The Privilege Of 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.

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 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.

This issue of racism is popular by name but tends to be sugar coated by the way people see it. In order to truly understand racism you need to take a bite into the topic in order to get a taste of what it is really like. Racism comes in many different forms and can be seen many different ways. But why even care about racism at all? Why does it even matter? One would think that with such a harsh background regarding racism in America it would no longer exist in society today. But sadly that is not the case here, racism continues to show up all over the country sometimes being worse than others but still racism is racism. People should all be considered equal regardless of what they look like, talk like, or even do that makes them who they are.

Racism seems to be a common topic this century, almost letting us know, it’s not

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

The education system is notorious for teaching its own agenda, and not necessarily all the facts of a situation. For many years, the education system on all levels has been teaching students what it means to have privilege, and how life would be if they did not. Usually, the white students are the subject of privilege, and the minority student are the subject of life with racism, and without privilege. White privilege has been an underlying lesson to students for generations, and contributes to the power and superiority white people feel over everyone else. When the Michael Brown shooting occurred, it opened up many people’s eyes to the inequalities that are being perpetrated by the very education system meant to teach students how to live

Many white Americans are living with the fear that they didn't really deserve their success, and that maybe luck and privilege had more to do with it, than brains and hard work. There are numerous reasons for the widespread discrimination at all levels, but the main reason for the existence of discrimination is a privilege to certain groups of people, and widespread social prejudice towards certain groups of people. Differences between people have always existed, but they gain in importance only when are different importance given to certain differences, so it creates privileges. People who are privileged in one society are often not aware of their privilege. It is very easy to be oblivious to the privilege. The problem of discrimination

White privilege is defined, according to Emba, as the “the social advantage that comes from being seen as the norm in the United States, automatically conferred irrespective of wealth, gender or other factors.” Because it is an inherited membership, most of the people in this group do not understand the

What is privilege? What does it mean? Is privilege inherited or is it earned? As an American resident of color I’ve learned that privilege in this country is something that is innate and inherited. The privilege that I speak of is that of White privilege.

Our country was founded on the notion that “all men are created equal,” while this concept is an integral part of America’s Declaration of Independence, the fundamental idea has never genuinely been practiced. Our country established a white supremacy culture in its founding days, and has accepted the concept since. White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of all other races. Although there have been valiant efforts, the inequality of the races has never been truly rectified. People are not born practicing white privilege. White privilege is taught, and learned. America’s school system, media, and culture are driving factors that lead white privilege to be a custom within society today.

The power of white privilege is something that quite frankly isn’t talked about enough but as a society many people believe that racism doesn’t exist. However, there is this unspoken advantage that whites are given called privilege, which is something that gives them a step ahead in society. Tim Wise talks about it in the video using specific examples to back up his point that white privilege is so prevalent and how others don’t even recognize that it is a serious issue. A study that was done in 2006, showed that out of 100 white people that were asked only 6% of those people thought that racial discrimination still existed in society. He also went on to mention that 2/3 of the white people who were alive during the civil right movement

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.

The book, Privilege, Power, and Difference brought awareness to where I stand as a Latina female in the United States. Growing up, I did not like to focus on the differences I experienced or saw others experience. These differences made me feel angry, scared, nervous, confused, and hopeless. Instead of focusing on the unfairness I was a part of I decided to look at it as a challenge, I would prove to myself that I could do whatever I set my mind to. I took every opportunity handed to me and tried to make the best of it, to make myself proud and my family proud. At least that is what I thought at the time, but now that I have had time to reflect on my desire to succeed I know that part of that desire comes from proving to the dominant culture that minorities can succeed.