Privilege
Privilege
As a white American woman, I can admit that I have privilege. It's infuriating when people refuse to acknowledge their own privilege because “they’ve been discriminated against”. Recently, i had someone tell me that she doesn't have privilege because she’s part german and native indian, one time she got mistaken for a mexican and that she grew up in the “hood” and was treated badly for being white.
I've known people who lived in trailer parks, who lived off the system, the kinds of people that you turn your nose up at in the street. None of that changes the fact that they have privilege, she has privilege and every white person in america has privilege. No, noone has ever just handed them anything, they’ve been through horrible things, and sometimes they might even be looked down on because of their skin color but you and them STILL and will ALWAYS have white privilege.
White privilege is, when you check into a hotel, ICE will never pick your name out of a list because “it sounds hispanic” and show up at your door, asking for your papers or if your a citizen. If your city bus is stopped the cops/ICE will never make you stand up and again ask for your papers. You will never be put into a metal cage with hundreds of other people, separated from your child, because you spoke spanish in front of a cop. You will never be deported to a country that you flee in fear of your life with no care of though about what would happen to you or how you would survive. That is your white privilege.
White Privilege is, you will never be shot in the back while running from the police. You don't have to make sure that cops can see your hands at all times. You will never be shot in your drivers seat while reaching your wallet, with your wife and daughter in the car. You will never be thrown to the ground, placed in a choke hold, begging telling police that you cant breath, until you die because you were selling single cigarettes. You will never be shot on your way home for the gas station, walking through your own neighborhood because your white neighbor thought you were “sketchy” and decided to shoot you and get off shot free, that will never happen to you. You will never be told that you can’t wear your nature hair at work, you will never be made to cut it, in front of live crowd in order to compete in your sporting event. You will never be shot because you matched the vague description of “tall, hoodie and black”. That is your white privilege.
Every white person in america has white privilege, not through anything that they did or didn't do. It is bred into this country, has been for generations, since this country very creation. It's far beyond time when every white person in america to acknowledge their privilege. While there is nothing we can do to stop that we can be allies. Demand that your colored coworker get the same pay as your white coworker. Stand with your hispanic friends when their being questioned. Show this country, the old politicians, the old generations that this isn’t acceptable anymore. Set the world on fire, until it is just, for EVERYONE.
