RUNNING HEADER: Privilege
How Privilege Affects Me
Western Washington University
Margaret Redelinghuis
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RUNNING HEADER: Privilege
Privilege. What does privilege mean? Who has it and what does it do for them?
According to Michael Kimmel, author of Privilege, wrote "privilege is the ability not to have to
take other people's existence seriously" (2014, p 168). Kimmel is saying how in every socially
constructed identity there is a group that has been chosen to be less than compared to the
dominant group. Some socially constructed identities, that have been oppressing other groups
are, sexual identity, gender, race, social economic status, and ability. Each of these five identities
has split the groups into a privileged or non-privileged status. Which means the privileged group
has more say and in a way is in control of how and what the non-privilege group can or cannot
do.
Becoming aware of the privileges that I have been given at birth has dictated the way I go
about my daily life. Every day I have the privilege of getting out of bed and walking to the
bathroom. I also have to privilege of not having to worry about going outside my house into my
neighborhood. My daily privileges are evident when I take a look at all of them in my life. I don't
have to think where my next meal will come from or how I am going to pay rent. Each of
privileges have been more apparent with the study of the non-privileged people in my life.
When we look at privilege we are seeing how each socially constructed group is or has
been oppressed. Since privilege is connected to these socially constructed identities that means
that our privileges are socially constructed as well. Each person's privileges are different and
each person's lives are different. The person how lives in the suburb has the privilege to afford to
not live in the downtown parts of the city. Likewise, an African American man has the privilege
of being a man but then he is dis-privileged in the area race. Privilege is not one way or another
but instead it is a combination of everything in our everyday lives.
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Through out our country and world's history, there has been people who have thought
consciously or unconsciously, that they deserve or are more privileged than another group. When
these people decided this, then they made the decision to put the other people into categories
where these people were not able to have equal lives. The five identities; race, ability,
socioeconomic status, sexual identity, and gender, have all be seen as groups that have a
privileged and unprivileged divide.
Every single person in the world has social constructed identities that shape the way they
are treated and what privileges they have. My social identities are for race: white, ability: have
privilege, socioeconomic status: middle class so I have the privilege, sexual identity: straight so I
have privilege, and gender: female and I am not privileged. I do not think about each of these
identities but they have been shaping me before I was born.
First, race has had a large separation between the dominant group and minority. This
means that anyone who is of the White race is privileged and is able to have more opportunities
than the other non-white races. Racism, as defined by Pem Davidson Buck, wrote "the elite had
to 'teach Whites the value of whiteness' in order to divide and rule their labor force" (2001, p.
33). What the author is saying racism is a form a hate towards others who are not white or part of
the dominant group. Racism was socially constructed in the way that people in America did not
see them as equal and therefore decided to oppress them. With this socially constructed status,
today it is hard to get rid of that status.
From the privileged side of race, a person who is white, has the ability to have more
opportunities than the other. According to Beverly Tatum, "for many white people to be called
racist is the ultimate insult. The idea that this term might only be applied to Whites becomes
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highly problematic for after all, can't people of color be 'low-life' scum too" (1997, p. 129).
Being a privileged white person gives us the power to oppress which means that other races do
not have the power and cannot oppress others. The privilege of race is saying that people who
are white have an easier time progressing through the educational system, political system,
career field, and many other systems. White families, tend to live in the suburbs and have lower
crime rates. This means that for white children, school made more of a priority and they have
the ability to be involved in more after school activities.
A person of color is more likely to live in an unsafe area, where there could be more gang
violence, drug violence, and other stressors that could affect their daily lives. Say in a city like
Chicago where, in history, colored individuals were unable to get home loans in certain areas
which meant they were segregated to specific areas in the inner-city. The lower-income colored
families were living in harsh conditions and this led to higher crime rates in those areas. For a
student, who is trying to get an education, having these extra stressors makes their education not
be a priority. When getting an education is difficult then turning to crime is the easier solution to
making money and surviving through life.
Even though race is socially constructed, that does not mean that it does not affect people
today. In the United States, there is an idea that race is present. There is black, white, mixed,
colored, red, and whatever other color you can think. The dominant ideology has been there ever
since the construction of race.
Throughout this quarter, my awareness has been raised according to the privilege I have
since I am white. Being a different color skin is not equal and there is a problem of equity with
race. Race is socially constructed and if it had never been constructed then there would be equity
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RUNNING HEADER: Privilege
between the races. The group that had the power within race is White. With the differences in
the power relations there is always struggle between people in power and not. The races that
have less power, are unable to be heard and unable to change the discrimination they face every
day. Another part is the institutionalized oppression through race. An example of this is how
people in the poorer parts of America tend to all be in the cities where there is a higher crime
rates and higher population of racial minorities. This correlates to the schooling and how there is
oppression in the school systems since there is less funding to the areas with higher populations
of racial minorities.
