To be slightly fed up of white people doing this

[TacoLover]

Every time there is a thread discussing racism, there will be a mention of white privilege. Cue a flurry of hurt posters writing essays about how stupid the idea of white privilege is and how it doesn't exist, because their lives are so hard and they grew up on a few pieces of bread and a Red Bull

This really gets on my tits because after seeing this shit time and time again, THIS ISN'T WHAT WHITE PRIVILEGE MEANS. It doesn't mean your life isn't hard, it doesn't mean you don't face barriers in your life. What it does mean is the barriers in your life will never or hardly ever be a result of the colour of your skin. It doesn't mean you live in a mansion because you're white.

Just needed to get that out,sorry. I'm sure my only replies will be white people telling me how racist I am for only targeting them(Even though this is something that only white people do)

YADNBU
I am a white woman. First I understood that being male got you what you wanted more easily (right from when I wasn't allowed to join the church choir or go camping with the Brownies, though of course it was affecting me earlier than that).
Then I had one child and began to see sexism more clearly, and came on Mumsnet to find out about parenting, and stayed for the feminism. And I put a name to it - male privilege.

Then I had another child who is mixed ethnicity and started reading things by (in particular, since this is my child) transracial adoptees and became aware of white privilege.
And I think I understand it a bit better because of already understanding male privilege but I can never really understand it from the inside.

And I started to get so fed up of "but they didn't mean it" - didn't mean to ask why my child hasn't got a more exotic name, didn't mean to say "but she's not that dark" like it's a good thing to be not dark, didn't mean to go ON and ON about how beautiful she is (she is, of course, she's my daughter, but really? Who goes on and on about your white child like that?).
Nobody has ever called her names, said she can't do XYZ because she's not white, or spat at her in the street. And I know all of those happen to some of the families in our area because of the colour of their skin. That doesn't mean they don't treat her differently because she's not white.

It’s always mentioned on these threads about black people being followed around by security guards in shops.

I manage a large supermarket.

Statistically, in my store, there are 3 groups that are most likely to get caught shoplifting:

woman on her own with a buggy (toys/nappies)

Group of teenage girls (makeup, hair dyes)

Black men (alcohol)

There are obviously other people who have been caught, but those are the majority. So of course our security are going to be on higher alert when any of the above people come in to the store. It’s not discrimination- it’s common sense.

laughingtree
In the UK, job applicants with ethnic minority names are less likely to be offered an interview.
So sod off with your "it doesn't happen".
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-38751307

All white people or some white people? I thought it was considered insulting to group every person who happened to share the same skin colour together.

I don't think you understand. This isn't saying that all white people or some white people are racist. It's saying that white people have it easier than black people overall. Which is true. Even if they don't realise it.

So as a white person I'm not going to be turned down for a job or promotion due to the colour of my skin. I'm not going to have a teacher grade my work lower either due to overt racism or unconcious bias. I'm not going to sit in a university lecture too nervous to open my mouth as I'm aware I'm in a minority and then my lack of participation hinders my understanding and I get a lower degree.

This isn't about grouping white people as racist but saying that there is enough racism and bias out there that every BME person will at some point be negatively affected by it.

Yes, a white male has even more privilege.

And a rich white nominally-Christian male member of the conservative party has the most of all.

YADNBU!

Good luck with this thread...

It seems that some posters read the OP as saying all white people deny white privilege exists - which she didn't - or worse, that white privilege means all white people (sometimes subconsciously) look down upon black people. That is not what she said nor, I believe, what she meant to imply.

I do benefit from being a white woman in a majority white country. I don't think it should be like that but in all honesty I have to admit it makes life just that bit smoother for me. Not smooth... just smoother. I haven't particularly thought about it for most of my life, mostly because I don't have to - now there's privilege! - but I currently work on a public-facing ethnically diverse team and it is simply impossible to deny the difference in treatment my black or Asian colleagues receive whilst doing the same job. This does not mean that I personally think of them as lesser beings. I am lumped together (as someone put it upthread) with the white people who are regarded as "one of us" by other white people, even though I may feel uncomfortable with it because I believe I have more in common with one of my black colleagues than I do with the white service user. The privilege in this situation does not come from what I feel/think but what others feel/think about me; what they will do to or for me because of how they perceive me, compared with how they perceive my colleagues.

Of course other privileges exist, some of which benefit me, others the reverse. It's a bit disingenuous to tell the OP she "should be" concentrating on the others, when this is an issue that particularly affects her. Let each tackle the bit of inequality that matters most to them, or where they feel their experience is most pertinent. It's like being told off for giving money to the RSPCA because you should have given money to a human charity; being told off for giving to Age Concern because you should worry about young people first; being told off for giving to the NSPCC because no child in the UK is as badly off as a child in a famine region overseas... just give, for heaven's sake; try to make a difference where you can.

And, er, check your privilege.

