...the USF check your privilege campaign posters, I couldn't help but to analyze myself, and the privileges that my race, religion, or gender denies and grants me. From a strangers perspective, if it were their first time seeing me, and was later asked to identify me, the basics would be that I was a young African American woman, tall, kinky hair, and thin. If this person happened to be reading off my description to the lead editor of a new magazine company, I'm sure their vision of me might not be the "look" that they were searching for, however upon meeting me, I happen to rise above the quality of skill they're seeking to hire. By looking through the campaign posters, I learned that in-fact my identity as an African American woman defiantly grants and denies me of power and privilege. from when I was a child until now....
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...When I hear the word privilege it could mean many different things. Most people think of America as a whole, but on the other hand others think of the rich class in general. “Privilege is the sociological concept that some groups of people have advantages relative to other groups. The term is commonly used in the context of social inequality, particularly with regards to social class, race, age, sexual orientation, gender, and disability.” When some think of privilege many refer to social class, like they kind of life you live. Many think that privilege means one is a rich kid who always get their way. If you really think about it the concept of privilege dates back to the early 1900’s when the American sociologist did not think much about the African Americans nor about the effects of racial discrimination....
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...white privilege, for centuries has been ignored as a potential area of study because it has been widely accepted as the societal norm. Many whites have benefited socially, economically and politically without understanding that most of the privileges they have historically received are solely due to their race and/or gender. The purpose of this review is to analyze the social construction of whiteness from a theoretical perspective, whites understanding themselves and their social status, in addition to the evolution of whiteness. Many studies have been undertaken on the social construction of whiteness. These studies shed a lot of light on the different perceptions on whiteness, gaps in research, areas of highest research interest, strengths and weaknesses of the various methodologies, and direction for future studies. In the study done by Hartmann, Gerteis, and Croll, the focus was on the theoretical aspects of whiteness studies. The findings led the researchers to estimate that in the United States, 15% of the population exhibit what may be called ‘categorical whiteness’ (404). The study by Hartmann, et.al, was carried out using data obtained during a recent national survey, which helped provide an empirical assessment of the theoretical underpinnings of whiteness studies (Hartmann, et.al 404). Three propositions regarding the awareness and conception of whites about their own racial status were analyzed. The propositions included: the understanding of racial privileges, the...
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...The identity of a person must be developed within oneself while acknowledging the external pressures that attempt to force the definition of individual character and purpose. Whiteness has been taught to be the norm, a standard of American lifestyle, while being invisible to those who possess the privileges and benefits of meeting its requirements. Communication must be done with a level sense of purpose and reason; conversely, the mindset of Blacks and Whites is not necessarily “Black and White”. a) In Peggy McIntosh’s work “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack”, she emphasizes the effort Whites must take to simply comprehend and acknowledge that their lives, in general, are not the same as those of color. (McIntosh, YEAR???) The article continues to express White privilege as a force of supremacy and dominance that is underlined by a large array of benefits and favors packaged together in an “invisible knapsack”. Much like male privilege, rather than release some of the power of being White, the actions taken are often to raise the glass ceiling of non-Whites to a higher level. What this does, consequently, is maintain the White superiority and...
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...As a white, middle-class young adult, social identities and understanding how they shape my life is an ongoing journey deeply influenced by the difficult framework of social justice. In this essay, I will explore two social identities to which I belong, my racial identity as a white person and my economic identity as a member of the middle class. Through examining these identities, I aim to explain how privilege and oppression intersect to shape my perspectives, values, expectations, and beliefs. First, my racial identity as a white person gave me many privileges I didn't realize.. Growing up in a predominantly white community, I was shielded from many of the harsh realities of racial inequality. My family and peers instilled in me the idea...
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...White privilege is not something that white people necessarily do, create or enjoy on purpose but it’s a transparent preference for whiteness that saturates our society. It serves several functions. First, it provides white people with “perks” that we do not earn and that people of color do not enjoy. Second, it creates real advantage for them. There is white privilege on Purdue’s campus. Just recently, Mitch Daniels was caught speeding. He was going at approximately 42 miles per hour in a 20mph zone (Paul 2015). About thirteen seconds into the conversation, the officer, in spite of the obvious infraction communicates to Daniel that she’s going to let him go. What we witness here is the disarming power of white and privilege. It’s almost as...
