...In the article by Education as Instrument or as Empowerment? Untangling White Privilege in the Politics of Ethnic Studies: The Case of the Tucson Unified School District by Brian W. Dotts, the author talks about how some people want to see the diminish of programs such as the one in Tucson that focuses on embracing specific ethnic backgrounds. In this case specifically, Mexican-American backgrounds. Throughout the article, Dotts provides us with reasons on why he does not agree with the removal, but rather encourages these types of programs. Dotts states that the reason some of these people want these programs to be removed is because they believe that students should be taught to see themselves as individuals rather than seeing race and ethic backgrounds. Dotts does not agree with this thinking, while he does think it is good for students to have some since of individualism, he thinks it is important to talk about and to recognize different cultural backgrounds. He thinks it is important to challenge this idea and to talk to students more about different cultural backgrounds rather than to ignore it. The author’s purpose of this article was to talk...
Words: 568 - Pages: 3
...White American Privileges and Social Class Aieleen Lanot University of Hawaii – West Oahu White American Privileges and Social Class Privilege is a concept of sociology used to implicate that there are certain groups of individuals that have an advantage over others. “Social liberties use the term to mean benefits according to white people under economic, political, and social circumstance. (Anyon 17)” I agree with his stance because there is no extension of such privileges to individuals of other races such as Blacks, Hispanics or Asians. The use of this term is mainly in the social inequality context primarily in relation to social class, sexual orientation, race, age, and gender. Several recorded privileged elements show the advantageous that White America has in getting access to better housing, jobs, and education. This paper will explore the issue of White American privileges and how social class status is based on color of your skin and the financial means of your family. In the article by Peggy McIntosh, she defines, “White privileges as a package of unearth assets, invisible in nature and are obvious” (McIntosh 10). There is a comparison of white privilege to an undetectable light knapsack of assurance, maps, tools, guidance, visa, codebooks, clothes, passbooks, emergency gear, blank checks, etc. I concur with Peggy McIntosh analysis since there are several functions brought about by white privileges. These functions include provisions of “perks”...
Words: 3186 - Pages: 13
...Privilege is the Greatest Enemy of Equality Educators most often consider multicultural education as teaching their pupils about Blacks, Latinos, Asians, Native Americans, and other descendants of color. However, multicultural education is not complete if it doesn’t challenge the root of structural racism and racial oppression: the matter of white privilege. It’s vital to understand white privilege and the role it plays in affecting society. In essence, white privilege is an unwilling and non-owned racism that has been ingrained into our mindset throughout history, and it affects how we interact with each other and how those who don’t share such advantages are affected. It’s a permeating factor responsible for many inequalities faced among races, widening the social gap between white and nonwhite Americans. Accessibility to education, jobs, and housing are all directly affected by societal inconsistencies of privilege and power. Ultimately, racism isn’t caused by white privilege; white privilege is caused by racism. Yet racism isn't a problem that resides in the minds of individuals; it lies rooted deep in our social institutions. It is necessary we reconstruct the societal ideologies of race and class to expel this self-perpetuating cycle. In this essay I will address these racial struggles for power and privilege, the role it plays in education, and my personal experience towards racism and how it has affected me as a person. Privilege, as defined by Websters Dictionary...
Words: 2132 - Pages: 9
...America assembled and protested for equal rights. Richard was living in France so he never knew the end result of the Civil Rights movement in America, but would his view differ if he was living as a black boy in the 21st century? Many things are happening today, and people argue that equal rights are non-existent to this day. If living today, Richard Wright would be able to attain a proper education and would explore the truth behind myths about equality. In his autobiography, Richard would write about his experiences to tell his shifting views on Black Lives Matter, impact of education has on living condition, and that white privilege is false. Black Lives Matter was created in July 13,2013 with...
Words: 1829 - Pages: 8
...exactly how divisive the issue of race can be is white privilege. At first mention, the word can cause a feeling of discomfort. Although, it is not intended to do so. Overtime, the idea has gained awareness, which has led some groups to believe that white Americans are born more privileged than the rest of the population. In turn, this perspective is being met with a fair amount of criticism. Similarly, the article Yes, You Can Measure White Privilege, published on The Root, attempts to address this aspect of the race issue. It argues that white privilege exists, but not in the way that people believe it does. Not only that, the author offers up all the ways that the privilege can be measured. So as to avoid confusion, Harriot makes...
