Black Privilege Vs White Privilege Essay

When I think about white privilege, I see it as something I must understand to truly feel a relation to my own privileges with race. “As a white person, I realized I had been taught about racism as something which puts others at a disadvantage, but had been taught not to see one of its corollary aspects, white privilege, which puts me at an advantage.” (McIntosh 1988) When comparing other privileges McIntosh sees that her life is more influenced by her skin color than class, religion, ethnic status, or geographical location. Tim Wise explains “even though there is more than one type of privilege, they can never fully eradicate white privilege.” “Understanding the persistence of privilege requires recognizing the sleight of mind that occurs on the subject of individuals as members of groups” (Wildman 2005). Early work done by African American sociologist W.E.B. DuBois (1868-1963) showed that studies with white workers over time came to see themselves as white unlike the developing working class with recently freed black slaves. DuBois was one of the first people to initiate the concept of white privilege.

Privilege is defined as “a special advantage or authority possessed by a particular person or group” in the Cambridge Dictionary. Globally, white individuals are often granted privileges than minority groups do not receive. While white privilege often goes unnoticed by white individuals, it causes many disadvantages for people of color and effects how they see themselves. Furthermore, Affirmative Action attempts to equal the playing field for minorities but is faced with contention by many white people.

Peddy McIntosh highlighted various unearned white privileges in her autobiographical article “White Privilege, Color and Crime: A Personal Account.” She illustrated the white privilege as an invisible package of unearned assets that one white person could count on cashing in each day. White people have these privileges given to them by the society in which they live in. The same society taught them to be ignorant and unawareness of these privileges. This system of unearned privileges established by white individuals made people of color feel oppressed. In this system being white is a norm and dominant power. Caucasians, who benefit most from the white privilege system in the United States, are more likely to

In the beginning of the year I entered this class with a very sheltered and ignorant view of current and past events. Through time and sociological evolution I have begun to see things in a different light. The development of my ability, to look at something or some kind of situation, lets me use the sociological terms in such a manner to relate them to micro and macro problems in society. This started with the assigned readings of the class; the aim was to decipher the messages the authors were presenting. The goal was then to dig deeper and use my experiences to help myself understand the concepts throughout the course. "The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be ignited." Plutarch (46-120 CE--common era) I was no longer

White privilege is a unique form of racism given its fascinating characteristic of not involving hostility. Therefore, it cannot be directly blamed on someone (Pludo, 2015). The lack of blame does not cause any discomfort on the white persons enjoying the privileges.

White privilege is the ability for whites to maintain an elevated status in society that masks racial inequality. It is also considered a system of advantage based on race, as well as societal privileges that benefit white people. It is usually known as the “other”, or the opposite side of discrimination. Some people in society, typically people of color, feel as though people with white skin have benefits over people of color, just because they’re white. White privilege is sometimes seen as a higher social status, having the freedom to move, buy, work, play, and speak freely as one wishes. The effects of white privilege are predominantly evident in professional and educational settings. Some critics argue that the concept of white

Privilege affects everyone, regardless of if they are affected positively or negatively. Being the majority in America, the white populations bears an automatic stamp of privilege on their foreheads, although they would care very strongly not to admit it. On the surface, privilege does not seem like such a bad thing, but when you pay attention to the differentiation of struggles between white men and everyone else in America, you can see it is a very large issue. Whether it is in the classroom, in the workforce, in real estate, or even in your own home, white privilege is affecting you. White privilege in America is counterproductive to the growth of equality in society today because it affects the quality of living and level of opportunity for the rest of the country’s inhabitants. Within all facets of life, you can find extreme examples of white privilege.

White privilege is the societal privileges that specifically benefit white people. White privilege is why white people can get pulled over by the police and escape a ticket with just a smile and apology. White privilege is also why whites are in charge of a company and they see a black person, they bypass the application. Whites carry a certain privilege not available to people of color. Marilyn Frye describes how whiteness is a form social and political power.

Male privilege enables white males to reap more advantages than white females from jobs however, white individuals still have more privilege than non-whites. It would be pleasing to see a society where skin color does not matter to anyone and it is just a skin color. Everyone would receive an equal amount of privilege, regardless of skin color. However, the idea would be difficult as it has been embedded into the society and the culture, it is typical to see white people in positions of privilege. It may even feel abnormal if it was not a white individuals who were in positions of privilege.

