The article explains how the U.S. is is messed up because one group "whites" have most of the power which in turn gives more privilege. From a white persons point of view, it gives examples of how white privilege takes…
majority of whites seem to deny that the privilege even exists at all. The denial of its…
“Taking Back the Center” by Grillo and Wildman, points out the natural advantages of white dominant society. “The white, male, heterosexual societal norm is privileged in such a way that its privilege is rendered invisible”. (Grillo 337) Since, whiteness is accepted as the norm or privileged group, problems of minority groups are ignored and push to the backburner. Those in the dominant priviledged group get to enjoy the many benefits such as having their voices heard in society. On the other hand, minority groups in U.S society are deprived of the opportunity to let their problems be known to society.…
Many people could say that 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, but there is always two sides to every story. That other side conflicts with that and say white Americans worked hard to get to where they are in life and it had nothing to do with privilege. 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 importance only when different importance are given to…
Immigrants are the least appreciated in this country, which is the most ironic thing considering that this country is only really made up of immigrants. Having blond hair and blue eyes doesn’t mean anything, because European settlers came from Europe, not America. The only real people that belong in america are the native indigenous people of the americas. Yet, that’s what immigrants have to be to be accepted into a world where these traits are so valued, a common norm, as if the world revolved around them,to simply try to be “white” in a place that isn’t even white to begin with. The fear that runs in the blood of immigrants comes from the fear that they not only will be ridiculed but will be killed for being who they are. The tone an immigrant mother makes to warn her children that different is unacceptable, that your culture should be kept but not “overdone.” Your language is to be spoken but only in certain situations, and in front of other people, it will be seen as rude. It’s baffling to only hear that the people who only come here to be better people and find better opportunities are only dismissed as scum and no better than the rich privileged people we call the face of our country. Times have changed, The United States isn’t as racist, but that doesn’t make it any better if you’ve been keeping up with politics or…
The article “Understanding Whiteness,” conveys the understanding of white privilege and advantages that are commonly experienced. American culture allows those who are white the privilege of not thinking about race in most situations or gatherings they encounter, as they are the majority. It is much easier to see the advantages of being White, when you are the minority or a person of color consistently regulated by white middle class…
White privilege is no secret to the people of America. Even today there are people who have an attitude of condescension. Dr. King confronts white privilege in the passage as he states “...the fact that privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily.” Whites had advantages and a more fulfilling life than Blacks. Why would they want to give up their feeling of superiority? There are individuals who see the morality and right of being equal. Whereas the overall group “are more immoral than individuals.” Whites ignored…
Discrimination is widely demonstrated in this well-written article. “Affirmative action for whites was the essence of the 1790 Naturalization Act, which allowed virtually any European immigrant to become a full citizen, even while blacks, Asians and American Indians could not… racially restrictive housing policies helped 15 million white families procure homes with FHA loans from the 1930s to the '60s, while people of color were mostly excluded from the same programs (Wise, 2003, para. 4-6). Clearly, people of color were discriminated against when it came to becoming a citizen and securing a home for their families. Also, it is demonstrated, inadvertently, through the point system of Michigan University.…
History has never been one of my favorite subjects; however this class has sparked a new interest in me in regards to my culture and how that culture came to be. This Cultural Diversity course has made me pay more attention to the people around me. I think this awareness has helped me relate to and also understand people in a way that I never have before. The one thing that totally surprised me was finding out that white privilege was something real. I thought that this was an ill feeling and belief that mostly Black people had in regards to the White race. White people, in my mind, had it all; they had certain advantages simply because they were White. The White Privilege section in Chapter 13 of Racial Ethnic Groups states a few of those advantages. I knew that being considered financially reliable, having the ability of articulation, and seeing people of the same race being represented in popular media were common advantages of the White race. Consequently, I thought they saw themselves as privileged and were proud about it. The information from this course that will be the most memorable is that, in general, the people from the White race do not see themselves as have any ethnicity. They feel as though they have been separated from their European roots; they are simply Caucasian. They are also victims of reverse discrimination; I almost laughed the first time I read this in the text. Now, I know that this is a laughing matter. I have seen evidence of this in my life. I asked 50 of my neighbors a yes or no question. This question was: “Do you believe that most Black people would label a random White person they see on the street as a racist?” Out of the 50 people, of evenly varied ethnicities, 41 of them replied with a yes. These results are a relevant example of how much diversity affects the person, currently and throughout history.…
