The meaning of the term white privilege is one that has always been changing, seemingly never agreed upon in it’s academic term or in popular media usage. For many, white privilege is an invisible force that white people need to recognize. It is moving through life without being racially profiled or unfairly stereotyped. In a essay for The American Scholar Robert Boyer an editor of Salmagundi, a professor of English at Skidmore College, does knowledge that privilege exist but always blaming people who has it doesn’t solve anything. By exploring the complexity of both privilege and racial identity itself, Boyer’s essay draws out some of tensions that have emerged between the two. In doing so…
He begins explaining his predicament experience with his professor in freshman year of college who used his privilege on him. In which the professor thought that it was only right as his teacher to confront Boyer that “no one would ever take you seriously, if you don’t do something about this”(Boyer 48) which he pointed out that Boyer would do better all around if he took speech courses to learn how to speak proper pronunciation of words. Professor Stone made identification (assuming correctly, that he was the first person in his family to go to college).
Being eager to do well and show his professor who he admire that he fixed his “disability” he went along with the speech courses. But now that Boyer is older he realizes how offensive the words the professor said to him were, even if he meant goodwill.” to impress upon someone so young the idea that he would undoubtedly want to become the sort of person whose class origins would henceforth be undetectable… ambitious to be taken seriously.”( Boyer 49) In which, many immigrants coming to America would want to be taken seriously therefore would try to improve their English to get people to listen to what they had to say by sounding as if they were in their “group.”
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In today’s American society , each of us has an identity that shapes how we see ourselves and others. Differences in identity and related struggles for place and power are woven throughout our history and social and political culture. Usually, when we think of our identity, the parts that capture our attention are those that people notice, the aspects that set us apart from others. Women usually mention being a female, Jewish people say that they are Jews. Boyer says what’s the point of trying to find a common ground when there is “ envy for your good fortune “ because of your “identity” ( Boyer 57).
In Beverly Daniel Tatum “ The Complexity of Identity: “ Who am I”? she analyzes the factors that contribute to one’s identity and the societal mirror in which we shape this mirror. That who we are is the result of our characteristics, past experiences, political and social conditions. Identity is created by factors directly related to us, as well as outside components within society. We ultimately see ourselves through the eyes of others, this view includes distorted oppressions. It is important to recognize the dominant and subordinate components each person has.
Boyer shows aversion when people bring up this so called privilege “ Earned according to to whom? Unearned signifying shameful or immortal? ( Boyer 49) We tend to believe that accusations of privilege imply we have it easy and because life is hard for nearly everyone, we resent hearing that. Of course we do. When white men are accused of having privilege. Some tend to be immediately defensive (and, at times, understandably so). They say, “It’s not my fault I am a white man.” They say, “I’m working class,” or “I’m [insert other condition that discounts their privilege],” instead of simply accepting that, in this regard, yes, they benefit from certain privileges that others do not. To have privilege in one or more areas does not mean you are wholly privileged.
To acknowledge privilege is not a denial of the ways you are marginalized, the ways you have suffered. You don’t necessarily have to do anything once you acknowledge your privilege. You don’t have to apologize for it. Don’t need to diminish your privilege or your accomplishments because of that privilege. But you need to understand the extent of your privilege, the consequences of your privilege, and remain aware that people who are different from you move through and experience the world in ways you might never know anything about. They might endure situations you can never know anything about. You could, however, use that privilege for the greater good–to try to level the playing field for everyone, to work for social justice, to bring attention to how those without certain privileges are disenfranchised.
Yet how, we might ask, how should we stop putting the blame on people for their privilege that they did not ask for? When” Privilege,then, is increasingly hauled in as a weapon”( Boyer 53) Boyers described how in a panel discussion on political fiction, a student had pointed out that this genre privileged male writers in particular. Boyers asked her if she knew any these female authors like Doris Lessing, Nadine Gordimer, Ingeborg Bachmann, Pat Barker”(Boyer 52) Whererupon another angry women took to the floor asked whether he knew the male privilege in which had just practiced on the other women. He expected in the civil context of a panel discussion that everyone has the ability to recognize that all participants are beneficiaries of several privileges. I am privileged to have been born in America and allowed to have access to free education when many people, wished to have their kids to be able to come here and have this same opportunity. But are being denied across the border because our president doesn’t want them here.
While Boyers opinions on the way we see privilege now should be change. Shows that privilege is not something easy to describe and is such a complex topic.That people shouldn’t blame someone for it, but people cant help but wonder if Boyer’s story would have been different if he had been born black? Boyer even mentions that had he been a black student Professor Stone would have “resisted the impulse” ( Boyer 52), to inform him of how the way he wrote differed from the way he speaks. In which Boyer can’t deny his “white privilege” at the time of 60 years ago was an advantage if he had been a black student at the time, the teacher probably wouldn’t have even care to acknowledge his work or called him to their office.
As during those times in the late 1950s some white people were racist, white people back then clearly had the advantage over African Americans in many things. Be it how they were treated in society, the jobs they could take that would give equal pay, how to law enforcement treated them, and education. Although, Boyer does acknowledge that privilege exist that casting blame gets nowhere , some people will continue to blame white people for their white privilege as it has been embedded into history of an having effect over other races.
By sharing his story of his professor using privilege on him. Boyer is able to relate to many who may have also faced a similar experience to his. He provides a different take on privilege, how we should not hold it against one another, but people have been conditioned to think this way. From what they have been exposed to the from the media, who make them feel as though it should be something they should “feel aggrieved” ( Boyer 50) about. For example now we are seeing more viral videos of these white women trying to get black people in trouble with the law enforcement, because they feel as though they don’t belong in the place they are in. Like how the women who tried to stop the black man from entering into the apartment building even though when he showed the keys to the place she kept pestering all the way there, she than later than called police on him. It’s things that happen like this that people will change to use the race card.
Many people have never been asked or required to reflect on their own privileged status, and in regards to racial identity, doing so might feel uncomfortable.
Work Cited
- Robert Boyers. “ The Privilege Predicament”. The American Scholar (Spring 2018) :48-52
- Beverly Daniel Tatum “ The Complexity of Identity: “ Who am I”?
