Privilege For Dummies

Privilege: a special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group of people. 

Some people have it better than other people. Who knew such a simple concept could cause so much controversy and disagreement? The topic of privilege gets a lot of people upset, specifically rich white men (are we even surprised?).  In this blog post, I’m gonna lay down some knowledge in the most simple way I can.

            

 Starting with the basics, privilege has many subgroups. Let’s name off a few:

                       

White privilege:

ex) White people can live without fear of being subjected to

                     police brutality.

YES racism still exists:  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQp0UugrpTk

Male privilege:

ex) Men aren’t constantly judged and called sluts for being   

       sexually promiscuous.

YES sexism still exists:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py5X_biBOYk

Straight privilege:

ex) Straight people can hold their partner’s hand in public   

       without dirty looks and fear of violence.

YES homophobia still exists:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJVKFwrM3mU

There are many other social identities that possess privilege such as cis-gender individuals (when your gender identity matches your biological sex), highly educated individuals, able-bodied people (people who do not have a disability), upper-class citizens, those who fall into the religious majority, and many more.

     

          Privilege has to do with power systems.

Society is affected by different power systems: patriarchy, white supremacy, heterosexism, cissexism etc. Privileged groups have power over oppressed groups

All aspects of our identities interact with one another and affect our experiences.

For example: I was diagnosed with anxiety when I was fifteen. My anxiety attacks are often minimized and people assume it’s “that time of the month”. This is a connection between misogyny and ableism.

However, my white privilege also affects the oppression I recieve because of my gender. I, as a White woman, experience sexism a lot differently than a Black or Latina woman does.

Privilege and oppression intersect, but they don’t refute one another. Yes I am oppressed because I am a woman, but I still possess white privilege.

 

“Just because I am a white male doesn’t mean my life is perfect!”

Of course your life isn’t perfect. Nobody’s is. Having privilege doesn’t mean your life is easy, but it does mean it is easier in some ways when comparing it to black women, for example.

              Having privilege ISN’T A BAD THING!!!

When someone points out your privilege, there is no reason to get defensive or feel guilty. It wasn’t my choice to be born into a white family. There isn’t anything I can do about it. But I CAN use my privilege to give a voice to those who are silenced.

         

          I saw this analogy comparing white privilege and bike commuting in a car-friendly  city (coincidentally Lansing, MI). I encourage you to read the article but here is a small excerpt:

 “I can imagine that for people of color life in a white-majority context feels a bit  like being on a bicycle in midst of traffic. They have the right to be on the road, and laws on the books to make it equitable, but that doesn’t change the fact that they are on a bike in a world made for cars.” (jdowsett)

      “So what can I do about it?”

            Step 1: GET EDUCATED

                        Listen when others are speaking about their oppression

            Step 2: Take action

                        Join activist groups (*cough cough* MSU Women’s Council)

                        Work in solidarity with oppressed groups

I hope this helped you all learn a bit about privilege! Let me know what you want me to talk about next by tweeting me @allieetzin or emailing me at allieetzin@gmail.com

xoxo,

Allie