White Privilege

Does White Privilege Exist?

  • Yes

    Votes: 9 56.3%
  • No

    Votes: 7 43.8%

  • Total voters
    16

Alex.J

[14] Master
Does White Privilege exist? Does Sandman live in the lap of luxury? Is Sandman a White Supremacist? Discuss.

 
Somehow, the only people I ever seem to hear discussing white privilege are.... privileged white people.

I think what people talk about when they babble idly of the evils of white privilege (while having no plans whatsoever to relinquish any of the privileges they enjoy themselves) does actually exist, but it's inaccurately named since it involves far more than just race. I would actually say it's not even primarily a matter of race and is more a matter of culture, values, and social class. Not all whites are part of the dominant cultural group in the USA (or in other countries where the situation is similar) that has always held the political power to enshrine its own values into law at the expense of other groups, and one does not necessarily have to be white to be part of this group (one might make the argument that it is necessary to at least act white by adhering to traditionally "white" values, however).

Basically, the politically and economically dominant group has created a system that rewards people for living their way and valuing the things they do, which often coincides with being born into situations where they will have the connections and resources to succeed, and often coincides with being born to well-off, educated white parents. People who are not white are less likely to be born into a situation where they have the same advantages and more likely to belong to a cultural group whose values conflict with the system, and they thus tend to be considered morally inferior, unreliable, untrustworthy, etc. because of their relative failure to prosper socially and especially materially (which shows just how profoundly the prosperity gospel has influenced American culture - it endures even as society becomes increasingly post-Christian).

I also wonder if the people who bemoan white privilege have ever stopped to think about how some of the things they hold very near and dear, like feminism and LGBT rights, would ever have come as far as they have if well-off, educated, privileged (and generally white) people, the driving force behind both, hadn't been powerful enough to push for these causes as forcefully as they did. Both causes might not have been nearly as much of a priority for minority groups.

In any case, when I hear about white privelege, I think of it more as contemporary American bourgeoisie privilege.

>_>

My sincerest apologies if I wasn't supposed to take this seriously and was supposed do things like ask Sandman about his summer home in the Hamptons instead. Kappa
 
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I believe privilege has far more to do with money and social status than it does race, although race does play a part. Example: Obama had far more privilege than I did growing up, being able to attend elite colleges and whatnot.

And conversely, poor white trash isn't exactly doing that well financially.

The solution, IMO, lies not in government measures but in the perception of the minds of the people. We need to raise a new generation of people that actually does give everyone the benefit of doubt, whatever color they are. Though of course such a thing is easier said than done. The past 5 decades in America since Martin Luther King have seen an attempt to change the hearts and minds of the people with 'diversity' acceptance programs.

I think people's perception of race in general is changing, but it's happening much slower than we want it too. I've seen first hand how police officers make assumptions about race and mistreat black people.

That being said, affirmative action needs to be canned. A black person with a lower GPA can be accepted into an elite school than what a white person is required to have. This is unfair for both parties. Hard working white's get denied, slacking blacks get accepted and leaves the black person with a 2.5 GPA pretty unprepared for not only the better college, but also in the real job world.

Though I have to be completely honest here about my own prejudices. When I see a person (black or white) dressed like a wannabe gangster, talk in incomprehensible ebonics, and walk around with a huge chip on their shoulder, it's like my mind automatically puts them in my mental trash bin and I pretty much stop listening. It just so happens that more of these types of people happen to be black than white. This is all about culture. If you were raised around certain types of people, you're going to end up that way (mostly).

The biggest reason why blacks don't achieve as much as whites goes all the way back to slavery. After a few generations of systematic slavery, it became a self-perpetuating self fulfilling prophecy of an underclass culture IE Black culture. Enslaving any group of people leads to the destruction of their intellect. I hate to be devils advocate here but it's true. Once the ball starts rolling, it creates generation after generation of stupidity and ignorance.

It doesn't stop until desperate measures are put in place, which is what affirmative action tried to do, but failed IMO.

We need something better than affirmative action, we need people to become more accepting of people who are different in general.
 
Lol did you just call every black guy since slavery stupid?

Yeah..................

The biggest reason why blacks don't achieve as much as whites goes all the way back to slavery. After a few generations of systematic slavery, it became a self-perpetuating self fulfilling prophecy of an underclass culture IE Black culture. Enslaving any group of people leads to the destruction of their intellect. I hate to be devils advocate here but it's true. Once the ball starts rolling, it creates generation after generation of stupidity and ignorance.

Even in the worst conditions, there are geniuses. Learn a little about the history of the U.S. and you'll find a nice amount of inventors and innovators who are black. Not to mention how our music, food, and all other sorts of culture are effected by their presence in the U.S. These are the people who invented Jazz for example, not sure if you know a lot about music theory. But that art form is the direct opposite of stupidity and ignorance. Not only did African Americans have to break through extreme prejudice and racism. They were able to do it in a way that was fairly peaceful and smart. Martin Luther King's a genius, you say there is a self fulfilling prophecy, but he thrived in a position where many people wanted him to fail. He even got shot for his efforts. So yeah........

http://www.black-inventor.com/Otis-Boykin.asp

http://www.black-inventor.com/George-Washington-Carver.asp
 
I also failed to mention that Malcolm X, another famous black rights activist also got shot.................
 
