The Knee Jerk Reaction Of The World

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.

1) The article “White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack” explains that shows from a very young age, we are educated to see racism on an individual level, not only racism but oppression as well. The idea of oppression starts with the topic that women are at an disadvantage when it comes to the idea that mean are the dominant sex. The male population will always have an image that they are better than women. This ties into race because men are always in competition and we notice some men believe they're better than others due to ethnicity. McIntosh explains that white privilege using the idea of an invisible weightless knapsack. To summarize that, a white person in the United States has an invisible weightless knapsack that allows for acceptance, favors from the law, and common discrimination. This is truly an issue in the United States that should and will be addressed. We can raise awareness by simply treating everyone with the same respect, not because they share the same skin tone as you.

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

White privilege is a form of structural racism where whites are routinely advantaged while producing adverse outcomes for people of color such as Blacks and Hispanics. White privilege is a historically based system which still exists in the United States (US). In my view, white privilege system marked the beginning of racial inequality in the US. White privilege exists in the United States and is one of the contributing factors to the injustices people with color are facing in the US.

In this spellbinding lecture, the author of White Like Me: Reflections on Race from a Privileged Son offers a unique, inside-out view of race and racism in America. Expertly overcoming the defensiveness that often surrounds these issues, Wise provides a non-confrontational explanation of white privilege and the damage it does not only to people of color, but to white people as well. This is an invaluable classroom resource: an ideal introduction to the social construction of racial identities, and a critical new tool for exploring the often invoked – but seldom explained – concept of white privilege.

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

At its core, white privilege is described to be an “invisible package of unearned assets” (McIntosh, 2002, p. 33) for white people. There are many layers explaining the manifestation of white privilege and even more explanations pertaining to its dominant presence in today’s world.

Firstly, white privilege entails wide media representation, where people of colour are consistently underrepresented. Many people don’t see this as an issue at all, but it is necessary

“White privilege refers to the fact that in many societies, “white” people have access to greater power, authority, and privileges, than non-white people” (Robbins et al. 2013:81). It goes beyond letting white people get away with more than other races; it also discriminates against them. This is well illustrated by the history of white privilege in America and how it changed over time (Nkomo & Ariss 2013) and how white privilege is used to benefit white people (Blum n.d). Without white privilege, people would be equal and perhaps live in a more peaceful society. Therefore, if white privilege has been around for years and continues to be an issue in America and all around the world, than without educating the population and making them aware of the issue it will continue to happen.

White privilege embraces the behaviours, values, beliefs and practices of the dominant white culture (Puzan, 2003). There are often unnoticed advantages

Economic benefits are at the center of white privilege. Dating back to slavery, the majority of labor was provided by African Americans from which both the North and the South benefited and is one of the founding source of economy. Yet, African Americans and other minorities still struggle to get their slice of the American pie. Poor and working class whites strongly object to the idea of white privilege, stating or pointing out what they consider the obvious, that not every white person has wealth and power. Other benefits enjoyed by white people, including one which W. E. B. DuBois called the "psychological wages of whiteness." (Williams, 2004) This refers to that age old membership in the privileged group, even for whites on the bottom rung, confers a social status and recognition which is denied to all but the most powerful members of oppressed groups. The history of racial oppression in American is not disputed. However, what is disputed is whether and to what extent, four hundred years of oppression continues to harm African Americans and other minorities and their life chances unjustly. Looking at the way benefits and damages are allocated in the U.S., for example wealth, income, equality of our court system, treatment from the police, access to colleges and universities we see white privilege. As a group, white people have more income, wealth, political representation, status, power, and social reinforces of their human dignity and self respect than any group in

White privilege is a term for societal privileges that benefit white people in western countries beyond what is commonly experienced by the non-white people under the same social, political, or economic circumstances. For example, “white” history is taught as a core curriculum class whereas “minority” history is taught as an elective or when white people do not have to go through their entire day wondering if the negative situations that happen throughout the 24-hour span have racially charged undertones. White privilege can sometimes become an issue because white people may automatically assume that “privilege” equates to being wealthy which is not the case. Having white privilege simply equates to not having to undergo the various issues that people of color (POC) face. It is not necessarily a negative thing because one cannot help the skin they are born into but it is the person’s fault if they choose to consistently

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.

This article was written by Peggy McIntosh. She talks about how white privilege is often times overlooked and not recognized by whites themselves. We take the privileges we get for granted and most times don’t realize that a lot of the things we are able to do aren’t just handed to other people, especially people of color. This article also explains that these privileges can sometimes have a positive effect or a negative one. McIntosh explains how now that we can recognize what white privilege is, we can try to spread the positive types of advantages and work to get rid of the negative ones.

Educating white children on white privilege is not as straightforward as it may seem. One study in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology suggests that when presented with evidence of white privilege, white people actually respond with denial on the basis of personal hardships (Phillips, Lowry 12-18). The study also stated that understanding privilege, “requires a comparison to someone of another group membership with the same life circumstances” (Phillips, Lowry 12-18). If white children feel that