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Being white is a privilege, says this PSA.

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C

ChiTownBuffalo

Either I made up lies about the Boston Bomber or I fell for someone else's crap. Either way, I have absolutely no credibility and you should never pay any attention to anything I say, no matter what the context. Perm me if I claim to be an insider
Unfair Campaign PSA

This is from a group based in Minnesota. It specifically speaks to USAmerica.

Personal opinion: Yes, there is white privilege. However, in my personal life, I know people are more aware of this and the general American society is working towards equality. Is this going to be helpful as a PSA? I don't know. It certainly will be polarizing. White privilege is a subtle topic in the realm of race relations, and its so very easy for it to be drowned out by loudmouths on both sides.

Oh..

V416.jpg
 
F

FStop7

Banned
I'm looking at all of the dictionary definitions of the word 'privilege' and I seriously don't like any of them being associated with a race.
 
M

Mumei

Member
FStop7 said:
I'm looking at all of the dictionary definitions of the word 'privilege' and I seriously don't like any of them being associated with a race.
Click to expand...

This is sort of funny in light of the first paragraph in that thing I linked to:

"I’ve been thinking of a way to explain to straight white men how life works for them, without invoking the dreaded word “privilege,” to which they react like vampires being fed a garlic tart at high noon. It’s not that the word “privilege” is incorrect, it’s that it’s not their word. When confronted with “privilege,” they fiddle with the word itself, and haul out the dictionaries and find every possible way to talk about the word but not any of the things the word signifies."​
 
C

ChiTownBuffalo

Either I made up lies about the Boston Bomber or I fell for someone else's crap. Either way, I have absolutely no credibility and you should never pay any attention to anything I say, no matter what the context. Perm me if I claim to be an insider
cashman said:
I wish I was white.
Click to expand...

There's an interesting thing.

Has any person of color here wished they were white?

I did when I was like 12. And then there were definitely stretches until I was 18 or so.
 
J

Jburton

Banned
Not sure what white men are supposed to do about this?

What is the point of this, to instill guilt?


A white man living in poverty might feel that he ain't privileged.
 
H

Half and half

Member
There is definitely some racial imbalance...at least in the US.

But for the most part, it's something that can be largely overcome with hard work. Not completely, but enough.
 
A

arts&crafts

Member
I personally think attractiveness plays more of a role than race. Ex. Attractive black has more privileges than unattractive white.
 
M

Mammoth Jones

Member
Jburton said:
Not sure what white men are supposed to do about this?

What is the point of this, to instill guilt?


A white man living in poverty might feel that he ain't privileged.
Click to expand...

Seriously....watch the video I posted. For real. Take some time and just give it a go. If you want a perspective on it other than "guilt" give it a watch. It's not about guilting White people.
 
F

FStop7

Banned
Mumei said:
This is sort of funny in light of the first paragraph in that thing I linked to:

"I’ve been thinking of a way to explain to straight white men how life works for them, without invoking the dreaded word “privilege,” to which they react like vampires being fed a garlic tart at high noon. It’s not that the word “privilege” is incorrect, it’s that it’s not their word. When confronted with “privilege,” they fiddle with the word itself, and haul out the dictionaries and find every possible way to talk about the word but not any of the things the word signifies."​
Click to expand...

It's more the implication that bothers me. Saying that "being white is a privilege" is an incomplete thought. Being white in a country or society that is white dominated is a privilege. But simply being born of any particular race does not designate superiority or inferiority. That's what I don't like. Does that clear up what I'm getting at?
 
M

Mammoth Jones

Member
ChiTownBuffalo said:
There's an interesting thing.

Has any person of color here wished they were white?

I did when I was like 12. And then there were definitely stretches until I was 18 or so.
Click to expand...

When I was 4 I just assumed people changed color all the time. Like a chameleon. And I thought once I grew up I could "shift" colors. One day I cried after 1st grade and wished I could shift sooner so I wouldn't be called "n****r" at school....
 
W

wenis

Registered for GAF on September 11, 2001.
ChiTownBuffalo said:
There's an interesting thing.

Has any person of color here wished they were white?

I did when I was like 12. And then there were definitely stretches until I was 18 or so.
Click to expand...

When I was younger, yeah. I already knew from a young age shit was rough being mexican, so I tried my hardest to fit in with white kids and "white culture".

But being followed around shops and given a crooked look almost every day from age 12 to now has made it clear I'll never be given a fair first shot. Not by narrow minded or bigoted people.
 
E

Emily Chu

Banned
you definitely get more "play" as a white straight male

mass media make them out to be gods among other brown lesser non white men

oh don't bullshit me GAF

as hard as it to accept, it's the god damn truth

@ least for now.................................................................................................
 
C

ChiTownBuffalo

Either I made up lies about the Boston Bomber or I fell for someone else's crap. Either way, I have absolutely no credibility and you should never pay any attention to anything I say, no matter what the context. Perm me if I claim to be an insider
C

CountAntonius

Member
As a non white person I think this kinda nonsense breeds more hate to people who simply don't deserve it. Plenty of white people struggle regardless of advantages they may have or not.
 
