The Pros And Cons Of White Privilege

The biggest problem with white privilege is the lack of acknowledgment. The inability to recognize that many of the advantages white hold are disadvantages of other people (“what is white privilege” 2) White privilege is something every white person has. White privilege is advantages white people benefit from on a daily basis. You cannot physically see white privilege, therefore some deny the fact that it even exists. There is no denying that if you are white you will always have more advantages than a person of color. If you are closed minded you may not see what white privilege is or that it even exists. People act as if people of color hyperbole, however, they never go through what they have to experience. We all have different views on
everything but you need to be willing to see how other people see things.
White privilege is being able to walk down the street and not being perceived as a “thug” or having a better opportunity getting into a job because you are white or your name is not “ghetto” sounding. When going to a hotel they have little shampoo and conditioners for white people and not people of ethnicity. If you have white privilege you will never have to be told to just “get over slavery”. You do not have to worry about getting shot because of the color of your skin. Young black men/boys are 21 times more likely to get shot than white men/boy. Blacks were killed at a rate of 31.17per million while just 1.47 per million died by the hands of police(Gabrielson, Jones, Sagara 2)

When I had asked a friend if he thought white privilege is real he said “white privilege is a real thing and those who deny that it is real are the ones that have white privilege”.
I also asked him if he thought people of color make a tremendous deal out of it and his response was “they have the right to make a big deal”. I asked my brother the same type of questions he responded with “ maybe white privilege does exist, but people of color have privileges/advantages too”. While that might be true for the reason that more diversity is needed in jobs, schools, and whatever else that they need people of color so it is more diverse. Which is unfortunate that they have to be told to hire a certain amount of people with color because they do not already do so. Some people think that people of color have these advantages but if we took all the advantages white people had and were to ask to trade with the “advantages” people of color have would they take that offer? Would they want to give up everything they benefit from frequently for the very litttle advantages people of color
experience.
People of color are not trying to bewail and make it seem like they are always repining about something, but they need to know their voices will be heard and to know that their pain is valid therefore they want people to acknowledge that because of their skin color they have more advantages or leeway.
Those who are blind and do not recognize they have it are the ones who benefit from it the most(“what is white privilege” 2). People of color go through things that no human being should have to experience and it is all because of their skin color. If you have the freedom to fight racism one day and ignore it the next is then you have white privilege. People of color cannot just ignore what happens to them every day. They will not let someone’s bigotry stop them from saying the
truth.
In Jamaica people of color there bleach their skin. Skin lightening or bleaching of skin is when they use products that draw the melanin from the skin and therefore lighten it. Black people are judged by the color of their skin and black is stigmatized as ugly(the promotion of skin bleaching products in Jamaica 7). In Jamaica, to bleach is sought out to be beautiful and give you more of a social advantage. Most people believe that if they have a lighter skin color they will have a better chance at getting a job or help them look “sexier” and that is why some of them bleach.