Our Shared Shelf discussion

Emma wrote: "I found a great video about privilege online and wanted to share:

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

Thoughts?"

Hits the nail on the head...

Emma wrote: "I found a great video about privilege online and wanted to share:

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

Thoughts?"

Thanks, I like this because rather than vague commentary they have made specific allegations. I do not agree with almost everything they have said.

1) Racism - white is NOT NORMAL! "White" people are only a fraction of the world population and if you travel to countries in Asia, a white person is seen as "abnormal" (for the want of a better word). This "white is normal" comes from Americas and West Europe where "white" people are the majority. The privilege therefore is not about race, but majority.

By the way, in India most population (not all) is brown, so being brown in India does not come with any of the things the video showed.

Also the caricature that those who say "privilege" create, crumbles under the following facts:

Microsoft, CEO: Satya Nadella (India), Not White
Google, CEO: Sundar Pichai (India), Not White
Uber, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi (Iran) Not White
Uber, CTO Thuan Pham (Vietnam) Not White
WhatsApp, CEO, Facebook, MD Jan Koum (Ukraine)
Harman Industries (Parent of Harman Kardon, JBL, Infinity etc), CEO Dinesh C. Paliwal (Indian) Not White

Doesn't this challenge the narrative that only white people get the top positions? And look at the size of the companies the non-white immigrants to the US are heading - Microsoft, Google, Facebook - that's about half the Internet.

Ashwin wrote: "By the way, in India most population (not all) is brown, so being brown in India does not come with any of the things the video showed. ..."

I wonder, I recall seeing a documentary about Bollywood which indicated differently, i.e. it said there that being darker skinned is assicoated with being poor/of lower caste and will get you treated accordingly.

Gerd wrote: I wonder, I recall seeing a documentary about Bollywood which indicated differently, i.e. it said there that being darker skinned is assicoated with being poor/of lower caste and will get you treated accordingly."

There is a distinction here: the fairer skinned people and darker skinned people belong to the same race. It is true that a fairer complexion is seen as more desirable here, but then that is more like how "white" people see pale vs tanned amongst themselves. Just like "white" people go to tanning salons to look "better", in Asia people use "fairness" products.

I'm not saying that Indians are not racist, they are very much racist, as are people of almost every country. The thing I want to emphasise is that racism is not white vs non white - it is majority vs minority. By saying racism is white vs non white, the "non-white" people imply that only "whites" are racist, the truth is all (well, may be almost all) races are racist against racial minorities in their own countries.

I think privilege is the main cause of the decline of any society..Right?We need to end privilege to make the environment better for everyone..not only for rich!!We should start it by our own and then the others will follow us!

Ashwin wrote: "By saying racism is white vs non white, the "non-white" people imply that only "whites" are racist, the truth is all (well, may be almost all) races are racist against racial minorities in their own countries."

That's certainly true.

Ashwin wrote: "Gerd wrote: I wonder, I recall seeing a documentary about Bollywood which indicated differently, i.e. it said there that being darker skinned is assicoated with being poor/of lower caste and will g..."

I think that the video is a very US-centric one... which explains why the video is the way it is.
Also, a lot of other things come into play (in Western societies) when it comes to privilege, such as white-passing and other things...

I like this one!

White Privilege, Explained in One Simple Comic
https://everydayfeminism.com/2014/09/...

Sascha wrote: "I like this one!

White Privilege, Explained in One Simple Comic
https://everydayfeminism.com/2014/09/..."

It's a simple cartoon, but it doesn't explain this concept very well in my personal opinion. I actually think the first factoid actually helps reinforce racism by saying more black people go to prison than white people. Which to those that are already racist, that proves that black people are "more dangerous, break the laws more often" proof that they should be locked away for the safety of our citizens.

No where does it say that black neighborhoods are X times more likely to be patrolled. Or that they are more likely to be pulled over for driving while black, or issued expensive tickets for simple misdemeanors.

Yes your are right, Pam. The example with the prison proportion is not so good - at least as long as you don't tell the context which you explain in your posting.

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo provides a similar take on white privileges. The author describes in details how white privileges shape our culture, interactions, and day to day lives. And more importantly, how people react when being confronted with the fact.


Check out White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Could privilege also be termed as being the favorite? Favorite children get the most attention, most respect, are listened to more, and given more platforms/opportunities to be listened to. What do you think?

What do you mean different cause?

Hum... I would not say that being the favourite is the same than having privileges.
I have the feeling that favourism is more conscious than privilege, in my opinion privileges is something you get when we were borned due to our "physical characteristic" or social background (example: nobility during the middle age), favourism is something we give to someone. Of course this is my own perception and I am pretty sure that other people have other perceptions and I am aware that my point of view may not be accurate ;) Let alone the meaning of the words, in both case the considered person has unfair advantages.

but don't you think privilege is tied to personal bias and feelings too? like in the US, white privilege is tied to a bias towards white people.

and vice versa - favoritism can involve how certain children are born with what the parent feels to be more "favorable" traits, right?

I find the video helpful in understanding the privileges from different groups of society. I see privileges more as food chain in an ecosystem. At large, having our privileges shape our thoughts; how we think and do things.

People who are more privileged tends to have more constructive qualities, more positive and well articulated. People who are less privileged tends to be more destructive in their nature. It is what I call as self-sabotage. Look at the most basic of the circumstances, you'll never find an overprivileged person complaining about privileges.

My point is that while it is good to recognise these privileges but if each individuals fail to take charge of their own thoughts and actions, we'll always be trapped in a unproductive cycle. The purpose of our existence is to ensure that our future generation doesn't end in the same lifecycle as us; to elevate them to the next cycle of the food chain.

I just watched this great video by Kat Lazo from her series The Kat Call and wanna share it with you.

Can LATINOS BENEFIT From WHITE PRIVILEGE?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWt2v...

White privilege, that's just a Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber thing right? Wrong! Kat brings insight on how some Latinos can actually benefit from white privilege and how to use our privilege for good.

Any opinions?

Sascha wrote: "I just watched this great video by Kat Lazo from her series The Kat Call and wanna share it with you.

Can LATINOS BENEFIT From WHITE PRIVILEGE?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWt2v...

White p..."

Hmm, is it covering issues like white-passing?
No time to watch the video right now...