What is white privilege? White privilege is a set of advantages and/or immunities that white people benefit from on a daily basis beyond those common to all others. White privilege can exist without white peoples conscious knowledge of its presence and it helps to maintain the racial hierarchy in this country. The biggest problem with white privilege is the invisibility it maintains to those who benefit from it most. The inability to recognize that many of the advantages whites hold are a direct result of the disadvantages of other people, contributes to the unwillingness of white people, even those who are not overtly racist, to recognize their part in maintaining and benefiting from white supremacy. White privilege is about not having to worry about being followed in a department store while shopping. Its about thinking that your clothes, manner of speech, and behavior in general, are racially neutral, when, in fact, they are white. Its seeing your image on television daily and knowing that youre being represented. Its people assuming that you lead a constructive life free from crime and off welfare. Its about not having to assume your daily interactions with people have racial overtones. White privilege is having the freedom and luxury to fight racism one day and ignore it the next. White privilege exists on an individual, cultural, and institutional level. Being white means never having to think about it. -James Baldwin
Posted on: Fri, 28 Nov 2014 04:36:05 +0000
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