An Alternative to White Privilege

To help put such a sensitive topic into perspective, think of a relative advantage instead. White privilege is a relative advantage accruing to members of the dominant culture in the US. I believe it exists, the problem is, regardless of whether or not it’s true, many do not feel privileged.

Furthermore, it’s a subtle advantage that we learn not to see. 

Dr. Peggy McIntosh PhD, coined the term “White Privilege” in her 1989 paper who’s subtitle read, “Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.” 

If I believe it’s real, what’s it matter to me? 

As a white male, I feel obligated to talk to people that look like me about the history and ongoing systemic equities in our country. Often these conversations are not particularly welcome and consequently delicate to began. Because it’s a monolithic label, I’ve repeatedly found that the term white privilege puts people on the defensive. Although white privilege describes a system of inequality it makes people feel they are being accused of personal responsibility for inequality. Additionally, we often don’t feel privileged. It’s human nature to give an undue weight of all the hard work we’ve done and diminished the role of fortune or fate in our life. The upshot is that, while it’s a true and accurate concept, when we feel triggered our thoughts bias towards the personal and concrete and away from the abstract. 

Starting the discussion from a point of relative advantage seems to allow consideration for the concept of white privilege without making it overly and unproductively personal. 

To be clear, I don’t come at this from a place of white fragility, (a loaded and unhelpful label) but from a perspective of productive engagement. In my view, the drivers of the political and societal tension in our country today are feelings of scarcity and fear. It’s clear that the coronavirus pandemic, the movement around social justice, and our current political climate have made sense of disconnection and anxiety pervasive. Disconnection originates in the view of “others” and anxiety arises from undefined threat. Any gambits which aid in seeing ourselves in others and a clearer understanding of our collective circumstances will benefit us all. 

I have a personal sense of gratitude and admiration for Dr. Peggy McIntosh and her work and I encourage you to read her poignant and insightful paper, linked here, White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. I think you’ll find that her thoughts on the term white privilege align with what I’ve written here. 

Be Well