Yet another race thread? Damn 8WR, calm your tits down. I do agree with the general consensus in the thread though, most of what people perceive as racial issues are in reality class issues. Also, inb4 BUT BLACK CULTURE!!:
Bill Cosby said:
"They're standing on the corner and they can't speak English. I can't even talk the way these people talk...
Why you ain't
Where you is
What he drive
Where he stay
Where he work
Who you be...
And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk.
And then I heard the father talk.

Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth.
In fact, you will never get any kind of job making a decent living. People marched and were hit in the face with rocks to get an education, and now we've got these knuckleheads walking around.
The lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal.
These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids. $500 sneakers for what??
And they won't spend $200 for Hooked on Phonics.

I am talking about these people who cry when their son is standing there in an orange suit.
Where were you when he was 2??
Where were you when he was 12??
Where were you when he was 18 and how come you didn't know that he had a pistol??
And where is the father?? Or, who is his father?

People putting their clothes on backward, isn't that a sign of something gone wrong?
People with their hats on backward, pants down around the crack, isn't that a sign of something?
Or, are you waiting for Jesus to pull his pants up?
Isn't it a sign of something when she has her dress all the way up and got all type of needles [piercing] going through her body?
What part of Africa did this come from??
We are not Africans. Those people are not Africans. They don't know a thing about Africa .
With names like Shaniqua, Taliqua and Mohammed and all of that crap, and all of them are in jail.

Brown or black versus the Board of Education is no longer the white person's problem.
We have got to take the neighborhood back.
People used to be ashamed. Today, a woman has eight children with eight different 'husbands' -- or men or whatever you call them now.
We have millionaire football players who cannot read.
We have million-dollar basketball players who can't write two paragraphs.
We, as black folks have to do a better job. Someone working at Wal- Mart with seven kids... you are hurting us.
We have to start holding each other to a higher standard.
We cannot blame the white people any longer."

- Dr. William Henry 'Bill' Cosby, Jr., Ed.D.
 
Yet another race thread? Damn 8WR, calm your tits down. I do agree with the general consensus in the thread though, most of what people perceive as racial issues are in reality class issues. Also, inb4 BUT BLACK CULTURE!!:

Classes were set up by race in early America though. Which still effects what is going on today. Considering things were still segregated only 60 years ago. We had the internment camps in WW2 my grandparents were actually sent to. It's amazing how easy people tend to forget history.
 
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Lol did you just call every black guy since slavery stupid?
He sho did. Ah shoulda listen to mah momma cuz da white people da devils. Ah is black and proud!

Ah can count to 5. 1....2.........wut next aftah 2? 3.......4.......5......Oh give me a high five brotha! Hallelujah! Ah can count to five. Ah don't need no books.
 
You know, I was going to post my thoughts on the matter but I think this speech speaks for me any words I should like to say, only better.

 
I do agree with the general consensus in the thread though, most of what people perceive as racial issues are in reality class issues.
Why not both?

In other news, I seem to be stumbling upon a lot of stories about police attacking and sometimes killing black people for the weakest of reasons as of late, especially since the protests in Ferguson began. I'll certainly double check for myself for any biases, but I seem to hear of these things happening to people of colour the most. If all that is to be believed - and I have plenty of reason to so far - another factor of white privilege [in America] is being far less likely to be considered suspicious by the police for something as ordinary as being visible on a sidewalk.

I think when it comes down to it, white privilege to me means that being white is the "default", and all else is a deviation of some sort in the minds of most.
 
Yeah..................



Even in the worst conditions, there are geniuses. Learn a little about the history of the U.S. and you'll find a nice amount of inventors and innovators who are black. Not to mention how our music, food, and all other sorts of culture are effected by their presence in the U.S. These are the people who invented Jazz for example, not sure if you know a lot about music theory. But that art form is the direct opposite of stupidity and ignorance. Not only did African Americans have to break through extreme prejudice and racism. They were able to do it in a way that was fairly peaceful and smart. Martin Luther King's a genius, you say there is a self fulfilling prophecy, but he thrived in a position where many people wanted him to fail. He even got shot for his efforts. So yeah........

http://www.black-inventor.com/Otis-Boykin.asp

http://www.black-inventor.com/George-Washington-Carver.asp

You speak as if I've never heard of a smart black guy. Of course they're our there, but I was referring to averages. I love listening to Neil Degrasse Tyson for example.

Jazz and blues is not really my cup of tea. I could make an argument for why that music is stupid, but I won't go there.

Also, "learn a little about US history". You forget I'm older than you bra. I went to school and took college history classes just as you did.

Basically the point of what I was saying in a nutshell was that enslaving any race leads to their downfall, and may take dozens of generations for that race to climb up the social ladder.
 
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