White Privelege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack by Peggy McIntosh
REFLECTION:
I read this article by Peggy McIntosh and it reminded me of my experience in class the other day when Dr. Bogad went over S.C.W.A.A.M.P. When we went over this in class it completely made me realize that I was in the culture of power. Before reading this article and before this FNED class I never even realized that I was so much more privileged than other people. Reading the list of things that McIntosh wrote of ways in which she feels privileged compared to people of other races made me realize that the list pertains to me too. I never thought of it from a black person's point of view before. I wanted to see it from a black person's point of view so I did some searching on the internet.I'm sure that there are even worse stories than these but, after I read a few of these stories it just makes me realize how rude people are to people of color. I would absolutely hate to be treated like that just because of my skin color.
I don't personally have any black friends, but I really wish that I did because I feel like it would make me more aware of how black people feel and how they live compared to my lifestyle. In McIntosh's list she mentioned in number nineteen that, "If a traffic cop pulls me over, or if the IRS audits my tax return, I can be sure I haven't been singled out because of my race. " This number on the list reminds me that I won't be getting pulled over unless I really did break the law in some way because I'm white. In a movie that I recently saw, a different situation happened. The movie I watched is all about racism and it really is a great movie to watch. The movie is called Crash. In the movie a veteran cop pulls over a black couple in an SUV merely because they are black. When he pulls them over he makes them get out of the car and he frisks them with his partner. The partner frisks the black male and the veteran cop frisks the black female. He has no reason to treat her badly but he does and he sexually assaults her. The black couple cannot do anything about it. They cannot report this to authority because the person that did this was authority. They had to go home without any dignity. McIntosh's article makes me feel lucky that I have privilege because I'm white, but it also makes me feel terrible for others who don't have the privilege. I wish that there was some way I could help in a big way.
Questions/Comments/Points to Share:
Does anybody have any racism stories that they would like to tell? Has anybody ever witnessed anything happen or have they experienced it themselves? It really interests me to hear the type of stories to make me aware because I am not discriminated by my race and I want to see it from another person's view.
I also thought McIntosh's piece was interesting and definitely an eye opener to many, some more than others. I can tell by your response in writing you aren't too familiar with the examples she uses in her text. One thing I noticed in your response was your reference to "black people." Not only are African Americans treated unfairly and underprivileged, but people of all races other than Caucasian. Also, to answer one of your questions following your post, I am best friends with an African American woman and I was also in an interracial relationship for about two and a half years with an African American man. In the time I have spent with the both of them, including many other friends of mine, I have been present on numerous occasions in which racial differences were made well known. Whether it was restaurants we went to where they had been before without a person not of color, and noticed how they were treated differently and better in many cases when I accompanied them. There was also one time we were pulled over and as soon as the police officer bent over to see who else was in the car his tone of voice and facial expression did a complete 360 when he saw me, a white female. These are just a few examples of what I have seen with my own eyes and each time it has happened and still does, it makes me sick to my stomach. Although I was open to understanding what it was like or how it felt to be discriminated against for simply being born of a different race and living in a predominantly white society, the fact is you can't unless you experience it yourself. I gained a slightly deeper understanding when I attended opening day for a Spanish softball league I played for last summer. I was the only Caucasian person there other than the Mayor, and was surrounded by nearly 450 Spanish speaking people of all ages. It wasn't until then I felt more of what it was like to be "different" as society so loosely describes it.
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