Racial and Ethnic Matter - Assignment Example

Racial and Ethnic Matter – White privilege White privilege can be explained as the unearned benefits that a person enjoys simply because he has “white” skin. Such advantages are enjoyed at every aspect of life and it exists at the expense of people’s color. It is much difficult for the white people to maintain the advantage of white privilege system without losing a part of their compassion. As a white person, a man has certain privileges that are not afforded to others. Many of such advantages are unearned, which mean they are just afforded to the persons only on the base that they are white, men, or heterosexuals.

These privileges or unearned benefits can affect a person’s daily life, his career, education, and his relationship with others. McIntosh admits that she felt white privilege an invisible package of unearned assets, which she could count on cashing in each day. 2. It is hard to unscramble the various elements of unearned benefits of white privileges. It is expanded more on social class, race, economic class, religion, sex, and ethnic identity. The white privileges are bestowed upon a person even without his knowledge.

The person enjoys the benefits without even realizing it as a package of unearned assets. The unearned privileges draws up images of white supremacy, the philosophy that supports the view that white race is superior to others. An effort to distinguish facts is expected, between earned strengths and unearned benefits conferred systematically. The power obtained from unearned benefits and privileges are seen as strengths when they are used as means to escape or dominate. Tim Wise (2008) explains white privileges as when a girl gets pregnant at seventeen and everyone is quickly reacting to it by considering it to be the girl’s life but her family’s saying “it is their personal matter”.

No one is going to judge the girl or her family, because every family would have challenges and they have to face them. At the same time, Black and Latino families also face with similar challenges, where they are constantly characterized as reckless, pathological, and the advocates of social decay. White privilege can be referred as and invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports, visas, tools, and bank checks (McIntosh). 3. It is important that we should know about white privileges, because it will enable us to create a mind for life long process of reviewing white supremacy and the new imperialism.

Dedicating to this process would be a tough task where one cannot expect a simple answer to the question; “but what can I do about the issue?” Knowing about white privileges and understanding it would enable us to make out that there are certain things that we can change. In reality, we may not be able to erase whatever we have inherited from our families, class privileges, and skin privileges. However, we can take effort to understand its underlying structure and historical circumstance that have placed us where we are today.

The unearned privileges often remain indivisible to its holders. The people with unearned privileges are usually unable or unwilling to admit that they receive advantages just because of their privileged class membership. They resist in admitting that they are recipients of unearned privileges, for on admitting the truth, other may view their work performance less favorably. And the unearned privileges may get normalized. The perception of the unearned privilege also depends on the demographics of the perceiver.

As Karsten states, underrepresented minorities usually agree that white people enjoy their white privilege, but on the other hand, whites deny that they have it and disagree about the concept’s existence (258). 4. The existence of white privileges, forgetting the myth of meritocracy shows that this is not a free country. One’s life must be what one makes it. But with privileges, many doors are being open for certain individuals with no virtue of their own. The prevailing white privilege across the country prove the extinction of meritocracy, an ideology that states America to be a merit based community where the worth and opportunities of an individual are determined solely on his personal efforts and abilities and nothing else.

Disapproving the system will not be sufficient to change this perspective about the United States. The attitudes of the individuals must be changed to end the racist outlook of the people. 5. One of the conditions explained in the text that hit me the most was the reference about the “flesh colored” bandage. Bandages are something everyone comes across in daily life from childhood. On putting on one of those blemish bandages, not every white thinks about how it blends into one’s skin tone perfectly.

It was, in fact, normal for them. However, if a black had to put on such a bandage, it would probably be making him feel a little hurt as he was not the color that was considered normal. Indeed, it is such a small thing as long as it is getting generalized by the world that may be hurtful. Such common themes make sense as they can easily explain better about how the white privileges are often unearned. 6. Tim Wise Video Tim Wise point of view about the white privilege describes the existing social inequalities; and it is frequently associated with the prejudice or animosity against others (Tim Wise).

He neither claims to be a specialist on race nor credits white with racism. On the other hand, he admits that his white skin gives him the unearned advantage when taking about white privilege. According to him, racism is perceived as impacting only the “underprivileged” and not at all to the dominant group (Tim Wise). The dominant group is the standard on which all other groups, including minority are compared. For an example, February is considered to be Black History Month, when there is no specific month attributed to whites.

The white privilege is so established and standardized that all other months of the year are deemed to be White History Months. In effect, the white people need not worry about their actions from being blamed or restricted, whereas, the people of color are continuously have to worry about their actions from triggering negative results. His conclusion of thought is that one day a person of color will be capable of giving the same lecture as Wise is giving. And the lecture will be taken as seriously as that person expects it to be taken.

Works Cited Karsten, Margaret Foegen. Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in the Workplace: Issues and Challenges for Today’s Organizations. US: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2006. Print. McIntosh, Peggy. “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.” Learn to Question. (12 October 2009). Web. 05 October 2011. Tim Wise: On white privilege. (19 February, 2008) Web. 05 October 2011. Tim, Wise. White Privileges. Sep 27, 2008. Web 5 Sep 2011 http://lorivillarreal.typepad.com/do_you_realize/weblogs/