Of the things that have hit my radar as a response to my recent inclusion on a list of quotes about racism, the one thing that really sticks out for detractors is the word privilege. Despite the fact that my statement doesnt actually equate the sum total of privilege with the sum total of racism, I understand why its a sticking point. Its not because people dont know what the word means or because they cant see the effects of racism when confronted with them. Its because of the things I listed as ways that racism manifests - privilege, hate, access, ignorance, apathy - its the one thing they cant personally stop. You could stop hating today. You could provide someone access tomorrow. You could start educating yourself out of ignorance over lunch. By having this conversation longer than five minutes you begin to chip away at apathy. But privilege? Privilege isnt what you have...its what you have access to. And thats something you dont always have a say in. Sure, you can refuse many of the opportunities that privilege provides on a case-by-case basis, but there is a level of opportunity that cant be turned away. Can you turn away being harrassed by Stop and Frisk policies? Or pinpointed for choke holds? Can you turn away ingrained, subconscious opportunities provided by racists reserved solely for certain people alone? No? Then stop defining privilege as things you do or do not possess and start defining it as the possibility to benefit in any number of ways based on one thing that no one else can.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 13:41:54 +0000
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