The next socially constructed identity is ability. According to Joan L. Griscom, ableism is
oppressing someone who is not able to do everything that a "normal" person can do. "Ableism
can lead to keeping disabled persons hidden, literally out of sight" (1988, p. 476). A person who
has ability is privileged because they do not have to think about their limitations but instead can
do "anything" they want. When a person has a disability they have to adjust their daily tasks so
they can accomplish what they need to in that day. If a person is in a wheelchair, then if they go
to a new place they may need to research where and how they will get from one point to another.
If the building or place is not wheel chair accessible then the person is unable to go to
that location because it is physically impossible. This can make a person feel isolated and alone
because they do not have the privilege of going to these places. A privileged person does have
the ability to go anywhere and not think about the way they will get to the building. This
privilege is invisible since the able person may never think about the how but instead just go
where they want. This is just one example of the differences in this privilege. Some other forms
of this identity are mental , physical, emotional, developmental, and many more. This socially
constructed category and can affect many different people who live everyday with a disability.
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The dominant ideology for ability is that people who have a disability is different in some
way. Since a person cannot walk then they cannot hear you or think. There are many other
examples and to change this ideology there needs to a drastic realization that having a disability
is does not automatically make the person less able to do something.
I have never really thought about how I am able to walk, talk, see, hear, and interact with
people and not think about the how. There is not a lot of equity in the place of people with
disabilities. Our world is built for people who do not have disabilities and that makes a person
with one have an even harder time going through daily life tasks. The idea that our world is only
built for able-bodied people also connects with the institutionalized oppression of disabled
people. Since people with disabilities may have to plan more with getting to places, going to the
bathroom, eating, and basically anything else, we are oppressing these people because they are
restricted in what they can and can't do. The power relations are in comparison to the fact that a
lot of people do not "see" people with disabilities. A lot of people just look the other way
because they are possibly scared of what to say. This is using your privilege of ability even when
you are not purposefully harming people with disabilities.
Thirdly, an identity that affects everyone in one way or another is socioeconomic status.
Class can go into play in this section as well. How much money each person makes, puts each of
us into a class of either privilege or non-privilege. Gregory Mantsios points out how Americans
do not like to use the word "class" because every wants to be seen as the same (2012, p. 189).
There is a difference between class and this ranking determines who goes to college, who gets
the better life, and who can have a better future. Everyone is on this economic ladder which can
determine how much or how little you get as a individual. When a person is privileged by their
socioeconomic status, they tend to have more resources, such as money. Money drives a lot of
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people and it can determine if or when a person has to work or continue school. When a person
of lower privilege decides to go to college then they will either have to spend more time filling
out scholarship forms, applying for financial aid, and figuring out a way to pay for college. On
the other side, when a person is privileged in this area and does not have to think about paying
for college. Then the student has more time to plan and focus on school alone instead of
worrying about how they are going to pay for the next quarter of tuition.
Money, is always going to be around and to put people into a class system just because of
piece of paper is ridiculous. Money makes the world go around and if a person has less of it then
they are seen as dumb since they are unable to buy everything. This dominant thought process in
America is a means for oppressing the poor and not letting them have a chance to change the
path they were born into.
Since money runs everything in our society, it is hard to say that the socioeconomic status
of people isn't thought of or compared among others. We live in a time where people are needing
the biggest and best objects and we think of ourselves as better if we have the latest gadget. This
is where the discrimination of socioeconomic status comes into play. When we are constantly
wanting more so we can be better than the next person, then we are saying that people who
cannot afford the newest object is not as important. Socioeconomic status is part of every aspect
of our daily lives and if we live in an era where objects drive how we treat people then what are
the implications of that?
Socioeconomic status is what we make of it. We can all decide to stay where we were
born or work a lot harder to try and better our status. This status we strive for is socially
constructed and when we will reach the top of having a better status. When we make more
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money than our parents? I learned that our status does not define who we are but rather it turns
our lives into a popularity contest to see who has more (2014, p. 914). Our country is so
involved in wanting more we don't see how much power the corporations have over us. We tend
to buy more and this gives the huge corporations more and more power. As we buy more stuff
we are oppressing ourselves and focusing our attention on the worthless newest items. This is a
sad reality that we are in if we see that this ladder of oppression called socioeconomic status, has
over us and me.
In addition to the previous three identities, the fourth socially constructed one is sexual
orientation. This could be one of most controversial identities that is discriminated against. Many
Christian's would say that you are born as a man or a woman and that you can only be attracted
to the opposite sex. According to the Bible, there are many verses that speak about how
homosexuality is wrong in the eyes of God. This has been brought to the attention of many
people and people who have the privilege to speak these things are using their privilege. The
non-privileged individuals, with a deviant sexuality, are unable to have the same marriage and
legal rights as a couple who is heterosexual. Since this is a way of controlling the lives of the
deviant groups this is oppressing those people. The majority of people in the US are heterosexual
and they tend to be the ones who are making using their privilege against the non-privileged in
this area.
Having the privilege of being heterosexual just shows that I can be oppressing others
without my knowledge. My awareness has been raised that I am using my Christian belief
system to oppress homosexual individuals. I have never thought of my religion being a form of
oppression but since I disagree with this lifestyle then I am combating hatred. This was and is a
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difficult thing to fathom. I am able to see that there is not equity across the border for sexual
identity because people do not have the same rights as others.
