White Privilege

[Jack]

For the last 40 years I've maintained a passion for the subject of White privilege and racial equal rights. It's not a popular position even among my liberal friends, who perhaps out of a feeling of guilt prefer to avoid the topic, or would rather focus on the equal rights angle and sweep the concept of White privilege under the rug.

I've recently come across Tim Wise, who writes eloquently on this subject. Here's a snippet of one of his articles at the Red Room, titled "This is your nation on White privilege". In this article he refers specifically to the current candidates for president. I've edited a few words to comply with the forum's rules.

For those who still can’t grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help. White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because “every family has challenges,” even as black and Latino families with similar “challenges” are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay. White privilege is when you can call yourself a “f***in’ redneck,” like Bristol Palin’s boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll “kick their f***in' a$$,” and talk about how you like to “shoot sh**” for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug. White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don’t all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you’re “untested.” White privilege is being able to say that you support the words “under God” in the pledge of allegiance because “if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it’s good enough for me,” and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the “under God” part wasn’t added until the 1950s--while if you're black and believe in reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), you're a dangerous and mushy liberal who isn't fit to safeguard American institutions. White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor--and people think you’re being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college and the fact that she lives near Russia, you’re somehow being mean, or even sexist. White privilege is being able to go to a prestigious prep school, then to Yale and Harvard Business School (George W. Bush), and still be seen as an "average guy," while being black, going to a prestigious prep school, then Occidental College, then Columbia, and then Harvard Law, makes you "uppity" and a snob who probably looks down on regular folks. White privilege is being able to graduate near the bottom of your college class (McCain), or graduate with a C average from Yale (W.), and that's OK, and you're still cut out to be president, but if you're black and you graduate near the top of your class from Harvard Law, you can't be trusted to make good decisions in office. White privilege is being able to dump your first wife after she's disfigured in a car crash so you can take up with a multi-millionaire beauty queen (who you then go on to call the c-word in public) and still be thought of as a man of strong family values, while if you're black and married for nearly 20 years to the same woman, your family is viewed as un-American and your gestures of affection for each other are called "terrorist fist bumps." White privilege is when you can develop a pain-killer addiction, having obtained your drug of choice illegally like Cindy McCain, go on to beat that addiction, and everyone praises you for being so strong, while being a black guy who smoked pot a few times in college and never became an addict means people will wonder if perhaps you still get high, and even ask whether or not you may have sold drugs at some point.

In response to some of the more heated and ignorant comments he received on this article, he posted a follow up with the following analogy to help make his point clearer:

Taking things out of the racial context for a minute: imagine persons who are able bodied, as opposed to those with disabilities. If I were to say that able-bodied persons have certain advantages, certain privileges if you will, which disabled persons do not, who would argue the point? I imagine that no one would. It's too obvious, right? To be disabled is to face numerous obstacles. And although many persons with disabilities overcome those obstacles, this fact doesn't take away from the fact that they exist. Likewise, that persons with disabilities can and do overcome obstacles every day, doesn't deny that those of us who are able-bodied have an edge. We have one less thing to think and worry about as we enter a building, go to a workplace, or just try and navigate the contours of daily life. The fact that there are lots of able-bodied people who are poor, and some disabled folks who are rich, doesn't alter the general rule: on balance, it pays to be able-bodied. That's all I'm saying about white privilege: on balance, it pays to be a member of the dominant racial group. It doesn't mean that a white person will get everything they want in life, or win every competition, but it does mean that there are general advantages that we receive.

America is a nation of White privilege, one of the more prominent examples of our national belief that might makes right and the majority rules.We offer faint praise for minority programs but drop their funding in order to free more funds for killing those in foreign countries who aren't like us. America, where the continued presence of the KKK and Neo-Nazis is blamed on the right of free speech, when in reality they persist because there are Americans who still believe in the ideals espoused by those groups.

American society is still largely racist. Our social policies are still largely racist. We may claim our objections to Mexican immigrants are based on economics, but it's rather obvious there's a strong element of racism in our xenophobia as well.

I think it's sad that in the 21st century, after all this nation has endured, we still have to ask if the country is ready for a Black president.

[SoylentGreen]

JackI think it's sad that in the 21st century, after all this nation has endured, we still have to ask if the country is ready for a Black president

The country definitely wasn't ready for a female president, so perhaps the title should be changed to white male privileges.
Also it s kind of ironic that the add that appears with this thread is for anyone searching for an interracial marriage.

[Diogenes]

There's no way around this...

racism is just one part of a bigger problem of insecurity and self-esteem...that is fostered on people of race, size, culture, religion, etc... If we were all the same color, all the same size, all having the same culture and religion we would still find something to discriminate against .

