Exploring My Privilege Points
Exploring My Privilege Points
Alda Sarmiento
Western Washington Univserity
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The thought of privilege was never a new concept to me. It seems that at a young age, I sensed I was more fortunate than some but less than others. Growing up in Seattle, a city encompassing many cultures and lifestyles, I learned about diversity. Attending various schools,
I was constantly surrounded by students of different races, and socioeconomic statuses. At home, some of our family friends were not of the dominant ideology; some were gay, others poor or with a disability. Exposure to these socially constructed identities molded me as a person to have an open mind to numerous types of people. I was raised knowing that differences can vary a person’s placement on the levels of hierarchy, some people getting an unequal share of opportunities than others. However, it wasn’t until recently in my college years that I had clearly noticed my own set of socially constructed identities and privileges. Taking classes on social justice was a revelation of my experiences and gave reasoning for the ways that I have been treated throughout my life. The growth of my awareness became more prominent especially in
Diversity and Social Justice, given the multiple opportunities of self-reflection and discussion.
As each reading was assigned, I was enlightened by several forms of marginalization and stigmatization. The more I was able to comprehend, the more I came to grasp what words like equity, power, institutionalization, oppression and privilege meant. Undoubtedly, I started to see how society works.
The first step to my realization was to understand the concept of privilege. As I have come to learn, privilege evolves over time and has taken many forms. It gives people an incentive to favor others while the rest are looked down upon. It also emphasizes what society portrays as the dominant and subordinate groups, creating a larger division and disregarding equality. An example of privilege is demonstrated in the following quote:

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Disability has functioned historically to justify inequality for disabled people themselves, but it has also done so for women and minority groups. That is, not only has it been considered justifiable to treat disabled people unequally, but the concept of disability has been used to justify discrimination against other groups by attributing disability to them
(Baynton, 2014, p.94)
For part of our class, there was video material of Jackson Katz who recognized how dominant groups are almost, if not always, excluded from daily conversation (TEDx Talks). This is because the subject of the conversation has shifted from individuals who discriminate to those who are discriminated (TEDx Talks). Rather than focusing on the real issue of increased inequality, attention is drawn elsewhere, allowing coercion. The previous quote is a prime example of how this process works. By lacking characteristics of the dominant group, oppression towards the subordinate group often occurs much like how people with disabilities, minority groups and women are treated in contrast to their oppressors. For lack of a better explanation, privilege is comparable to walking with the wind, rather than against it (Kimmel, 2014, p.1). It is easy to make progress when the wind is behind you, carrying you afloat but when you challenge the current; it is difficult to make advancement. By having ascribed characteristics, one can be born with privilege and make their journey through life more effortless than others. As Kimmel
(2014) acknowledges, “To be white, or straight, or male, or middle class is to be simultaneously ubiquitous and invisible”, indicating the standing of its social acceptance in society (p. 3).
Because this description is classified as the dominant ideology, it has also become significantly engrained in our daily lives that people need to excuse themselves for being included in superordinate categories (Kimmel, 2014, p. 2). For instance, when a person tells a joke about black people and follows by saying “It’s okay, I’m friends with a black person”, they are

Exploring My Privilege Points implying that they are not racist. Yet, out of all the examples of marginalization and
Sarmiento 4 discrimination, this was just one of many demonstrating the imbalance and power of society’s assumed hierarchy of privilege.
Furthermore, what is important to understand is the notion that where there is privilege, there is also inequality. Privilege is an alternative for what normal is constituted as, and inequality is developed when the subordinate groups are judged by society when they lack therein. “The characteristics and attributes of those who are privileged group members are described as societal norms – as the way things are and as what is normal in society… those who stand outside are the aberrant…”(Wildman & Davis, 2012, p. 110). As a result, dominant groups are less prone to forms of oppression and stigmatization than their counterparts; in fact, they even profit from it. To elaborate, a man admitted to benefitting from women’s objectification and subordination, to which his confession follows:
I have been witness to the conversations of men who asses women by their body parts. I do not have to worry about whether I need to leave the office before it gets too dark or walk through the alley that is a short cut to the parking garage where my car is parked…
It did not occur to me that women have been sexually assaulted in this alley. I have the privilege of not needing to know this information… I realized the privilege of assuming physical safety (Spencer, 2008, p. 100)
This person grasped what some struggle to comprehend – what their own socially constructed identities offer. Reflecting on his parallels to dominant culture, he understood that he was fortunate enough by his male identity to not have to contemplate over his safety for fear of being in danger. In assessing the quote further, the author acknowledges that women are oppressed and men are liberated when physicality is put into perspective. In brief, females are met with inequity