White privilege is a way of conceptualizing racial inequalities that focuses as much on the advantages that white people accrue from society as on the disadvantages that people of colour experience. This privilege is shown when a certain group of people aren’t allowed in this area or men are only approved in this club. Blatant exercise of perivalage definitely exists, but not in the way most people think. It is only the very top of the iceberg (Rothenberg, 2012, p. 110). Everyone is measured against whether they succeed or fail. This is the norm and anyone who isn’t the norm is an alternative (Rothenberg, 2012, p. 111).…
White privilege is when individuals who are born with White skin are awarded unearned social benefits, assets, protections, and advantages over people of color strictly because of their skin color (McIntosh 1998; Crosley-Corcoran 2014). For instance, White people do not have to warn their children about systematic racism that still exists in today’s society and how to manage their lives in order to protect themselves from it (McIntosh 1998). While some White people may be disadvantaged due to other social statuses they hold, they still profit from having White skin whether or not they recognize it (Crosley-Corcoran 2014). As an example, poor White people still tend to have better access to social institutions than people of color (Guillén…
Imagine two job applications came across your desk; one belongs to a Caucasian female and the other belongs to an African-American female. Which one would you choose? The African-American female who has experience in your specific work field or the Caucasian female who graduated from a good school and received a Merit scholarship for college? Would you look at their individual background or their individual skin color? A lot of businesses tend to choose the Caucasian woman. In today’s society, no matter where you go, there will be white privilege. White privilege is an advantage that white people have over non-whites and it is manifested by preferential treatment. By analyzing Difference Matters by Brenda Allen, White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack by Peggy McIntosh and Jennifer Pozner’s article in Barclay Barrios’ Emerging, we can understand white privilege as an rarely talked about concept but certainly can be recognized when people of other races are treated less fairly as if they are below white people.…
It would be hard for any person to imagine establishing a life somewhere, only to have everything pulled out from underneath them. Imagining this situation is hard, but the reality is, in the United States, this is happening to families of immigrants without official paper work. In the United States, it is possible for undocumented immigrants to go unnoticed, but it is not unexpected for people and their families to be deported. Moreover, it is not unexpected because these families are breaking the laws of the United States. Although they are breaking the law by being undocumented in the US, the family has done nothing else wrong and has built a great life. Since these people are positive members of society, it raises the question if the US Government is morally right for deporting families without official documentation. Every person has his/her own views if the government was…
One of the parts of this article that caught my eye and made me think a bit was the list of 26 white privileges that McIntosh wrote about in her article. This list was very eye opening and made me think what I could put towards myself on this list. Even though I was born in a little different time that McIntosh was I was relatively aware that as a white male I was born with a number of privileges that came with not only the color of my skin but also by my gender, however this list did make me realize and understand some of the advantages of my skin that I often times look over. A good example that I could use before, I can’t say it is so easy now, is number 17 I can criticize our government and talk about how much I fear its policies and behavior without being seen as a cultural outsider. Before the election of Obama I could easily criticize my government and no one would really give me a second look about it, but I do have to say that now if I criticize my government I get called a racist, so now I kind of see better how those of a different race felt when they criticized our government and got called out about it.…
The world always been an unequal place. Today, people are treated for not who they are, but for their religious background, race, gender and financial status. Inequality in the United States of America is present in a highest level. America is a country that reunites all seven continents in itself, moreover, it is possible to find people from various backgrounds here. However, not all of these people are treated equally. It is disappointing to see that how everyone is classified in this country. Indeed, if there is a crime the suspect must be a black male, if there is a terroristic attack or threat then the suspect is most likely to be a Muslim, if there is a robbery the suspect will be an illegal immigrant from Mexico. The root of this problem comes from the past century where people were judged by the color of their skin and this problem…