Words: 960 - Pages: 4
...Running Head: BLACK AND WHITE PRIVILEGE IN AMERICA 1 Black and White Privilege in America Jacki Barnes Davenport University Diversity in Society – SOSC201 Professor Narketta Sparkman October 21, 2012 Black and White Privilege in America There are many definitions of “white Privilege” in text books, media, and on the internet, but all of those definitions include one common thread: It allows white persons advantages over non-whites and it is a form of social privilege. According to Akbar (Koppelman, 2011, p. 44), white privilege originated with the arrival of the white man in America. He states that, “They began to effectively eliminate any contradiction to the imposed redefinition of reality that they dictated.” White privilege has been referred to as rightness of white, meaning that white is normal and any deviation from that is abnormal (Koppelman & Goodhart, 2011, p. 189). It offers economic benefits as well as cultural benefits. Being white means you will most likely be paid a higher salary, receive promotions, and have loans approved. In classrooms, anything that happened prior to white people arriving in America is referred to as prehistory (2011, p. 191). Because of white privilege, there are many things that white people take for granted that people of color have no access to. For example, whites can choose to purchase a home in an area they can afford and want to live in. Researchers at Dartmouth, the University of Georgia...
Words: 712 - Pages: 3
...White Privilege Racism has been prevalent since the beginning of time. Whites sometimes deny the existence of racial inequity unconsciously, not realizing that there is such a thing as unearned privilege. White males for example usually only think of themselves as males, whereas a Black man usually will always think of themselves as a Black male. Being the minority and part of societies out-group hinders those even if they are not being oppressed knowingly by their white counterparts, who should be educated and made aware of this unseen discrimination. Unearned Privilege Critical Race Theory Critical race theory examines society closely and partly signifies that racism is engrained in American society. Being White and part of the in-group is something critical race theory takes a look at, and is the other side of the coin of being racist, whether it is consciously or unconsciously. Whites in general are born with opportunities Blacks are not inherently given. It is a choice to be racist, but it is not a choice to choose your race, Michael Jackson excluded. The system of white privilege in North America has been long established, going back to when the Europeans came to this strange continent by accident. When the British and French set up colonies, they fought and oppressed the native americans, establishing dominance that carries on to this day, but not only with Native americans, but any other hyphenated group, ie African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Mexican-Americans...
Words: 1081 - Pages: 5
...First, we must understand the background of the author. I am a thirty-something white married male with two children. I was born in Florida, raised around the rural outskirts of the St. Louis area, moved to the “Big City” (inner-city) when newly married, and then fled to farm country when the inner-city crime became too much to bare to raise a family. When in the educational system, I wasn’t completely isolated from racial concerns. There was a black family with kids in grade school and a couple of black kids in high school. We thought we were high society, progressive “color-blind” people, though I can’t remember ever going to their houses, or seeing them outside of school, or even hanging out with them in school. My parents were not always the first to step up and claim “ain’t racist” but they would when pressed. They enjoyed a good joke or two or twenty and stereotypes a-plenty. It was when I went to college straight out of high school, and let a racist slang term slip amongst a group of my multicultural friends that I realized how much my parents tainted my worldview. That was my first realization and my first step towards being anti-racist. The purpose of this reflective paper is to examine what confrontations are experienced in recognizing institutionalized racism and white privilege. In order to understand today’s institutional racism, we must define. That is a difficult task and we were unable to fully define it amongst a group of my peers and that I turn to an authority...
Words: 2276 - Pages: 10
...1. Why is privilege often invisible? What categories of people are more and less likely to be aware of privilege? Privilege is often invisible because it’s so rooted in society that privileged people don’t realize it until they are the ones who are affected by it. Privileged people don’t realize that they are privileged. They think that it’s the regular way of life for them and others as well. The unprivileged people are highly aware of what privilege is because the privileged life is widely shown in the media and in their everyday lives. The categories of people that are more likely to be aware of privilege are working class and Black and Latino people. They often don’t get the same privileges as white people do. For example, a black person...
Words: 551 - Pages: 3
...Topic: McIntosh, Peggy “White Privilege” The author made use of the phenomenon of male privilege to bring out the fact that white privilege is similarly denied and unconsciously protected. By describing how male privilege has rooted in our society, and how men denied this phenomenon by avoiding acknowledgement of the issue, the author explained the development of white privilege. According to the author, whites are taught not to recognize their privileges. They are disciplined in a way that they are unable to recognize racism as something that puts them at an advantage while as a result, put others at a disadvantage. They do not realize the existence of unearned skin privilege and therefore do not feel the need to stop it. By identifying the daily experiences granted by their skin privilege, whites can help themselves to reveal this distorted culture. They have to recognize the problem before they can lessen it and work to end it. The most obvious privileges are that white individuals are assumed to be affluence, civilized and morally neutral. The white community is perceived as a group of people who interact pleasantly and peacefully and that their country enjoys a widely represented state and its people enjoy many of its freedom. These perceived and unearned privileges are not only preserved from other people, they are also used as weapons to oppress others. However, even if white individuals do not approve the way which white dominance has been awarded to them, they...
