will change. I think that blacks emancipation from slavery and the Civil RIghts Movement empowered blacks and inspired hope in the hopeless (both black and white). The only thing that I find problematic about that belief, about having hope is that although we have and will continue to overcome monumental barriers, people are innately born with the ability to differentiate from one another. Do you think that is problematic? Do you think that means that we will never overcome the issue of race completely?
DeleteI'm not entirely sure that things will change. I believe that progress will be made, absolutely. I don't believe, however, that there will be an end point: notions of teleology are worrisome to consider in this instance. As long as history has been recorded, there have been records of racism and racial elitism--by every culture. Humans inherently define themselves by what they are not. All evidence suggests that racism, however subtle, will continue to persist as long as humans inhabit this planet. That does not mean that progress won't be made, however--I just don't think stereotypes will ever completely go away.
DeleteI also do not think that we will ever see true racial equality. I think there are always going to be tensions because of difference in race, class, gender, sexual orientation, etc. We just don't know how to accept that difference. I do think that there is a lot of room for progress still. Being aware of the privileges that we have or don't have because of the color of our skin is a great first step. You have to admit you have a problem right? Having this knowledge will change the lives or many people who will become hyper-sensitive to issues of race, and attempt to deal with their own conscious and unconscious biases that they might have. However, just knowing about this privilege is not enough. When you talk about how one group has advantages that another doesn't, then the solution to that problem would be for the priviledged group to give up some of their advantages. While the issue of privilege can also been the other way, as you suggest Noelle, that white people do not have to give up privilege but we need to find a way to extend the same privilege to other races/ethnicities. This is just a glass half full/half empty situation. I think that knowledge about the differences and the inequality would bring us much closer to removing many of the barriers that continue to exist for minorities, but I don't think that the problem of racial inequity as a whole will ever disappear.
DeleteThis was extremely interesting to read. Your list really stuck out to me, because I turned around and tried to create my own list of societal advantages to being black. You guessed it, I was hard pressed to come up with one even half as long as yours. That's not to say I'm not proud--I wouldn't be any other race but black--but it's and interesting point. Personally, I think we have passed the days of exclusion based on race. But the residual of racism is engrained in our societal constructs. That is to say that white privilege is inherent in the system. I agree with Jeff; I doubt it'll ever be overcome, but that's not to say that black people can't break through "barriers" of white privilege.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI really like that you chose to make a list of your own. And I love your inherent honest in what you said. This goes right into what I feel like I've been saying throughout the semester that honestly acknowledging the things in our society that are uncomfortable is the only way we can continue to make the strides we need towards racial equality. The item on your list that stood out to me the most was #9: "I can find medical bandages that are the color of my skin." That struck me because I have never even thought about that before, and I have definitely had to wear plenty of bandaids in my life. To me they are just bandaids to help keep your cuts and wounds from getting infected and help them heal. But while they are very lightly tan colored, does that really matter? I mean even though they are that color I always notice people's bandaids. But I mean should there be bandaids for the various colors of skin in our society? I think that would be really silly. I feel like things like that create racism in places there does not intend to be. I think the point of them being lighter is more so meant towards being able to gauge whether you need to put on a new one or not... but it is a very interesting thought. I wonder, but doubt, if the initial creator of such medical bandages was taking any kind of racial preferences into account when deciding what color to make them. But who knows. I just feel like there is a lot in society that many feel the need to over-magnify and create issues that don't exist instead of addressing the obviously evident and significant issues that already exist and finding ways to move towards solutions to absolve them.
ReplyDeleteThe white privilege listed as #9 reminds me of an incident from my childhood. I was watching television when a Band-Aid commercial came on advertising that their bandages match your skin tone, so I figured that they had made some brown ones. I felt pretty good about that until my mother informed me that the commercial wasn't talking about black people. Everyone gets hurts and uses bandages, so for the commercial to target a specific group of people is racist to exclude minorities from the features of its product.
DeleteAnother of the listed white privileges that caught my attention was #5 "I can swear and not have people attribute it to the illiteracy of my race." When I was young and out shopping with my mother, we heard some people cursing extensively. She then stopped and explained to me that cursing shows that you do not know how to express your thoughts in words and therefore makes the world think that you are ignorant. I figured that that was something that all parents preached, but based off of experiences in school I quickly learned that it was not. However, I never connected it to a racial matter. I suppose my mother was training me on how to behave if I wanted to interact with white people. We know that from the time between the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement, black parents had to teach their children racial etiquette and explain to them why they were treated differently and why they had to be careful with their behavior. But because remnants of racism still influence society and our perceptions of one another, black parents who encourage their children to improve themselves by integrating into mainstream society still have to teach them lessons of racial perceptions.