Power & Privilege - Fashioning a plan - Essay Example

Patricia James YOUR Power and Privilege - Fashioning a Plan Considering what has been written about power and privilege in America, and what I have learned over the period of this course, the scope of this paper is to bring it all together into a personal expression of my own belief system along with a strategy for affecting change. First, however, I will address some of the ideas expressed by Peters and Alperovitz to frame the articulation of my own social agenda. I believe that the social issues relating to power and privilege are worthy of my personal consideration and energies. Peters and Alperovitz. I found the articles by these two writers, as well as those of Johnson, to be interesting; but I find myself somewhat critical of their bias. I agree with Peters that "[s]ystems and institutions that regulate class location are much more powerful than individuals" (Peters 1). There are certainly individuals who work hard and try to improve their lives and situations and are prevented from achieving complete success due to the resistance of the powerful; and social change efforts should be made to address those inequities. I can't accept, however, that "everyone deserves what you have; you just happen to have it" or her idea that "empowered people enrich themselves by leaving exploitative, dehumanizing work to others" (Peters 1). This position implies too much intentionality to what often is random placement within the socio-economic spectrum or the result of individual choice. As James and Robinson point out, "there are necessarily differences between people. We all perceive these differences and make judgments about others based on them..." (xv), and this is exactly what Peters does; she makes judgments about those employed in menial jobs from her perspective of upper-middle class privilege. She would never be happy bagging groceries; ergo, no one else can be either. That's just a little too simplistic. As for Alperovitz, putting his political partisanship aside, I think the fundamental idea of using the political process to address the abuse of power or privilege is an appropriate response. His observation of "America's extreme concentration of income and wealth" (1) is accurate, and a social agenda using the power of the vote is a more effective method than that of simply relying on the courts. As Schultz notes, "social reformers and activists would be better served by reconsidering how much hope was placed upon working through the courts versus investing more time to win critical victories thorough the political process" (9). The legal system certainly has its place in addressing the suppression of classes of individuals, but the political system is a better tool for social policy. It also has the benefit of being the voice of the people, rather than that of an activist judiciary or single governmental branch. What I have learned. From this course, I have come to a fresh understanding of power and privilege generally, the impact of the misuse of those concepts on the radically disenfranchised, as well as my own place within the dynamic. I don't believe that the positions taken by authors on either extreme are realistic. An individual's plight is not solely the result of his or her own choices, but neither is it necessarily the intentional infliction of harm by a bad system. Certainly, many individuals must shoulder the burden of their own choices and it is far too easy to blame the system for their condition. On the other hand, there really are those people who are neither powerful nor privileged as a result of systemic oppression or neglect. As I look at my own standing in society and the privileges I enjoy, I am aware of those who have more and those who have less. I think that everyone is both privileged and disenfranchised on some level. The distinction for me lies within the individual circumstances under consideration. The middle-class college student has more inherited privilege than the impoverished gang member, naturally. I am unwilling, however, to accept someone else's forced guilt for my condition. Am I glad that I am not homeless and living in squalid conditions Of course. Do I see my condition as a function of a biased, class system that has intentionally inflicted privilege on me No, I don't. There are too many instances of individuals rising above their disadvantaged conditions-and of people who have fallen from privilege to poverty-for me to naively accept the idea that the individual has no power at all to change their circumstances. I believe the issue is more complicated than that, and complex issues do not positively respond to over-simplified generalizations. The solution, for me, lies in a combination of behaviors that address the power/privilege paradigm. Strategy for change. My approach to resolving this issue is a mixture of individual and systemic change. If the system is ever going to change, the people within the system have to change. Accordingly, I think that children should be instructed in inclusiveness and compassion, as Peters suggests. I think racism in all forms should not be tolerated, and that educational initiatives to overcome such ignorance should be employed at all levels; schools as well as workplaces, the public forum as well as governmental sectors. I believe that those individuals who truly understand that there is abuse of power and privilege should lead by example. Rather than simply separating her garbage into paper vs. plastic, perhaps Peters could take her children on community service activities and clean up some streets. I know I can certainly find ways to be actively involved in helping those who are disenfranchised; and that is the best example of all. Finally, the legal and political processes should be incorporated to address the inequities in the system that prevent people from rising above negative circumstances. At the end of the day, power and privilege can be used by those who have them to help those who do not. Abusers of their power should be thwarted. Through education and personal example, individuals at all levels can use their power and privilege constructively. It is, in fact, the best use of both. Works Cited Alperovitz, Gar. "Taking the Offensive on Wealth." 3 Feb. 2005. The Nation. 15 Aug. 2006. . James, Larry C. and Robinson, John D. (Eds.) Diversity in Human Interactions. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003. Johnson, Allan G. Privilege, Power, and Difference. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield, 2001. Peters, Cynthia. "Talking to Kids about Class." 3 Aug. 2000. Znet Daily Commentaries. 15 Aug. 2006. . Schultz, David A. (Ed.) Leveraging the Law: Using the Courts to Achieve Social Change. New York: Peter Lang, 1998. Read More