Words: 508 - Pages: 3
...that racism is a thing of the past. In school we study the notorious figures of Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. The concepts of segregation and inequality are often taught in a historical context. However, if you take a look around racism is very present in today’s society and can be found by looking at the achievement gap, and mass incarceration system. Another representation that racism exists today is the concept of white privilege, which is deeply immersed into society. The achievement gap is a major aspect when we think of racism in the twenty-first century. According to the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP), there are large gaps in test scores between African American students and White students (Vanneman, A., Hamilton, L., Baldwin Anderson, J., and Rahman, T. 2009). At the age of nine and thirteen students are given a test in both reading and mathematics to determine the level at which they are performing (Vannerman, et al., 2009). The results are then translated to a scale by the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP). From this scale experts have gathered valuable information that confirms the achievement gap is still present today. Many say that the achievement gap is due to various reasons. One main reason that seems to be associated with achievement gap is the stability of the parents (Vannerman, et al., 2009). Often when dealing with underperforming African American children you will find a correlation to the financial...
Words: 1138 - Pages: 5
...SWK207 “White Privilege: American Reality“ America is the land of the free and the land of opportunity. All men are created equal and can achieve the “American Dream”. These are the kinds of phrases one hears throughout life. Unfortunately, these words are misleading because not everyone has the same opportunity. Court documents from the Dred Scott decision state: “… people of African-American descent are a subordinate and inferior class that, whether slave or free, remains subject to the authority of the dominant and superior white race.” (Day & Schiele, 2013) The concept that we live in a land where all people are equal and success is achieved through hard work alone is nothing more than a myth. White Privilege provides a distinct advantage to white Americans over all non-whites simply by virtue of birth. White Privilege is like gravity, everyone feels the effects but you don’t see it. According to Eduardo Bonilla-Silva most whites believe that racism is less relevant in today’s society. Focus is placed on cultural differences as the reason why some people achieve more success than others. A closer look reveals that this idea still supports the status quo of White Privilege (Bonilla-Silva, 2001). White Privilege is so ingrained in American society that it is virtually invisible (O'Malley Halley, Eshleman, & Vjaya, 2011). The dominant American social values (Day & Schiele, 2013) while separate are still to some extent an extension of White Privilege. White privilege...
Words: 1698 - Pages: 7
...discrimination, disadvantages, worthless, and the list could go on with even more words that relate to racism. Jobs, acceptance, equality, benefits, this list is harder to label is it not? White Privilege is just as real as racism, but not as apparent. According the University of Dayton’s online dictionary, White Privilege is defined as, “a right, advantage, or immunity granted to or enjoyed by white persons beyond the common advantage of all others; an exemption in many particular cases from certain burdens or liabilities,” (“white privilege”). White Privilege is a subject rarely covered by educators due to the difficulty students’ have understanding it; therefore, resulting in a lack of awareness. White Privilege, unlike racism,...
Words: 985 - Pages: 4
...a usual companion and joins her in most of her wanderings. Their father, Atticus Finch, is a defense attorney and works in the state’s legislature. During the course of the novel, Atticus encounters a difficult case he needs to defend. Tom Robinson, a black man, is accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a white woman. This case gains lots of attention. Atticus and his children soon becomes the victims of strong hatred and harassment from whites of the town because many believe Atticus should not be defending this case. The family also has a housekeeper, Calpurnia. Calpurnia is black, yet still very educated. Calpurnia is seen not only as their...
Words: 992 - Pages: 4
...“White Privilege” Topic: McIntosh, Peggy “White Privilege” The author made use of the phenomenon of male privilege to bring out the fact that white privilege is similarly denied and unconsciously protected. By describing how male privilege has rooted in our society, and how men denied this phenomenon by avoiding acknowledgement of the issue, the author explained the development of white privilege. According to the author, whites are taught not to recognize their privileges. They are disciplined in a way that they are unable to recognize racism as something that puts them at an advantage while as a result, put others at a disadvantage. They do not realize the existence of unearned skin privilege and therefore do not feel the need to stop it. By identifying the daily experiences granted by their skin privilege, whites can help themselves to reveal this distorted culture. They have to recognize the problem before they can lessen it and work to end it. The most obvious privileges are that white individuals are assumed to be affluence, civilized and morally neutral. The white community is perceived as a group of people who interact pleasantly and peacefully and that their country enjoys a widely represented state and its people enjoy many of its freedom. These perceived and unearned privileges are not only preserved from other people, they are also used as weapons to oppress others. However, even if white individuals do not approve the way which white dominance has been...
Words: 328 - Pages: 2