MightyKAC

MightyKAC

Member
arts&crafts said:
I personally think attractiveness plays more of a role than race. Ex. Attractive black has more privileges than unattractive white.
Click to expand...

So between a white attractive person and a black attractive person who do you honestly believe will be more successful?
 
W

WanderingWind

Mecklemore Is My Favorite Wrapper
Yeah, the thread that runs through all this is really poor vs. rich. Race is a smokescreen. White, black...if you're poor, you're going to get shit on, exploited and fucked with. In that video above Wise isn't talking about white privilege. He's talking about the privilege of wealth. It's why people get upset when people talk about how white people are "privileged." Not all white people have roots going back to slave days, not all white people were born in raised in areas that have given them any special privilege.

I was raised in shitty trailer parks in the same community as poor Koreans, black folk and Latinos. It's where I still live. My relatives all were born in the same shit areas of Dayton, Gary and New York, in the melting pot that is supposed to be about diversity, but is really about modern day segregation. But it's not segregation based on skin color, but the contents of your bank account.

Yes, there are a great many privileged white folk in America. But you think that makes it any easier on those who aren't? If you have no food, no place to live, no fucking hope for the future, being told you're privileged isn't a whole lot of comfort.
 
P

pigeon

Banned
ChiTownBuffalo said:
There's an interesting thing.

Has any person of color here wished they were white?

I did when I was like 12. And then there were definitely stretches until I was 18 or so.
Click to expand...

Until I was 20 I BELIEVED I was white -- my mental image of myself was a white guy rather than the hapa guy in the mirror. This sounds a lot more insane written this way than it was in practice. I just wanted to be successful.
 
B

Bay Maximus

Banned
This doesn't make sense. Rush told me that white people, especially heterosexual and white males, have it the most difficult.

ChiTownBuffalo said:
There's an interesting thing.

Has any person of color here wished they were white?

I did when I was like 12. And then there were definitely stretches until I was 18 or so.
Click to expand...

On these very boards there was some guy saying he wished he looked more 'white'. I believe he was from South America or something. I honestly feel sorry for people not comfortable in their own skin. I don't even think it's their fault honestly.
 
D

Duffyside

Banned
CountAntonius said:
As a non white person I think this kinda nonsense breeds more hate to people who simply don't deserve it. Plenty of white people struggle regardless of advantages they may have or not.
Click to expand...

All that needs to be said is "this breeds more hate." And that's totally true.

You could just what was said before this "privilege" nonsense took over, "persons of color have to worry about being followed in a store," instead of what the PSA says "I, white person, don't have to worry about being followed in a store." It's the same message just packaged in a shitty, dumb way. You don't need to make white people feel like assholes just for being born.
 
C

CountAntonius

Member
Duffyside said:
All that needs to be said is "this breeds more hate." And that's totally true.

The PSA says "I don't have to worry about being followed in a store for fear of shoplifting." You could just what was said before this "privilege" nonsense took over, "persons of color have to worry about being followed in a store." You don't need to make white people feel like assholes just for being born.
Click to expand...

This nails it.
 
J

Jburton

Banned
Mammoth Jones said:
Seriously....watch the video I posted. For real. Take some time and just give it a go. If you want a perspective on it other than "guilt" give it a watch. It's not about guilting White people.
Click to expand...

I still don't see the point, I understand inequality exists but what does telling white people that they are "privileged" have to do with changing equality issues?


I don't feel privileged, I am white although not American ..... so maybe the issue is to do with issues with inequality in America and race being a big deal in America.

Where I live poor white people get followed around a store, poor people get pulled over if they are in a rich area etc and so on.

Inequality exists in many forms, not just race.

Gay white people get fucked over regularly as well.
 
E

Esch

Banned
ChiTownBuffalo said:
There's an interesting thing.

Has any person of color here wished they were white?

I did when I was like 12. And then there were definitely stretches until I was 18 or so.
Click to expand...

It would be convenient.

I would be able to talk to women without being fetishized or playing up an ethnic angle.

I would be able to go through TSA without being searched.

I would probably not be afraid of the police.

I wouldn't have had to cry in my youth when people mocked my culture and religion.


At the very least, it would save me time. But I like being what I am now that im older.
 
R

Reuenthal

Banned
So the video says that white people are privileged because certain bad things are not happening to them because they are privileged/ We need to solve black disadvantage and not people having privilege of other people looking at the person not the color and so on. Basically black disadvantage is the biggest issue and when it comes to making a campaign against racism focusing on how to stop the disadvantage and racism towards certain people sounds a better starting point than focusing on "white people are privileged". Bassically the way to look at this is how to elevate everyone into sharing the privilege of not having racism against them than fostering feelings of guilt on those who are lucky to not have much racism against them. That will simply backfire.

Also you can try to make people feel guilt by showing statistics and saying how for disadvantage to exist people are racist, that is a bit different because you don't assign guilt to someone just for how society treats them but for how he might treats others in society.
 
G

giga

Member
ChiTownBuffalo said:
There's an interesting thing.

Has any person of color here wished they were white?

I did when I was like 12. And then there were definitely stretches until I was 18 or so.
Click to expand...
Yes, sporadically. But then I realized that I've yet to get sunburned so I've made peace with myself.
 
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