Tim Wise discussed his perspective of privilege regarding race and I had never thought about privilege on a racial level. When I think of privilege, I think of physical belongings that I am blessed to have because of my parents’ hard work. If I were to think about privilege in regards to me being white, I think I would have a whole different outlook. I think privilege is another word for freedom. Privilege is being able to have opportunities to succeed in the U.S. and have all the benefits that come with being free. If you are part a minority in the U.S., I don’t think you have all of the privileges of being free. If you don’t get the same opportunities that come with freedom, I guess you can say you aren’t “privileged.” I think the media utilizes privilege in media representation very poorly. As a white person myself, I think the white society has no idea how bad racial discrimination still is in the United States. I think we are sheltered and taught to believe racial discrimination is no longer a problem and the media does a poor job of representing society how it really is, and society still has racial issues. Throughout the week I reflected on some basic privileges I have that I have never noticed or considered before. Here are some of them:
1. 1. The privilege to feel comfortable and not out of place in class
2. 2. Being able to drive a nice car without people thinking I stole it
3. 3. Being able to go to a bar with my friends and not feel like the minority
4. 4. Living in a nice neighborhood
5. 5. Having enough money to pay my bills
6. 6. Being able to get a new job easily
7. 7. Being able to go to the store without taking a shower or looking nice and not feeling judged
8. 8. I talked myself out of a speeding ticket; had I been a minority would that not have been possible?
These are privileges I noticed throughout the week that might be true for minorities, but I can imagine might not be true for them all the time. I do agree that as a society, we have a responsibility to change the way we look at other people and examine new stereotypes when we become aware they aren’t true. Even if you claim not to be “racist,” I think it is still important to keep yourself in check and make sure we aren’t stereotyping people. Specifically, one stereotype I think is still an adamant problem today is the "one drop" rule. If you are the least bit Native American or African-American, you are automatically looked at as a minority. I don't think it's fair to label people who may not want to be labeled a certain way. For instance, my boyfriend is half Mexican and half white but people automatically consider him Mexican even though his family has lived in America for over six generations. Labeling people based on "one drop" is just another way of profiling people in order to discriminate. Another example is Native Americans. If they are even 1/8 Native American, they are automatically looked at as Native American even if they identify themselves as white. Instead of stereotyping people or labeling them, I don't think your race should matter at all.
Here is a link to see the definition of the "one drop" rule in case you don't know what it means:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-drop_rule
Here is also a link to a site that talks about the roots of racial profiling, specifically cases dealing with police targeting minorities for traffic stops:
http://www.reason.com/news/show/28138.html
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