White Privilege And Discrimination
This article discusses white privilege and the impact it has on whites as well as people of color. White privilege is defined as the differences in power between white people and people of color, including the advantages white people automatically take for granted and the apparent disadvantages for minorities. Ways in which white privilege is able to persist, as well as educational methods that help people acknowledge and better understand white privilege, are addressed.
Keywords: Color-blindness; Discrimination; Ignorance; In-group; Multicultural Education; Oppression; Out-group; Privilege; Racism; White Complicity; White Privilege; Whitewashing
Overview
Defining White Privilege
The general concept of privilege, as defined by McIntosh
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For members of the out-group, it is a constant reminder of their second-class citizen status (McIntosh, 2001). This is where white privilege comes in. Though white privilege has been defined in various ways, a common definition describes white privilege as the differences in power between white people and people of color, including the advantages white people automatically take for granted ("Defining Whiteness and White Privilege," n.d.). Additionally, McIntosh (1990) says that the "knapsack" associated with white privilege consists of special provisions such as maps, codebooks, clothes, blank checks, etc., which white people are taught not to recognize or …show more content…
Color-blindness is one example. Color-blindness is a refusal to see race or acknowledge white privilege. It is a self-imposed blindness that white people are taught, that instructs them to ignore race. In other words, those who buy into the idea believe that "race does not exist as a meaningful category and posits that the benefits accrued to White people are earned by (gifted) individuals rather than systemically conferred" (Gordon, 2005, p. 281).
Similarly, a state of "not-knowing" is a factor that causes white privilege to persist. May (2006) describes this phenomenon as the things members of dominant groups are taught not to know. There are many things they are encouraged not to see and are rewarded for doing so. Therefore, Applebaum (2008) adds, not-knowing for the dominant group muddles the consequences of an unjust system such that they do not have to consider their role in continuing to perpetuate the injustices placed on those in the out-group and, at the same time, see themselves as "good" (McIntosh,
Pacificntosh White Privilege Rhetorical Analysis
57 Words | 1 PagesAs a result of her comprehensive definition on white privilege and endorsement to her academic background, McIntosh begins to persuade her audience that unearned white privilege does exist. The first couple of paragraphs of her essay she gives to define white privilege, so it is recognizable that this definition is necessary for her essay and her argument.
Analysis Of White Privilege Unpacking The Invisible Knapsack
327 Words | 2 PagesMcIntosh shows the readers that people who are African Americans should be treated the same as their white counterparts. She even later goes on and says that the word “privilege” used in this sense seems to mislead and states, “We usually think of privilege as being a favored state, whether earned or conferred by birth
White Privilege Knapsack Argument
448 Words | 2 PagesThe 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.
Does Tal Fortgang's Essay Check My Privilege
552 Words | 3 Pages“Behind every success, large or small, there is a story, and it isn't always told by sex or skin color” (page 2, par. 15), Fortgang, T (2014). Some people base their success on their racial background. “Checking My Privilege” by Tal Fotrtgang was written in an effort to voice his opinion on this matter. In his essay, Tal Fortgang says, “I actually went and checked the origins of my privileged existence, to empathize with those whose underdog stories I can’t possibly comprehend. I have unearthed some examples of the privilege with which my family was blessed, and now I think I better understand those who assure me that skin color allowed my family and I to flourish today”
White Privilege Essay
102 Words | 1 PagesI 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
White Privilege In The Burning Times
1040 Words | 5 PagesIt might not be seen but still operating. White privilege, is often rendered invisible but is one of the most common forms of racism and racialism. Most successful businesses and companies are often (96%) run by men (Power, SWLF-3446-FA501_2015 (Women and Social Welfare ( BRACE )), 2015). After analyzing Peggy McIntosh’s “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack,” I realize how many of these quotes and statements that I did not realize as a white female I either felt or was surprised people have to deal with. For example “I can chose blemish cover or bandages in flesh color that more or less matches my skin.”
