article I have gained insight into how slight actions that I wouldn’t think about result in inequality, but also how much larger and complex racism is in terms of systematic oppression. I have gained a greater awareness of my privilege and hope to always consider how my privilege affects anyone I meet.
Privilege impacts everything I do and alters the way I approach everyday situations.
My privilege is why I never think about being possibly mistreated by my provider, I do not consider avoiding receiving treatment, and I do not question if my race will affect the way people view me in every interaction I may encounter. I live life thinking I am a person, not a white person, whereas minorities always live representing their race. Furthermore, due to this privilege and lack of understanding of minorities, my patients can suffer too. A form of lack of privilege that could harm my patient is by preventing them from receiving a higher end drug as the provider assumes they can’t afford it, as mentioned in “Continuing the conversation in nursing on race and racism” (2012, p.166). This is a minor gesture that could result in a minority not receiving the best health care they could receive. Or as the article later mentions, black communities have their hospitals segregated and they are inferior compared to hospitals in white neighborhoods (2012, p.167). This is an example of systemic racism that causes the black community to suffer. The combination of microagressions and systemic racism leaves minorities with no trust in the health care
system.
There are several reasons as to why I am privileged; being white, straight, and cisgender, receiving an education, and having a stable income are all examples of why. However, the one trait that is the most impactful the fact that I am white. There are numerous benefits that I gain from being white, one of the most telling of how skewed society is, is that I am not required think about racism or privilege at all. Joanne M. Hall and Becky Fields discuss the racism in health care in their article titled, “Continuing the conversation in nursing on race and racism”, and in this article the authors state that “White people…can stay fairly distant from knowledge of the experiences of the marginalized because the majority of white peoples’ survival does not depend on it” (2012, p.165). The quote asserts the greatest privilege one can obtain, ignoring the oppression of minorities if I so choose to as it doesn’t affect the way I live my life. Meanwhile, minorities live with this knowledge and have no choice but to face it.
This memo states how my own privilege significantly impacts the way I live my life and benefits it greatly. It discusses the ways how I fit into the “normal” expectation in society puts me on a pedestal and oppresses those in my life, including patients, while also discussing how to use my privilege positively.