NYT proves it! White privilege is "real"

[hornadylnl]

It would seem pretty obvious to me that the treatment blacks receive walking through a neighborhood is pretty disproportionate to whites. They don't dare look in the direction of a house. There's an Indian grandpa who can attest to that.

 

[Que]

It would seem pretty obvious to me that the treatment blacks receive walking through a neighborhood is pretty disproportionate to whites. They don't dare look in the direction of a house. There's an Indian grandpa who can attest to that.

I saw that video. That man and his family can sue and protest as much as they want. What would happen if his son's neighbors did more than say "that's sad"? Would the change of mind happen as a result of the Indian family taking a stand or their neighbors saying "We will not stand for this!"? Who will the police and politicians pay attention to?

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Well, I am too, but that still didn't let me avoid the label "checkbox" or "token" when I first got hired at my PD, some by officers, some by people other than officers. Despite the fact that I had more education than the vast majority of my peers, worked in LE prior, and spoke Spanish.

You know as well as I do some people ARE there because of the checkbox, just like some would be there even without it. You can't have it both ways. If you want affirmative action and hiring preferences, you'll have to live with the fact not everyone is equally qualified for the job who gets hired and that will cause the question in people's mind, were you qualified or where you an affirmative action hire. If you don't want to face the questions, don't support affirmative action hiring and have everyone treated race neutral in the hiring process.

You can't pick to be set apart when its positive and pick to be assimilated when its not. Same point I was making in the Black History Month thread.

As far as your laundry incident, yup, the guy was biased if not racist. The likely candidate is race, but could it be something else?

The thing that most comes to mind is when I was contracting. Shepherd and Brunson were too of my buddies I hung out with all the time. Shepherd was a linebacker in college and looked like it. Brunson was built like a sprinter. Both were black, and I'm white. Brunson complained that taxis wouldn't pick him up when he was alone. They picked me up just fine and would pick us both up together just fine, or would pick all three of us up just fine, so our first instinct is its racism. Then we noticed that Shepherd had no problems getting picked up in taxis when he went out alone. Now we couldn't figure out WTF the deal was, so we just asked a taxi driver. He told us that Brunson looked African, and Africans bolt from the taxi without paying. Shepherd was so big he was obviously American (in their eyes) and he would pay. They didn't care about skin color, they cared about nationality. Once they knew Brunson was American, they picked him up fine, too.

Shepherd and I were definitely enjoying a privilege over Brunson. The "American privilege" it turned out. One that Brunson could only use with taxi drivers that already knew him. Just saying, sometimes things that look to be about race may be about something different...even if they usually do end up being about race.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

 

[rugertoter]

Sick of all this minority/majority bullcrap. It is all designed to gain something...usually by crooked means. Can you even imagine how much screwed up stuff, could be made right, if all the races would just dump all this arguing? So tailor made for a politician.

 

[Bill of Rights]

I did not and do not intend to read the article. That said, I will say that there is "privilege" for various people depending on where they are and when, sometimes due to their skin color and sometimes due to religion and sometimes due to whatever you want to use to fill in the blank. I also think there is often a perception of privilege when it does not exist, or when things happening are "business as usual", but not to one's own advantage.

A woman gives her adult son two ties for his birthday. He immediately goes and puts one on and returns, and her reply on seeing him was, "What, you didn't like the other one?"

Was it bias or was it simply that he could only wear one?

Honestly, I'd say that "White privilege" or "Black privilege" or _________ privilege is probably a "thing"... but it's not an organized thing, such that ALL Whites/Blacks/whatever get it and all non-Whites/Blacks/whatever don't. We all have prejudices... things we judge as preferable to us based on nothing to do with the actual thing.

And if you say you don't have any, I suggest you re-examine yourself. Look at the people to whom you are attracted or with whom you're friendly. Look at the foods you eat (or won't eat). The meaning of the bias or the "privilege" depends on what you assign to it. Most of those things don't really matter. If, of all your friends, 60% are one or another color, what difference does it make?

Al Sharpton would walk into a store and see one clerk waiting on one customer while the other waited in line and would call bias if the latter was Black, but bias could be called if the former was, too. And if both were White, why are there no Black customers? If both were Black, why are there no White people who have to wait their turn in line? I prefer Morgan Freeman's approach. Want to stop racism? (mod hat off) Stop talking about it.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[hornadylnl]

I saw that video. That man and his family can sue and protest as much as they want. What would happen if his son's neighbors did more than say "that's sad"? Would the change of mind happen as a result of the Indian family taking a stand or their neighbors saying "We will not stand for this!"? Who will the police and politicians pay attention to?