Exploring My Privilege Points Sarmiento 5 whereas males experience the benefits of their sexual identification. Similarly, various minority groups are faced with other types of subordination when rank and statuses are mentioned, questioning their worth in society. According to Robinson’s (1999) article, discourses are useful in placing “individuals in power relations with one another” and can establish hierarchy (p. 73).
An example of power relations and hierarchy is Peggy McIntosh’s concept of the invisible knapsack that carried a list of special circumstances of her unfairly advantaged experiences
(McIntosh, 2014). Due to her white skin, she recognized situations in her life that others may not have been able to fathom; noting her unearned privilege to which made her feel entitled to certain conditions, as if it were her birth-right (McIntosh, 2014, p. 18). It offers the impression that the dominant ideology is given the most control in society. On the other hand, the subordinate groups are associated by negative connotation, sometimes, but not always, being prejudiced and marginalized. Consequently, it is possible that the gap of systemic unfairness fuels power to the status quo and becomes more difficult to reach egalitarianism. However, it was always questionable when analyzing social justice and understanding how privilege and inequality work.
Continuing my reflection of social construction, I will discuss how different identities can be impacted by what type of group, dominant or subordinate, it is associated with. The idea of race, for instance, can be taken both ways, depending on which race a person identifies as. In
Dalton’s (2008) text, he implies that most white people do not see themselves to have a race, hence their failure to see privilege and their difficulty in understanding other races. As the result of this, he notes that “race and hierarchy are inextricably intertwined” (Dalton, 2008, p. 17).
Because being white is a dominant group in itself, this is an example of inequity, power and institutionalized oppression. According to Pem Davidson Buck (2010), “the elite had to ‘teach

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Whites the value of whiteness’ in order to divide and rule their labor force” (p. 33) which, in turn, “emphasized whiteness as a benefit in itself” (p. 36). However, it seems that the lighter a person’s skin tone is, the more likely they are to be privileged and vice versa. Spencer (2008) acknowledged his advantage when it allowed him to be accepted within dominant culture.
Although assimilated, he benefitted by having a better education, job etc. On the other hand, there are still backlashes of slavery that destroyed African cultural heritage; forcing them to make do with whatever else they had left (Dalton, 2008, pg. 17). In processing these texts, it confirmed my beliefs of race and it’s relation to power; that the white people are more fortunate than their counterparts whether they recognize it or not.
In addition, the social construction of ability or inability also varies in fortune. Take, for example, an able-bodied person. They are not made aware of their unearned privileges until they undergo foot surgery, are deprived of one of their senses or witness the freedoms of able-body culture (Robinson, 1999, p. 74). Out of the assumption that all people be born able-bodied, “our society, despite the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990), is neither constructed for nor friendly toward persons who are not able bodied” (Robinson, 1999, p. 74). With a bit of examining, there is a clear theme of supremacy over people with disabilities. In like manner, if a person is disabled in some way, it would be labeled clinically as a disorder, syndrome, symptom or impairment. This was concluded in reading several articles and journals of types of disabilities, to which evaluate the social construction of the terms and the treatment along with it.
To illustrate, there is an article about Asperger Syndrome that demonstrates in a very general sense how people with disabilities are separated from able-bodied persons (Molloy & Vasil,
2002). According to Richard K. Scotch (2009), “disabled people were perceived as a dependent, marginal, and often morally questionable minority who required special care but were best kept

Exploring My Privilege Points Sarmiento 7 out of public life through a combination of charity and social exclusion” (p. 17). Although disability rights eventually became enacted, derogatory portrayal is still present to this day
(Scotch, 2009). In my comprehension, grasping the idea of ability and inability was something that I needed time to reflect on. Because I do not identify with a disability, it was brought to my attention how many more opportunities I have in comparison to those who do. It was interesting to factor in what I have that others don’t.
Moreover, socioeconomic status seems to be more of a controversial issue regarding classism, dividing the influence in society by income. With power relations, there are stereotypes that fit to status such as associating lower socioeconomic status groups with negative attributes,
“e.g. lazy, unkind, stupid, alcoholic, and drug abuse, while middle-class targets were rated as having more positive traits, e.g., hardworking, healthy, intelligent and nice” (Gilmore & Harris,
2008, p. 883). Furthermore, a comparison was done over individuals who were “affluent” or
“not so affluent” and this gave an opposite result – affluent characters were also seen as “being less kind, less likeable, less honest, less caring of others, less of a potential friend” (Filmore &
Harris, 2008, p. 883). Back to Spencer (2008) and his many identities, he realized how his education made a pivotal transformation in his life from impoverished to middle-class, understanding both ends of the continuum. In coming to terms with socioeconomic status, I have concluded that although being affluent is beneficial in some ways, it also correlates to negative traits. While the power of status can be oppressive, it is oppressed in itself given the examples previously used. With this, I have grown in my awareness by acknowledging how chaotic classism can become. Admittedly, I am struggling to pinpoint other factors that I missed because it seems that I have only gotten more confused in writing about it but there is still time for me to learn and educate myself.