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... There are numerous techniques that the Information Technology industry can use in order to substantiate an entities identity, have the ability to authenticate that entity and provide the appropriate authorization for that entity to have access to a networks resource. There are many diverse techniques that are obtainable to accomplish this task. First of all we need to define what authentication accurately is. Authentication is the ability to verify the identity of a user or a computer system on a computer network. (Barker, 2013) There are many forms or variations that authentication can manifest itself depending on the requirements as outlined in the Security Policy published by the business. Most commonly these would include one, two, or three factor configurations to verify the identity of the person requesting access to a resource. If everything associated with the authentication factors are valid and correct for the claimed identity, it is then assumed that the accessing person is who they claim to be. (Stewart, 2011) Some of the most common authentication factors would be something you know such as a password, something you have such as a smart card, and something you are such as a fingerprint. Identification is the act of claiming an identity using just one authentication factor and authentication is the act of proving a claimed identity using one or more authentication factors. Identification in its simplest form can be related to the requestor of a resource...
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...An individual's identity is formulated both by how they perceive themselves as well as how others perceive them. The individual's perception of themselves becomes determined by society when they allow how they perceive themselves to be dictated by how others perceive them. To identify and belong to a certain group is a universal human desire and is the fundamental purpose of our social existence. Often times an individual allows society to form their identity in order to gain acceptance and a sense of belonging to the group by abiding by the values and standards of society. Social psychologist Arie Nadler suggests that the 'building block of our sense of self are the groups to which we belong'. This need for acceptance becomes detrimental to the individual when the...
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...faculty member claim that “white privilege” exists. To see my own university espousing this unfounded belief to each new individual coming to campus is quite sickening. This racist idea is shoved down the throats of every new student by far-left administrators as fact despite there being not even a shred of truth to this abhorrent lie. It should be quite obvious that generalizing all people of a specific race as privileged simply for being a member of that race is racist. Now this is not to say that white people on average are not more privileged than members on average of some minority groups; however, to say that being white itself is a privilege is utterly absurd....
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...The relationship between racism and white privilege is obvious in their individual definitions alone. Racism is the belief that all members of a certain race possess characteristics specific to that race, and as such, distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races. (4) The white privilege system maintains this racial dominance through a series of beliefs, behaviours, policies and use of language. (12) It is a particular set of advantages, often invisible to those who benefit from it the most, and these advantages that white people hold are a direct result of the disadvantages of other people. “We have a racist society without acknowledging any actual racists” (Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, 2010). Initially, the word ‘race’ sparks...
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...Privilege, Power, and Oppression Name Institution Privilege, Power, and Oppression I am not merely an individual; I am a product of a system of privilege. This is Tim Wise's position about how the community participates in constructing an individual. His primary concern is social privilege. Maybe the privilege never favored him, and privilege made him work hard. The system of privilege shaped the direction of his life. The hardships caused by lack of privilege and the real life brought by privilege is his construction: a product of the system of privilege. He is conscious about the power and legacy of privilege in the society (Tisdell, 1993). He says that Politicians often talk about issues like housing, poverty, healthcare and education, but they rarely link them to the role that racism plays in the United States. He adds that the media often reports personal crimes while under-reporting organized and traditional discrimination. In the country, Black and Latino males are most prospective to have their cars stopped and searched for drugs. Tim’s argument regarding the color-blind perspective relates completely to the issue of the privilege system. In the system, color-blindness is treated like an inability. Talking about the realities race, oppression and white privilege make people uncomfortable. There are races that feel superior and their position oppresses the minorities. Institutional privilege and inequality exist in every society, including...