Unfortunately, I don't think the neighbors will change one bit. One only need to read INGO to know that most minds will never be changed.

 

[Kutnupe14]

So who is butthurt?

I'd like to turn the psychological end of this stick right back at you. If you feel whites are more privileged than you than maybe that says something about your personal view of your own race. Your racist against your own people and you can't even see it. You see your own people as being of lesser value than whites. You and people who think like you are the problem. I personally don't give two squirts of **** what color someone is. If they are a good person that's all that matters.

Lol, what? I'm racist against black people? Not sure if srs?

 

[Que]

Unfortunately, I don't think the neighbors will change one bit. One only need to read INGO to know that most minds will never be changed.

I disagree. How does the average person understand the power they have when they cannot see it? I have privilege as a man and at times have had to correct other men for their treatment of women. At one time, I thought that's just how things were, but after learning about how women in the work force are faced with certain disenfranchisements, and how I received certain benefits as a male, I learned how to make things better. It's not anything done on purpose and I didn't ask for it, but I've seen the voice of ver capable women stifled. I've seen this happen to minirities, as well. Is it intentional? I don't think so. But, I know when someone is willing to look at the situation, that privilege can be seen.

Those neighbors just may not know the power that have to make a change in their neighborhood, in this particular area.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

I did not and do not intend to read the article. That said, I will say that there is "privilege" for various people depending on where they are and when, sometimes due to their skin color and sometimes due to religion and sometimes due to whatever you want to use to fill in the blank. I also think there is often a perception of privilege when it does not exist, or when things happening are "business as usual", but not to one's own advantage.

A woman gives her adult son two ties for his birthday. He immediately goes and puts one on and returns, and her reply on seeing him was, "What, you didn't like the other one?"

Was it bias or was it simply that he could only wear one?

Honestly, I'd say that "White privilege" or "Black privilege" or _________ privilege is probably a "thing"... but it's not an organized thing, such that ALL Whites/Blacks/whatever get it and all non-Whites/Blacks/whatever don't. We all have prejudices... things we judge as preferable to us based on nothing to do with the actual thing.

And if you say you don't have any, I suggest you re-examine yourself. Look at the people to whom you are attracted or with whom you're friendly. Look at the foods you eat (or won't eat). The meaning of the bias or the "privilege" depends on what you assign to it. Most of those things don't really matter. If, of all your friends, 60% are one or another color, what difference does it make?

Al Sharpton would walk into a store and see one clerk waiting on one customer while the other waited in line and would call bias if the latter was Black, but bias could be called if the former was, too. And if both were White, why are there no Black customers? If both were Black, why are there no White people who have to wait their turn in line? I prefer Morgan Freeman's approach. Want to stop racism? (mod hat off) Stop talking about it.

Blessings,
Bill

I agree with this 100%.

 

[Kutnupe14]

I just don't realize how easy and privledged I have been.

Its amazing how I have overcome my wealth and privledge in order to understand your checked box butthurt

​put your big boy pants on and live with it. Everybody has something to deal with.

I do live with it, but am I not allowed to recognize it?

 

[hornadylnl]

I disagree. How does the average person understand the power they have when they cannot see it? I have privilege as a man and at times have had to correct other men for their treatment of women. At one time, I thought that's just how things were, but after learning about how women in the work force are faced with certain disenfranchisements, and how I received certain benefits as a male, I learned how to make things better. It's not anything done on purpose and I didn't ask for it, but I've seen the voice of ver capable women stifled. I've seen this happen to minirities, as well. Is it intentional? I don't think so. But, I know when someone is willing to look at the situation, that privilege can be seen.

Those neighbors just may not know the power that have to make a change in their neighborhood, in this particular area.

I'd bet that the person who called him in would still make that call if they had the chance to do it over. There's know way to know how many of the neighbors believe the way the caller did and how many didn't. I don't have high hopes that many minds will be changed over this incident. Rarely does their ever seem to be a sea change in thought. It's always a few minds at a time. It's that way regardless whether the issue, is race, sexual orientation, fighting the American revolution or whatever. It doesn't happen overnight.

 

[Kutnupe14]

You know as well as I do some people ARE there because of the checkbox, just like some would be there even without it. You can't have it both ways. If you want affirmative action and hiring preferences, you'll have to live with the fact not everyone is equally qualified for the job who gets hired and that will cause the question in people's mind, were you qualified or where you an affirmative action hire. If you don't want to face the questions, don't support affirmative action hiring and have everyone treated race neutral in the hiring process.

You can't pick to be set apart when its positive and pick to be assimilated when its not. Same point I was making in the Black History Month thread.