Yes race is an issue...eg. some people don't get hired because of their skin color...but some also don't get the job because of their gender ( men and women ), culture, because they're fat, old, ugly, too short, too tall, too religious, not religious enough...on and on it goes...

if we solved all present-day prejudices...we'd still find something wrong with others...maybe because they have black hair or red.

[lsbskins1]

I have always put it more simply to those I discuss this with. I can walk into any store in the US and just about everyone assumes I am shopping. If I were black, way too many people would assume I was "casing the joint". I am trusted, given the benefit of the doubt. My black counter-parts in this world do not enjoy that advantage. It is real and it is tragic.

[Jack]

Please don't attempt to dilute the focus of this thread by pointing out other instances of American ignorance. I don't deny they exist, but they're not the topic of this thread. Racism exists primarily because of the "Oh well, we're all a bit racist, what can we do about it" attitude. By excusing ignorance we become a party to it.

The reason more White people don't protest White privilege is that we White folk benefit from it. Who wants to bite the hand that feeds them? By not protesting it, we tacitly allow the fruit of that attitude, racism. There's no excuse in this century and in this country to have such inequality between the races.

[Diogenes]

Please don't attempt to dilute the focus of this thread by pointing out other instances of American ignorance. I don't deny they exist, but they're not the topic of this thread. Racism exists primarily because of the "Oh well, we're all a bit racist, what can we do about it" attitude. By excusing ignorance we become a party to it.

I wasn't saying there isn't anything we can do about it...you're trying to read between the lines or interpret my post based upon your notions and not mine and that is a very common mistake people make .

You raised the issue of White privilege ...then went on to talk about racism...then quoted a large passage...that had something to do with white privilege...but was also just a collection of comments regarding every-day racism...

much of the quote you posted is very much different then White privilege , I've had many conversations with black groups and individuals, including APA's and other black fraternity organizations, and white privilege they see as institutionalized racism...which was the basis for various inequitable programs designed to raise the level of black Americans through legislation... to put them on an equal footing...

eg. black people were prevented from getting a higher education therefore they deserve special privilege to elevate themselves to a more equatible state

so...are we discussing racism or white privilege?

If we're talking about institutionalized racism then we look at legislation..if we're talking racism generally then my previous post was pertinent as it was a social comment.

[Jack]

I'll say White privilege, though racism is the end result of such an attitude. I'm not sure how the quoted article can be read as anything but a comment on White privilege.

[Diogenes]

There are no easy solutions to institutionalized racism ( white privilege )...

40 acres and a mule didn't solve it...legislation hasn't solved it...I doubt we can...I'm not saying it can't be done...just not the way the government is set today.

Times have changed...a government, even a government that has instituted amendments, sometimes has to be restructured...even abolished in order to create something better.

The only other solution is...time.

For social change to happen it needs two things...a jolt in the right direction...and time.

[SoylentGreen]

Keep breeding, sooner or later we will all be coffee coloured.
Alternatively just wait for the ozone layer to deplete. It's the white skins that will go first.

[The Bacon Guy]

Quote by: Ish White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because “every family has challenges,” even as black and Latino families with similar “challenges” are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay. White privilege is when you can call yourself a “f***in’ redneck,” like Bristol Palin’s boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll “kick their f***in' a$$,” and talk about how you like to “shoot sh**” for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug. White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don’t all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you’re “untested.” White privilege is being able to say that you support the words “under God” in the pledge of allegiance because “if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it’s good enough for me,” and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the “under God” part wasn’t added until the 1950s--while if you're black and believe in reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), you're a dangerous and mushy liberal who isn't fit to safeguard American institutions. White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor--and people think you’re being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college and the fact that she lives near Russia, you’re somehow being mean, or even sexist. White privilege is being able to go to a prestigious prep school, then to Yale and Harvard Business School (George W. Bush), and still be seen as an "average guy," while being black, going to a prestigious prep school, then Occidental College, then Columbia, and then Harvard Law, makes you "uppity" and a snob who probably looks down on regular folks. White privilege is being able to graduate near the bottom of your college class (McCain), or graduate with a C average from Yale (W.), and that's OK, and you're still cut out to be president, but if you're black and you graduate near the top of your class from Harvard Law, you can't be trusted to make good decisions in office. White privilege is being able to dump your first wife after she's disfigured in a car crash so you can take up with a multi-millionaire beauty queen (who you then go on to call the c-word in public) and still be thought of as a man of strong family values, while if you're black and married for nearly 20 years to the same woman, your family is viewed as un-American and your gestures of affection for each other are called "terrorist fist bumps." White privilege is when you can develop a pain-killer addiction, having obtained your drug of choice illegally like Cindy McCain, go on to beat that addiction, and everyone praises you for being so strong, while being a black guy who smoked pot a few times in college and never became an addict means people will wonder if perhaps you still get high, and even ask whether or not you may have sold drugs at some point.