There are two prominent writer/scholars who have taken the issue of white privilege to heart and have shared their expert analysis on the subject; these authors/writer-scholars are Peggy McIntosh, a white feminist, and Beverly Tatum, an African American Psychologist. McIntosh, in her article "Coming to See Correspondences," makes excellent observations about the privilege that she has experienced just by being a white female in America. The two most significant points made by McIntosh

I am a white cisgendered, heterosexual male. I come from a middle to upper class family and live in a safe suburb with an excellent school system. My parents both have college degrees and raising my sister and me and providing us with all the opportunities they could provide has always been a high priority. Therefore, when I read Peggy McIntosh’s White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack in one of my freshman English classes, I could agree with the vast majority of conditions she lays out as conditions of white privilege. Additionally, my parents and many of my classmates do not quite understand why I want to pursue a career studying the stereotypes and prejudice and the answer is not simple.

White privilege is something that many people take for granted in North America, and Europe; predominantly Caucasian continents. Even though people are becoming more aware of this social advantage that a lack of melanin can bring, there are also people who still believe that they are more superior. Whether consciously, or subconsciously it happens in most places. Even in countries such as mine like Pakistan there isn’t white privilege per say, but there is pale privilege. The paler you are the more likely you are to get a good job, a good spouse, and a good life. That is just how it goes. We need this issue to become prevalent in way that white privilege will not be a thing. It will just be human privilege, so that all of us can count as one

In their article entitled White Privilege Richard and Schaefer define white privilege as a, “series of advantages that come to White Americans in their daily lives because, typically, they have been free of the labeling, stereotyping, and discrimination, past and present, that people of color experience,” (2008). One aspect of my racial privilege is that the majority of the U.S. population are Caucasian as well. Wherever I go I will most likely find systems targeted toward a white audience. Whether shopping and seeing all white manikins, hearing a song like ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ at a cookout, or standing trial, the biases towards white males ensure that I am always the one these systems were created to aid. I have successfully appealed speeding tickets that were felonious being 30+ miles per hour over the stated speed limit. Being over an hour late to my appointed court date didn’t seem to be an issue either. I can only imagine what the judge’s decision would have been if I was not white or was not wearing a nice suit gifted to me by my upper-middle class stature. At work I saw a pattern similar to those describing their experiences with community service. Danielle, one of those interviewed by Tatum in his article was, “a 21-year-old white ESL tutor,” and she, “had witnessed the unfair treatment of her clients because of their accent and nationality, as well as the significant barriers to obtaining legal citizenship,” (2000). While

Right on the first page in chapter six it discusses the privilege groups discomfort about discussing privilege. Yes, it is true for so many and for those who don’t feel discomfort, I call you brave and open minded. But, it is a hard thing to discuss especially with a non-privileged group of individuals. I, for one also feel discomfort and defensive sometimes in those situations, and that could be from a number of different reasons. Whether it is because I feel guilty, ashamed, judged, etc. For this I will talk about race, for those who are white, we are born this way, we didn’t choose to be white and there’s nothing you can do about it. You were born into the privileged group here in America. But, it is something that we need to accept and admit to, we are the privileged group but, we don’t because of this nasty stigma about race. Race has turned into this sharp word that scares people when it is mentioned. We, as educators need to change the stigma of that word. We need to make it so people of privilege and non privilege can discuss privilege and race with out discomfort or being offended. In this class, our race discussion had brought up white privilege and at first it was not comfortable but, as you admit to it, the easier it is to discuss.

My experience growing up with certain advantages because of my race, and not being forced to fight for these advantages, can be defined as white privilege. Realizing that you are privileged because of your race is unpleasant to come to terms with. The idea that ones’ sense of accomplishment in life is not completely deserved is jarring, but completely necessary to understand. In my opinion, the refusal to admit that you are privileged as a white person is racism. In Plessy v. Ferguson, the idea of whiteness as a property is brought to light. “…the white race, is ‘property,’ in the same sense that a right of action or of inheritance is property.” (Plessy v. Ferguson, p. 150). This way of thinking remains relevant