Of course there are people that the product of affirmative action. And for the record, I do not agree with affirmative action. I don't want anybody hired based on any preference other than ability. If you are willing to live with affirmative action, then you must willing to live with people being label "checkboxes." I would prefer to not tolerate either.

As far as your laundry incident, yup, the guy was biased if not racist. The likely candidate is race, but could it be something else?

The thing that most comes to mind is when I was contracting. Shepherd and Brunson were too of my buddies I hung out with all the time. Shepherd was a linebacker in college and looked like it. Brunson was built like a sprinter. Both were black, and I'm white. Brunson complained that taxis wouldn't pick him up when he was alone. They picked me up just fine and would pick us both up together just fine, or would pick all three of us up just fine, so our first instinct is its racism. Then we noticed that Shepherd had no problems getting picked up in taxis when he went out alone. Now we couldn't figure out WTF the deal was, so we just asked a taxi driver. He told us that Brunson looked African, and Africans bolt from the taxi without paying. Shepherd was so big he was obviously American (in their eyes) and he would pay. They didn't care about skin color, they cared about nationality. Once they knew Brunson was American, they picked him up fine, too.

Shepherd and I were definitely enjoying a privilege over Brunson. The "American privilege" it turned out. One that Brunson could only use with taxi drivers that already knew him. Just saying, sometimes things that look to be about race may be about something different...even if they usually do end up being about race.

Was this in Europe? I've had the EXACT same experience. I was in London, in 2002, tooling around and had a devil of a time hailing a taxi. I got passed so many times, I couldn't count. I finally found a cab with its light off and walked up and spoke to the driver. He told me that taxi wouldn't pick me up because, I was black, and that they thought I was African, and described the exact same reasonings that you described. You story only strengthens my assertion about privilege. I never stated that privilege is confined solely to race. Your experience nicely describes American Privilege. As an American obviously has an advantage in that situation. Now had your athletic friend had never been part of this experience, he would have been none the wiser concerning others that aren't fortunate enough to catch a taxi, because they aren't American.

 

[Kutnupe14]

I agree with this 100%.

Bill is spot on.

 

[Que]

I'd bet that the person who called him in would still make that call if they had the chance to do it over. There's know way to know how many of the neighbors believe the way the caller did and how many didn't. I don't have high hopes that many minds will be changed over this incident. Rarely does their ever seem to be a sea change in thought. It's always a few minds at a time. It's that way regardless whether the issue, is race, sexual orientation, fighting the American revolution or whatever. It doesn't happen overnight.

A few at a time is good enough for me. I have some issues in other areas and can be pretty stubborn, too. This is not about calling people bad, but giving them the power to change for the betterment of us all.

 

[hornadylnl]

A few at a time is good enough for me. I have some issues in other areas and can be pretty stubborn, too. This is not about calling people bad, but giving them the power to change for the betterment of us all.

Agreed. Unfortunately the knee jerk response is for the majority to go on the defensive.

 

[Kutnupe14]

It would seem pretty obvious to me that the treatment blacks receive walking through a neighborhood is pretty disproportionate to whites. They don't dare look in the direction of a house. There's an Indian grandpa who can attest to that.

And it could be THEIR neighborhood. This is one of the things that drive me batty. People walking through neighborhoods and then we get a call from a concerned resident that wants a "suspicious person" checked out. The person is checked out, and in many of the cases, they person can point to their home down the road. I feel sorry for our white officers, because to the guy being checked out, it paints them in a bad light, even though they didn't initiate the contact, and were simply doing their job. I've had to step in on more than one occasion, to calm down an angry black person because they thought they were being profiled by police.

 

[BogWalker]

If privilege does exist, what am I to do about it? Intentionally inconvenience myself to make up for it? Turn down offers and promotions? Increase affirmative action?

 

[Que]

If privilege does exist, what am I to do about it? Intentionally inconvenience myself to make up for it? Turn down offers and promotions? Increase affirmative action?

That's a good question. If you saw a woman being robbed and you had an apparent physical advantage over the perp and a Glock 17 (bad choice, but it's your decision) in your holster, what would you do?

To answer simply, in the example you provided, you help when and where you can. It's not about feeling guilty. If you are willing and able to ake a difference, just do what you can.

 

[BogWalker]

That's a good question. If you saw a woman being robbed and you had an apparent physical advantage over the perp and a Glock 17 (bad choice, but it's your decision) in your holster, what would you do?

To answer simply, in the example you provided, you help when and where you can. It's not about feeling guilty. If you are willing and able to ake a difference, just do what you can.

So, don't be racist. Seems like a pretty obvious choice.