© Copyright 2001 Jack C. Straton
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“White” Privilege
Victor Lewis, an African-American, says in the video The Color of
Fear, “I don’t need the help of white folks as much as I
need a sense of fairness, and an awareness about the invisible protection
and invisible privilege that you have.”
That invisible privilege and protection manifests in various and numerous
ways, but in essence is the unearned privilege of living one’s
life totally free of the racially-based daily indignities. In preparation
for asking students in his class to brainstorm a list of white privileges,
I set myself this same task prior to reviewing Peggy McIntosh’s
list that he had read many years earlier. It is, interestingly, a
significantly different and complimentary list:
• People assume that “normal people” (that is, European-Americans)
are generally intelligent. It is therefore not remarkable for them
to succeed, with sufficient training, at biology, engineering or any
other field of endeavor of their choosing. As a European-American,
therefore, if I was not chosen to play quarterback on my high-school
football team, I did not have to wonder about whether this decision
was based on the assumption that “whites” are not intelligent
enough to call plays. (Most European-Americans have absolutely no
idea how very painful the badge of intellectual inferiority is for
many people-of-color and for African-Americans, specifically.)
• If I am a public figure, I will not have to think about whether
I will be labeled a “militant” because my speaking style
is too strident.
• As a European-American, my perceived sense of safety is not
undermined by an ongoing series of newspaper headlines detailing horrific
crimes against “whites” at the hands of people-of-color.
Most importantly, my actual safety is not usually not compromised
by a person-of-color.
• I have the tremendous privilege of seeing police officers as
my friends. I don’t have to wonder whether the officer who stops
me is a member of one of the many brotherhoods devoted to extinguishing
the “white” race.
• If my children act out in a public place, I can safely assume
that neither their behavior nor my response to it will be attributed
to our skin color.
• If I am occasionally in a bad mood, I don’t have to worry
that if I let it show at work I will thereby undermine the public
image of “whites.”
• If I am poor, laziness would probably not be the first thing
to which this is attributed.
• I have the privilege of sharing group membership with those
who occupy the White House, most of the Supreme Court, both houses
of Congress, state legislatures, and CEOs and boards of directors
of major corporations. In other words, the people who run the country,
the people in charge, look like me. Most European-Americans are totally
oblivious to the unconscious feeling of powerfulness that that reality
gives them.
• I don’t have to tell my teenage son that he cannot “hang
out” in public with his friends because if an African-American
commits a robbery within 10 miles of his location, a passing police
officer may stop, search, harass and possibly beat and arrest him
for that crime. Likewise, “white” men have the privilege
of not being stopped, searched and harassed by police simply because
a “white man” was seen committing a robbery in the neighborhood.
• I may have to care for my daughter’s skinned knee and
her rejection from the in-group, but I don’t have to talk with
her about why strangers look at her with sternly and coldly and may
be rude to her.
• If I have heart problems, my doctor is far more likely to recommend
sophisticated cardiac tests for me than if I were a man-of-color.
• If I return clothes without a receipt, the clerk will unhesitatingly
give me an in-store credit and will certainly not feel through the
clothes looking for anti-theft devices . On a daily basis, European-Americans
have the privilege of walking through all types of retail establishments
without having clerks follow us around because of a stereotype that
“whites steal.”
• I can choose to not be sensitive to the racially offensive
behavior of people around me in public places when I am with my European-American
friends, unlike when I’m with, for example, my Latin-American
friends. (Having people-of-color as close friends is often a very
powerful experience for European-Americans that opens their eyes to
the harsh, persistent reality of the daily indignities of people-of-color.)
Given more than the hour this list took to create, I could have gone
on and on. But the point is abundantly clear: “White” privilege
is a reality. Yet so many European-Americans feel powerless and unprivileged
in our lives. For instance, at work we may feel like drones toiling
for the boss. It is important, however, that we remember that it is
not as whites that we are oppressed by our bosses, rather, it is through
the hierarchy of class. Imagine experiencing that classism in addition
to racism!
Male Privilege
Likewise, men are not aware of our privilege. We do not see that
others assume that we could succeed in engineering or math as a major.
If I decide to go into medicine, I will never be referred to as a
Lordy Doctor. If I become a lawyer, I will not have to think about
whenther my cloths make me look like a strident cur-dog or a simpering
pushover when I stand before a judge.
•When I say something in a mixed-gender group, I can expect
that it will be heard, even if it is rejected. I never have to listen
to the four members of the other gender use up as much speaking time
as the thirty members of my gender. When I put forth an idea in a
busness setting, I can assume that I will be credited with that idea
if the company adopts it.
•If I testify before a legislative body, my gender will be well
represented. I have the privilege of having the Supreme Court mostly
made up of people who look like me. Boards of corporations will certainly
take any male perspectives into account when making their decisions.
•If I am seeking custody of my children, the fact that I am
employed will not be used to show that I will neglect my children,
or the fact that I am a stay-at-home father will not be used to show
that I will not be able to provide for my children. If I try to protect
my interests at work, I know that I will not be referred to as an
infibrulating cur-dog. Confidence in my ability to make rational decisions
will not be undermined if I ocassionally am in a bad mood.
•I could go on, but you get the point. And if you think about
it, I would bet that these examples of male privilege have been invisible
to people of both genders in the room.
Yet so many men feel powerless in our lives. For instance, at work
we may feel like drones toiling for the boss. But let us remember
that it is not as men that we are oppressed by our boss, it is through
the hierarchy of class. What I have found as I have begun to actively
work for justice is that I have power to change society for the good.
In Zen circles they say that upon realizing our enlightenment we discover
that we were always enlightened. In just this way, as we find the
power to do good, we find that we have always had the power to withhold
our good works on behalf of others. Let us unlearn our world view
that scarcity is the rule, so that we fear to lose what we have to
lose, and embrace a world of plenty where we actively giving what
we have to give.
Other Privileges
Portland women's advocate Tess Wiseheart notes that one of the privileges
those in power have is the power to name.
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