People in America are beginning to see homosexuals as being alright. The dominant
ideology in this area is that it is against the Bible and wrong. By saying that their lifestyle is
wrong then we can oppress their lives and not allowing them the freedom to be "normal".
Similarly, the final identity is gender. According to Bethany M. Coston "gender operates
at the level of interaction (one can 'do' gender through interaction) as well as an identity (one can
"have" gender, as in the sum total of socialized attitudes and traits)" (2014, p. 126). Gender is
one of words that seems to have so much meaning but yet if you actually think about it, you may
come to see the basic construction behind it. There are certain roles that has been socially built
into our word gender. Such as women are supposed to take care of the children, stay home, not
work, support the man in everything he does, and be almost less than compared to a man. This
concept of gender is also true with any other differences between a man and a women.
Throughout history, men have always been the primary provider for the needs of a
family. When this now changing, men feel that they need to take a stand and not allow women
the rights or space to pursue a life with a man. Many women are not being looked at as equal but
instead looked at as less than. This is the same basic idea of oppression that the other identities
have. Since men have always been seen as the stronger, wiser, smarter, providers of our society,
they have been "given" the privilege of being in a higher gender role. The women on the other
hand, do not get the same job options as well, are not able to go into politics as easily and the list
continues.
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The dominant ideology is that women have to stay home, have babies, and keep the
family together and right now this role is being challenged. The gender roles throughout history
has been set into motion, but with the ever changing society there is a push to make this nonprivilege of women disappear.
Thinking about my own unprivilege, this had raised an awareness in how I am being
oppressed just for being a female. A man has the privilege of not having to worry about walking
down a dark alley at night, (Spencer, 2008, p. 100) but as a women I have to be cautious and
have my guard up because I could be taken advantage of. Since this is my area of unprivileged I
can see how it affects me in the equity, oppression, and power relations. As a woman, I do not
have common equity with men because men are always seen as stronger, better, in charge, and
above women. Men are able to be paid more and have more job security since they are seen as a
provider. I am being oppressed since I am seen as the house keeper, mother, stay-at-home
mother, less than, and any other thing that people may say I am since I am a female. It is
interesting to think of myself as not up to par even though I can do anything a man does too. The
power relation, is what is keeping women from speaking out. Even though there are less men in
the world, they hold the key to power since they have privilege. They are able to have more
influence because the majority of people will listen to a man than a woman.
My personal identities are always connecting and changing as I move across my privilege
areas. The intersectionality of my privilege shows when I look at the fact that I am White but yet
a women. I am privileged in the fact that I am white and that means that I have more available
privilege in that area. By being a women, I am seen as less than enough and this in turn applies
directly in what I am able to do. It is interesting to be privileged in one area and not be privileged
in another.
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To create change for people who are being oppressed there needs to allies stepping up
and helping create change. For all the people who being oppressed there needs to be a realization
that to change this the oppressed can't do it alone. For me I would chose to opt-in with people
who are racial oppressed. Since my fiancée is half black and half white, I am seeing the
differences in the way he is treated. I was not personally affected by racism and now being with
my fiancée I am affected. A way that I can opt-in is to go to meetings and help encourage racial
minorities that they can be heard and that if they all come together there can be change.
Personally, this would be difficult because I not a very outgoing person and to stand by someone
who is being oppressed will be hard. I know there needs to be a change, and all I need to do is to
help stand by someone and build them up when everyone else is tearing them down.
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References
Alexie, S. (2009). The absolute true diary of a part-time Indian. New York: Little Brown and
Company.
Berube, A. How gay stays white and what kind of white if stays (2001). As In M. S. Kimmel &
A. L. Ferber. (Eds.), Privilege: A reader (p. 168). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Buck, P. D. (2010). Constructing race, creating white privilege. In P. S. Rothenberg
(Ed.), Race, class, and gender in the United States (pp. 33-37). New York: Worth
Publishers.
Coston, B. M., & Kimmel, M. S. (2014). Seeing privilege where it isn’t: Marginalized
masculinities and the intersectionality of privilege. In M. S. Kimmel & A. L. Ferber
(Eds.), Privilege: A reader (pp. 125-141). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Griscom, J. L., (1988). The Case of Sharon Kowalski and Karen Thompson: Ableism,
Hetersexism, and Sexism (472-480). In P.
S. Rothenberg (Ed.), Race, class, and
gender in the United States (pp. 13-22). New York: Worth
Publishers.
Matsios, G. (2012). Class-in America. In P. S. Rothenberg (Ed.), Race, class, and gender in the
United States (pp. 13-22). New York: Worth Publishers.
Spencer, M. S. (2008). A social worker’s reflections on power, privilege, and oppression. Social
Work, 53(2), 99-101.
Tatum, B. (1997) Defining Racism "Can we talk?" (125-140) In P. S. Rothenberg (Ed.), Race,
class and gender in the United States (pp. 13-22). New York: Worth Publishers.
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