Privilege

In class we watched a lecture by a man named Tim Wise, a nation-wide lecturer about racial relations in this country and the issues we still face. A particular issue he focused on is the idea of privilege (the underlying white advantage) and how it impacts levels of society.

Now I must admit before seeing this section of his lecture I had heard of privilege but had never thought about it deeply (because I am white and do not deal with the disadvantageous side of privilege).

Unfortunately because of this practice, law enforcement targets non-white individuals to search, airport security targets middle-eastern individuals, and employment opportunities are not equal (even with affirmative action) and our society turns a blind eye because we are "past" those issues. I know this subject makes people uncomfortable, as well it should. But it should make people uncomfortable because of the injustice and need for change, not because it's a taboo subject.

Does the media utilize privilege in its presentation? I believe it does. Unfortunately I don't think even our media has moved past this issue. I think if the media would not stand for privilege and make "white America" more aware I think it would slowly move the country forward into true equality.

Here are some instances this week I have either experienced or seen privilege:

1. I was driving down Jenkins, on the phone, not paying attention (therefore going much faster than I should) and there was a cop sitting on a side street. Granted as soon as I saw him I slowed down because I realized I was going too fast but he did not even stop me for a warning. I have a feeling (it is completely speculation but none the less) that if I would have been another color I would have been much more likely to be stopped.

2. When watching news programs or even the comedy "news" shows, there are very few minorities compared to the number of whites. The media is getting better, but every station seems to have the "token" black person and "token" Asian person. Unfortunately I don't think news programs express the diversity of this country.

3. In the same idea, prime-time television is not as diverse as I believe it should be. In the same way, some shows have a few minorities in the show but many of those shows play off of racial stereotypes.

4. This week I was made aware of a bill being presented in the Oklahoma Legislature that will make English the official language of Oklahoma. This to me says that we are not accepting of other people coming into our country (even though we claim to be the land of dreams, thus enticing other to move here) but then saying that you must accept our language because we are not open to yours.

5. While I was in the kitchen today and NBC was on the television playing Howie Do It and one of covers they used was a television show that breaks into people's houses, breaks and trashes all their old electronics and then replaces them with new ones. Well one of the people being "punked" in this particular situation was a young black man. And when Howie showed up playing a security officer, the young man ran away because given the situation he would have been in tons of trouble.

6. The fact that there are award shows for different races (but not a specifically white show) means that there is not total equality.

7. On that same note, the fact that there are racial organizations on college campuses (and again not white) means there is not total equality.

8. Once again, just the simple fact that there is an African American Studies department on campus means there is something lacking in our history (meaning history is made and told by white men) that there needs to be a department devoted to the other side of things.

Does society still believe in the one drop rule? To this I say, much to my dismay, absolutely. Here's why I say this.

First, in last fall's election, even though President Obama is half black and half white, he is considered a black man. Not just a man of American and African roots, a black man.

Second, on that same token, I have a friend in law school and she is in the same situation as President Obama. Her father is black and her mother is white. Even though she is "mixed" she is classified by our society as black because her skin looks as if she has a permanent tan.

Third, in case the last two do not suffice, one of my friends and coworker has less than 1/4th black and yet she is considered black. To prove that she is classified as such in our society, one day at work a table treated her as if she was a second-class citizen. The people at the table not only did not want to speak with her, but while she was still in ear shot they would denounce her as a person. Whoever thinks racism is a thing of the past is sorely mistaken.

At the end of the Tim Wise lecture he spoke about the responsibility of knowledge. This section of the lecture I found to be very consistant with my beliefs. I do believe that as people are made aware of racial issues they must change their behavior or engage in social change to help make a difference. I know people might say, well I'm just one person, but let's face it, Rosa Parks was just one person.