Personal Narrative: White Privilege In Society
420 Words | 2 PagesWhite privilege is defined as “…………..” After reading this and comparing it to my life and experiences I can recognize the resemblance. As a white person in my society, I hold copious privileges and forms of power that I have not earned, but has been handed. Although, I cannot speak for my entire race when I state this, I believe that any Caucasian person living in Canada, who would be willing to take the time to stop and think about their lives, would realize that they hold power over other racial minorities. This power is acquired solely due to the fact that they have a different colour of skin.
White Privilege Research Paper
1422 Words | 6 PagesWhite Privilege: Essay 1 White privilege is a systemic issue that has roots in our history as far back as the creators of our country. Searching back, we see our norms and values created into habits that have been woven into how we view and act around specific groups such as African Americans. This essay is going to explain how the average Caucasian individual experiences white privilege on a day to day basis and the solutions to insure that white privilege will stop and true equality can be handed out. This paper views the latter issues through symbolic interactionism, with supporting sub theories such as; labeling theory, looking glass self, and selective perception.
White Privilege In American History
675 Words | 3 PagesOver the past decade the term white privilege has emerged in our American history. White privilege is the concept that one particular group is benefited which is typically identified as white people. Most of the victims experiencing harsh conditions are non-white people under the same social, political, or economic circumstances of mistreatment. A conversation took place with a few people about white privilege whose race is identified as white. An interviewer started that “the belief that being white comes with unearned advantages and everyday perks”.
An Analysis Of Black Privilege In The Breakfast Club
815 Words | 4 PagesNew York, New York - Who ever said; "When Opportunity knocks, open the door?" Whomever uttered that statement should be shot and gagged. That's the problem we face in this egotistical society! Opportunity is a fundamental gift that reserves itself for those who take and embrace a situation by exherating effort to make it happen. Charlamagne Tha God, the co-host of Power 105.1's The Breakfast Club explains in his new book Black Privilege: Opportunity Comes to Those Who Create It, how embracing one's truths is the fundamental key to success and happiness.
Critical Whiteness Studies
765 Words | 4 PagesCritical Whiteness Studies responds to the invisible and normative nature of whiteness in predominantly white societies, criticizing racial and ethnic attribution of non-white subjects who have to grapple with their deviation from the set norm, and opening the discussion on white privilege that results from being the unmarked norm (Kerner: 278). As Conway and Steyn elaborate, Critical Whiteness Studies aims to “redirect[...] the scholarly gaze from the margins to the centre” (283) and, more specifically, to interrogat[e][...] the centre of power and privilege from which racialization emanates but which operates more or less invisibly as it constructs itself as both the norm and ideal of what it means to be human. (ibid.) Thus, Critical Whiteness
Privilege, Oppression And Difference By Allan Johnson: Chapter Analysis
422 Words | 2 PagesIn 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.
Essay On Invisibility Of Whiteness
1788 Words | 8 PagesPeople 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.
Structural Discrimination In The Social Norm Analysis
1164 Words | 5 PagesAverage people in everyday life unintentionally and harmlessly showcase behavior for instance unconsciously pay less attention while listen to people from a lower group of the society. The infrastructure in the metaphor can be compared to informal social codes, misleading representation in the news from certain groups, popular culture, and residential segregation (Brax, 2014). Therefore, critical whiteness may play an important role in making these unaware patterns of behavior that result in discrimination by those people who are
Understanding White Privilege Reflection
1432 Words | 6 PagesIn the article, Understanding White Privilege, by Francis Kendall, two comments that stand out as related to this are; “Most of us go through our days unaware that we are white or that it matters.” (Kendall, 2) “We participate, intentionally or not, in the purposeful construction of a system that deflates the value of one people’s culture while inflating the value of another’s.” (Kendall, 3) When I observe the terrible state of the world most of this is due to the dominant culture, capitalist culture, the Business as Usual, largely white-centric culture that is rapidly taking over the whole planet. Many of the healing systems and cultures that for centuries lived in harmony with the earth are being oppressed and eliminated. Learning to listen and provide space for the voices of these other cultures to be heard and acknowledged is extremely important at this time.
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