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...measurable improvement is frequently viewed as a classroom failure. For example, as we have discussed in class, interpretations of a text that deviate from the “authoritative” interpretation are considered failed attempts even though reader response theory sustains that students read texts against their L1-mediated life experiences. It would seem that some sort of conflict between what is expected and what the learner brings to the table is a site for learning. Therefore, teacher emphasis on language as a tool to mediate an “identity crisis” may actually discourage students from identifying with the target language. The teacher is in danger of providing an “identity solution” of accommodation or acculturation (Lu 1992). Since to some extent the goal of reading and writing classrooms is have students actively redefine their identity position both as a learner and as a person in the world through critical reading, teachers must be wary of prescribing L2 identity categories for students in the process. Borrowing from Lu (1992), perhaps a way forward is to view conflict as the new status quo, where writing is a sort of coping process to be able to understand the agency of the self to adopt, restrain, and transform different discourses within a given discourse community. I...
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...The main things that shaped my thinking in regards to “person” it would consist of three main structures of thinking my biological make-up, cultural identity and soci-cultural factors. With these three main or morally important structures, is what determines the person’s characteristics, ethical attributes, physical and health status, race and gender, religion, citizen and social economics status, education and etc. With these three categories we focus on what builds that person rather than judging there skin tone. What define me; Jodi-Ann Lawrence as a person how does my biological make-up, cultural identity and soci-cultural factors disguises me from the human race. By using the three main structure mention above; biological make-up, cultural identity and soci-cultural factors you would get to know the foundation that makes up the person of Jodi-Ann Lawrence; the norm of society would look at me as a “nigger”(black) based on my skin complexion, rather than judge me on the three structures that up a person . The Biological Make-up When you look at me the first thing you see my skin color, black, my nappy think hair, a thick woman (fat), however, this doesn’t define me. There are many layers to me. I am the first born child, to my mother and last born to my father; as well as the only girl and the only child between my parents. On the other hand, I have two half-brothers one older than the other younger. According to American Dietary and Nutrition Association, I’m considered...
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...the Merriam-Webster dictionary the word identity means “who someone is; the qualities, beliefs, etc., that make a particular person or group different from others”. To me, social location is much like someone’s identity, it defines who a person is. The four main aspects of my social location in which defines me is my gender, sex, culture and class. At first, I did not know that my gender had nothing to do with my biological sex. Before I took this course, the term gender to me implied that someone was either male or female, which I now realize is a very common, but quite ignorant misconception. I was born a female and I identify as that to this day. I have come to realize in only a few short months that my gender and how I perform it is not entirely what some would consider feminine, but it is not masculine either. I like makeup and I am not really athletic. However, I am very strong willed and consider myself a leader; qualities most would describe as masculine. I believe this has a lot to do with my culture and class. I was brought up with the teachings that because I was a female from a lower class family I had to be smart and strong willed in order to make a difference in my community. I am from South America and almost every country there teaches their children that if you are poor the only way you will make it out of the slums is if you fight for yourself, especially if you are a girl. In my culture, I figured out my identity based on how and what my parents taught me...
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...Disch, and Chapter 1 and 2 Comparison “The personal is political” is a notion that can relate many readings on women’ studies including our readings in class. The readings from Estelle Disch, and Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 of Women’s Voices Feminist Visions all discuss issues such as inequalities across different systems such as gender, race, education, sports, and more, how feminist ideas relate to inequality, intersecting identities, and the idea of privilege. There are inequalities across systems that can be seen in the way that women are viewed in society. An example of this is shown in chapter one in an article called “The Housewives Moment of Truth” by Jane O’Reilly. O’Reilly main point focuses on the notion that even through time women are still seen as being simple housewives. In today’s society women have obtained various professional jobs that go beyond the just being a teacher, and even with their success there are people that see women’s role as being in the household. O’Reilly article displays an example of gender inequality, and more importantly shows how there is still a lot progress that needs to be made. Besides gender inequality, the readings also point to other types of inequality like race. Race is very important when looking at women’s studies because everyone has to tackle their own problems every day. For instance, a black woman who is of a lower class, a single mother, a high school graduate, and tackling two jobs is viewed differently by people in society...
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