Many people in the world don’t know about what white privilege is, and most of those who know know what it is debate on whether it exist or not. First off white privilege is a term that represents the privileges that comes along with having white skin. With many white people arguing that white privilege doesn 't exist many people of color believe it does. Most people of color believe that white people are always one level ahead of them, because of their privilege. First of all, like many people of color, I believe white privilege does exist, because I can see it all around me. Starting from as long as I can remember I have been taught about white history with a small sprinkle of the history of those who actually built this country. Starting
In Peggy McIntosh’s “White Privilege”, she talks about how white privilege is “like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports, codebooks, visas, clothes, tools and blank checks” (1). What she meant by this, was that light-skinned/white people are at an automatic advantage over dark-skinned people, whom in turn, become the disadvantaged. She claims that being white protected her from danger and violence and freed her to do many things that she realized other people of color could not. She believes she can get away with doing more things and that more doors are open to her especially due to the color of her skin. When relating this to the movie, “The Hangover”, it is easy to point out these concepts of white privilege.
This week we were assigned to read to different articles. The first article was written by Peggy McIntosh titled, “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack”. Throughout the article, Peggy showed the readers what it means to have white privilege. She showed the readers 50 different types of “advantages” that whites get over other races, such as African Americans. This is the biggest theme throughout her entire piece.
The central them of White Privilege Knapsack is about how certain people have better advantages simply because of what they were born into. Whether it is being a specific race that is believed to be superior over others or being males versus a female. What was the article about?: Growing up children learn from an early age of what is acceptable and what is expected of them.
Peggy McKintosh makes a sort of parallel between the power of privilege that men posses over women and how white people have a privilege over colored people. The parallel between these two examples is that they both have a side that is more privileged than the other but they seem to not notice that they have that privilege. Men grow up in a society where they are taught not to show that they have more power and privilege over women and it is the same way with white people. White people are not taught that they are oppressors against people of color. They just grew up and were taught to not recognize their privilege of just being born white.
During the documentary I felt largely uncomfortable. Primarily because it is the first time I have really questioned being white. I know my race, I have filled out multiple questionnaires but I have never sat down and thought what it meant to be white. White privilege does exist, and it is not uncommon.
Acknowledging white privilege is admitting advantage in society over minorities. Although times are changing, there are two examples of white privilege I have witnessed first-hand. Driving through Albuquerque, New Mexico I was pulled over with my brother who looks like hippy from the woods for an expired tag. I was taken out of the car and back to the officer when he asked if there were drugs in the car because he could smell them, shortly after he questioned my brother who handed him two joints and HTC pills. The officer gave my brother back his marijuana and continued with how they were looking for people who were smuggling drugs into the country from Mexico.
In reading Meet the poster child for “white privilege” – then have your mind blown, and, To the Princeton Privileged Kid, I can say that I somewhat see and agree with both points of view. I think that both have in some way miss interpreted what the other is saying. It amazes me how people don’t want to take matters into their own hands, and always find the need to have someone to blame for their issues, and shortcomings. Instead they just keep spewing out hate. Hate breeds hate, and we can 't keep fighting it all with more hate.
I sometimes get irritated when people don’t agree on the same ideas that I have or when the other person says something that I don’t agree with. The objective of this chapter made me comprehend that based on an individual’s experiences and viewpoints impacts the person’s behavior. Some experience may deal with the oppressions and privileges a person has, the article “Explaining White Privilege to a Broke White Person…” made me realize that I am more privilege than what I thought. The author didn’t think she was privilege until she read a book she got recommended and from her article she summarizes
Moreover, social stratification has always been within every society, ranging from a horticultural society to a post-industrial society such as ours. Given that context, an average person would immediately assume the term “White Privilege” is an expression that relates to the authority of white people over the people of color, However, this isn’t completely accurate - it is more intricate than the given webster
Whites are not aware of the privilege they have, simply for the fact that this is their life the majority do not know anything different. When you have been drinking coke every day of your life and everyone else has ben drinking diet coke labeled as coke you wont know the difference. Lipsitz (1995) affirms whiteness is everywhere in US culture, but it is very hard to see. This is how white privilege looks to the average American even though everyone else is not getting the same treat as the whites they do not understand it because they have been treated the same way or so they think their whole life as well. Minorities are getting diet coke their whole life, though they see the whites making more money, and treated better in turn they begin questioning and coming up with the
We've all heard the saying "White Privilege" used loosely in society. Well folks, it exists as a factual privilege given at birth to those of the Anglo-Saxon race of people, not only in America, but worldwide. Believe me folks, it comes with its perks and self proclaimed righteousness that creates its own preconceived path to success. On the other end of the spectrum, Charlamagne Tha God introduces "Black Privilege" in the book. Yes, it is indeed a privilege to be Black, African American.
W.E.B. DuBois, one of the pioneers in Critical Whiteness Studies, emphasizes the interrelation between “the relative invisibility of whiteness” (ibid.) and the maintenance of white supremacy, which underlines the political nature of Critical Whiteness Studies insofar as its premise is to question and challenge existing societal structures. According to Frankenberg, whiteness is a construction or an identity that is inseparable from racialized dominance (ibid.: 9). White therefore refers to a position in racism as a system for categorizing racialized groups and for the identity formation of the subject positions within racism
There are still factors that have only been erased on the surface but still play a large role in the way that people of color are treated in America, and dictate to a certain extent, compromise the “freedom” that people have. On the other hand, we have white America, who have heightened chances of achieving anything that they please. This does not apply to every white American, as there are also white Americans who are living on or below the poverty line, and much like everybody else must put in a lot of effort to reach certain heights, however they have an advantage over all other denomination of people known as “white privilege” which are the societal benefits that people who can be categorized as “white” enjoy over the rest of the population and in the end, have a higher social status. Ultimately, people of color must work harder, and face many more setbacks in their climb to success than white Americans do, which is not fair,
In chapter one, "Privilege, Oppression, and Difference, Allan Johnson begins his argument that "difference is not the problem"( Johnson, pg 5 ). The author goes on to explain that difference by itself is not the problem, rather difference in conjunction with our ideas that cause fear. That being said, discrimination was a bigger problem in the past and it still is today. We starts with talking about Rodney King and racism he had received from police officers in Los Angeles. Johnson continues on with the idea that people are judged not for who they are or the things they have accomplished, but how they are perceived by others.
People see whiteness because they experience its effects. A useful comparison can be drawn between the unrecognised privileges of males, and those of white people (McIntosh, 1988). It is not unusual for men to acknowledge that women are disadvantaged. With that said, McIntosh (1988) argues that white privilege is in the same manner without recognition and thus preserved. McIntosh (1988) views white privilege as an invisible collection of unearned assets that is of benefit to white people on a daily basis.