The many subtle and not-so-subtle ways I know we havent attained Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.s dream yet. These are just some of the privileges I benefit from every day. Leaving these here to remind myself to work harder to extend these privileges to everyone. 4. I can go shopping alone most of the time, pretty well assured that I will not be followed or harassed. 5. I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented. 6. When I am told about our national heritage or about “civilization,” I am shown that people of my color made it what it is. 9. I can go into a music shop and count on finding the music of my race represented, into a supermarket and find the staple foods which fit with my cultural traditions, into a hairdresser’s shop and find someone who can cut my hair. 10. Whether I use checks, credit cards, or cash, I can count on my skin color not to work against the appearance of financial reliability. 12. I can swear, or dress in second hand clothes, or not answer emails, without having people attribute these choices to the bad morals, the poverty, or the illiteracy of my race. 14. I can do well in a challenging situation without being called a credit to my race. 15. I am never asked to speak for all the people of my racial group. 16. I can remain oblivious of the language and customs of persons of color who constitute the world’s majority without feeling in my culture any penalty for such oblivion. 17. I can criticize our government and talk about how much I fear its policies and behavior without being seen as a cultural outsider. 19. If a traffic cop pulls me over or if the IRS audits my tax return, I can be sure I haven’t been singled out because of my race. 22. I can take a job with an affirmative action employer without having co-workers on the job suspect that I got it because of race. 24. I can be sure that if I need legal or medical help, my race will not work against me. 25. If my day, week, or year is going badly, I need not ask of each negative episode or situation whether it has racial overtones. From Peggy McIntosh: https://isr.umich.edu/home/diversity/resources/white-privilege.pdf
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 21:35:33 +0000