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What I am confident about is the topic of sexual identity. But because it can be very difficult to explain sex without gender for some like myself, I will also be discussing it. Sex is what you identify as if you were born male or female. Gender, on the other hand, is the social construct of what it means to be either sex. Very often, people who do not identify parallel to their ascribed sex are oppressed by the rest of society. For instance, words like heterosexual and homosexual were used to create a disparity between what is socially acceptable and what is not.
To elaborate, this means “to be heterosexual is morally superior to being gay, lesbian, or bisexual” (Robinson, 1999, p. 75). Additionally,
Heterosexism is the perspective that heterosexuality represents the only normal model of human sexual relationships… Heterosexism can also arouse fear in men about the appropriateness of physical affection with other men (sons and fathers included) due to socialization practices that regard anything associated with femininity as taboo. Because male privilege has a qualifier of heterosexuality, there is concern that engaging in behaviors deemed as feminine would be misconstrued not only as a denial of masculinity but also as a threat to heterosexuality (Robinson, 1999, p. 77)
As one can see, a cisgender identity is what society aims for. Social construction wants people to pair up by male and female. The dominant ideology is to live by your sex and this concept has made it difficult for LGBT to roam freely. Although there are numerous heterosexual allies advocating and supporting their counterparts, there are many instances in which they do not behave as allies (DiStefano, Croteau, Anderson, Kampa-Kokesch & Bullard, 2000,). For example, “Most participants described their failures to be an ally in the face of such expressions of homophobia or heterosexism as some form of ‘remain[ing] silent’” or by laughing and joking along (DiStefano et al., 2000, p. 136). Gender is reinforced when we use words like “husband”

Exploring My Privilege Points Sarmiento 9 and “wife” to describe marriage but when another form of orientation is brought up; it is disregarded for lack of being the norm (Wildman & Davis, 2012, p. 108). What I took from this is that discrimination and oppression against those who identify differently than the dominant ideology are shamed for being who they are. The privilege I see in this is a heterosexual person’s ability to walk with their partner in public and share their affection. It also reminds me of their freedom to not hide and be ostracized for being straight. I identify myself as a heterosexual female and follow the dominant group. Because of this, it is one less thing I need to worry about in my life.
However, regarding myself holistically, I represent my intersectional systems. I am a
Filipino-American who identities as a heterosexual, able-bodied, and working class person.
Although I do not fit some points of the dominant ideology, I do still benefit from others. As an individual that cannot separate my socially constructed identities, I symbolize other people like me. Whether I am faced with institutional oppression for being non-white and working class, there are positive influences in my life that has allowed me to be given certain privileges. It is impossible to observe me in separate categories because each distinctive characteristic of my life influences each other. Therefore, if one of my identities was taken away, I would not be myself.
Separating who I am by my race, socioeconomic status, ability, sexual identity and gender would not factor the decision making processes in endured in my lifetime and the reason being for them. It would disregard how I am a woman of color that has needs especially pertaining to being just that – a woman and a person of color. One cannot assume that by solving the needs of one identity, it solves all identities. Simply put, I am a person who has more or less needs than the person besides. I am unique in my own way and others in their own. This is how

Exploring My Privilege Points Sarmiento 10 intersectionality works. It is a system that cannot be separated; rather it needs to be regarded completely, and wholly.
In conclusion, it would be ideal to challenge the dominant ideology. As a growing
Human Services professional, that is my job. I am responsible for understanding and advocating for those who are unable to defend themselves. It will also be a test to me and my intersectional systems. By defying the dominant ideology of socially constructed norms, it means that I have to grasp the concept of privilege. In educating myself on equity, power and institutionalized oppression, it is one step closer to awareness. In a sense, this reflection has already somewhat contested against the norm. I recognized my identities and acknowledged the amount of power I benefit from each one. Yet, although I have not had a completely positive experience throughout all of them, I know that somewhere my voice will be heard. I think to really challenge the dominant ideology; one has to take advantage of their freedom of speech. A reflection of all things is just the beginning.

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References
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Buck, P. D. (2010). Constructing race, creating white privilege. In P. S. Rothenberg
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Dalton, H. (2008). Failing to see. In P. S. Rothenberg (Ed.), White privilege: Essential readings on the other side of racism (pp. 15-18). New York: Worth Publishers.
DiStefano, T. M., Croteau, J. M., Anderson, M. Z., Kampa-Kokesch, S., & Bullard, M. A.
(2000). Experiences of being heterosexual allies to Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual people: A qualitative exploration. Journal of College Counseling, 3(2), 131-141.
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Molloy, H., & Vasil, L. (2002). Asperger syndrome: The pathologising of difference? Disability
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Scotch, R. K. (2009). “Nothing about us without us”: Disability rights in America. OAH

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Spencer, M. S. (2008). A social worker’s reflections on power, privilege, and oppression. Social
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TEDx Talks. (2013, Feb). Violence against women–it’s a men’s issue: Jackson Katz at
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