Those are all political issues; not racial. People make attempts to discredit Obama and igone McCain's shortcomings because Obama is the presidential candidate of the opposing party; not because he's black.

Republicans dislike Obama because he's a Democrat. Get over it.

[Mediocrates]

I agree to an extent, particularly with the redneck argument, but a lot of these are political tribalism rather than racism. Take this argument, for example:

White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don’t all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you’re “untested.”

There is no conflict, as these views are being put only by certain sections of society: Republicans, and some political independents. Democrats mostly take the opposite view, that Obama has the experience to be a good President while Palin is inexperienced and would be a liability in office.

Similarly this argument

White privilege is being able to graduate near the bottom of your college class (McCain), or graduate with a C average from Yale (W.), and that's OK, and you're still cut out to be president, but if you're black and you graduate near the top of your class from Harvard Law, you can't be trusted to make good decisions in office.

is probably more to do with American anti-intellectualism than with race. It isn't that the people making this argument (well, not all of them) see Obama as inherently worse because of his race and despite his academic record, it's that they don't see academic achievement as relevant to how good a President someone will make. In some cases it may be influenced by racism, but generally I think my argument holds: Al Gore had a good academic record, and yet he still lost to Bush.

Yes, there is still racism in America (and probably everywhere else, too), and yes, there is still white privilege. But many of these issues are attributable to other factors.

[Jack]

Republicans dislike Obama because he's a Democrat.

That doesn't jibe with what I hear at McCain's rallies. Obama can't be trusted because he's a Muslim, he's an Arab, he hangs out with terrorists. As far as I know no one is claiming that all Democrats are Mulims, Arabs or hang with terrorists. Those sound to me more like racially motivated misconceptions.

[Shade]

I am not responsible for it.

I take no ownership of it.

If you do, that's on you.

[Sockem]

Quote by: Jack That doesn't jibe with what I hear at McCain's rallies. Obama can't be trusted because he's a Muslim, he's an Arab, he hangs out with terrorists. As far as I know no one is claiming that all Democrats are Mulims, Arabs or hang with terrorists. Those sound to me more like racially motivated misconceptions.

Since you can suddenly read the minds of Republicans, mind telling me if I'm racist?

[Tycoon]

Since you can suddenly read the minds of Republicans, mind telling me if I'm racist?

Jack is merely stating the obvious, and if you can't see it then you're just blinded by your own political perspective. Nobody's heard Republicans calling Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton muslims or terrorists. The motivations for them using those terms against Obama are purely racial.

[The Bacon Guy]

Quote by: Ish That doesn't jibe with what I hear at McCain's rallies. Obama can't be trusted because he's a Muslim, he's an Arab, he hangs out with terrorists. As far as I know no one is claiming that all Democrats are Mulims, Arabs or hang with terrorists. Those sound to me more like racially motivated misconceptions.

And if he wasn’t black, they’d find something else to attack him for. Their problem is with Obama; not with black people.

[Tycoon]

And if he wasn’t black, they’d find something else to attack him for. Their problem is with Obama; not with black people.

There wouldn't be much for them to attack other than his policies, which I would still prefer to baseless accusations such as the misconception of him being muslim.

[Kamehameha34]

Quote by: Tycoon Jack is merely stating the obvious, and if you can't see it then you're just blinded by your own political perspective. Nobody's heard Republicans calling Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton muslims or terrorists. The motivations for them using those terms against Obama are purely racial.

I disagree. I think that they have a racial/ethnic means to league Obama with terrorists, but their motivations are purely political.

As such, the means are pretty much irrelevant. The people espousing this stuff and letting themselves be affected by it would have found an excuse to not vote for Obama anyway.

[The Bacon Guy]

Quote by: Tyke There wouldn't be much for them to attack other than his policies, which I would still prefer to baseless accusations such as the misconception of him being muslim.

Either way, the fact still remains that they will attack Obama regardless of his race. Him being white wouldn't suddenly win over all the McCain supporters. Hence there is no "white privilege".

In fact, I think being black is more likely to work to his advantage. I know of a lot more people despeate to see the first black president than people desperate not to.

[Sockem]

Quote by: Tycoon Jack is merely stating the obvious, and if you can't see it then you're just blinded by your own political perspective. Nobody's heard Republicans calling Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton muslims or terrorists. The motivations for them using those terms against Obama are purely racial.

I'm not talking about other people he explicitly stated all republicans (I am one) are racist. I assume by that he can read minds. I merely asked him to read mine.