I can see why white people wouldn't necessarily be aware of WP. If you've been treated a certain way your whole life it's hard to get your head around the fact it mig by have been totally different for others. But on threads like this I can't understand why they are denying the experience of people of other races telling them they are routinely treated badly compared to white people. A quick Google will tell anyone the effects of being black for example on conviction rates etc etc. But they kick back with examples of rich black people vs poor white people. I don't see how this is relevant to the argument at all

drspouse its an interesting point, but it's not racial discrimination. Remi Adekoya tells a good story on this phenomenon about his father in Nigeria, who used to manage a company of 25-30 people. There are a number of distinct ethnic groups within Nigeria and his father would always employ people who were from his own ethnic group, purely on the basis of familiarity. He had no problem with the other groups, he just preferred to work with people whose culture he was familiar with.

Now that doesn't mean that this is an acceptable practice, however it isn't racism either.

laughing first result on google:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/apr/28/opioid-epidemic-selects-white-victim-black-addict

Second result: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/aug/04/homeless-america-rodney-king-los-angeles

Some statistics from one American state which I would urge you to read: azhousingcoalition.org/resources/Documents/2017%20Conference/2017%20PPTs/Session%201%20-%20Disparate%20Impact%20-%20Race%20and%20Homelessness.pdf

(Why do you think PoC are so disproportionately represented in the homeless and shelter populations, and why are they homeless for longer than white people?)

And a study abstract for you: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/7992133/

laughing Erm, yes, it is, if people are denied employment based on their race, it's racism.

The point you make is about people of the same race but different ethnic backgrounds - like denying employemnt to Irish or Polish people.
That's xenophobia and/or discrimination. Different, though also nasty.

Why do we use the phrase "white privilege" rather than "black disadvantage", which could describe exactly the same thing? The latter would be more logical in the UK as it generally makes more sense to have a words/phrases to describe exceptions.

In the case of "male privilege" that objection doesn't apply, but "privilege" is a word usually used to describe an exceptional circumstance, and there's nothing exceptional about being in one half of the population. Also, do we want to bring down males or raise up females with this discussion? If we want for females what males already have, then it makes sense to treat male experience as the standard and talk about "female disadvantage" rather than "male privilege."

I suspect that the real reason the offensive phrase "privilege" is used in both cases is because it starts a fight with people who might otherwise not be bothered to engage and react.

(The phrase is offensive if people are offended by it, it's irrelevant whether anyone else thinks they should be offended.)

Just because someone is white and not privileged, doesn’t mean they don’t enjoy the privilege of living without the prejudice that black people have to face in daily situations.

It’s so fucking sad that we still live in a society where racism is a near daily occurrence.

I used to think that sometimes black people were seeing situations that weren’t there, then I witnessed the treatment of my friends. Sometimes it’s subtle, but it’s there a lot.

I don't think the OP ever said 'all white people' - there are many, many white folks out there who understand white privilege. There are also many who don't. Those who don't often make no effort to even understand it and choose instead to be offended by what they THINK white privilege is. It's frustrating and tiresome.

I fail to see how “black disadvantage” would be less offensive, unless you’re only considering the feelings of whites people.

Black disadvantage

Lord no, let's not use this term please!

Deathgrip I don'think those figure show what you think they show, they state clearly that the main cause of homelessness for Black people in America is drugs, whereas the cause for whites is socio-economic.

They attempt to draw a point out by showing that blacks and white use drugs at similar rates, but crucially they don't specify the type of drugs that are being used. Black people in America, because of their socio-economic status, are far more likely to become addicted to extremely destructive drugs such as heroin, crack and meth, unlike people from more wealthy backgrounds. These types of addiction obviously make them more likely to fall into homelessness.

Also your point was that a black person who wanted to get out of being a homeless drug addict would find it harder than a white person in the same situation. I still don't see any evidence of that whatsoever.

And finally, do you have any evidence that is sourced in this country? The position of black people in the UK and the US is very different in almost every way. (I have worked in the US as a mixed race man)

Oh my god. So many of you just proving the OP’s point over and over and over. How can you not get it? How?

OP - with you 100%.

drspouse your right in that it isn't acceptable, however its a positive familiarity bias, not a negative racial one.

I'm actually a big fan of anonymous CVs for exactly this reason.

Do you honestly believe, legitimately and genuinely, that there are no issues that would make black people less likely to receive help for drug addiction or homelessness? Those figures do show exactly what I’m saying, perhaps you’re misunderstanding me.

How about this? www.theguardian.com/science/2016/aug/10/black-patients-bias-prescriptions-pain-management-medicine-opioids

I am frankly mystified that anyone can deny this is an issue.

Why do we use the phrase "white privilege" rather than "black disadvantage", which could describe exactly the same thing? The latter would be more logical in the UK as it generally makes more sense to have a words/phrases to describe exceptions.

are you for real?

I have lived in areas where white privilege exists and I have also lived in areas where asian privilige exists (especially asian male privelige).

I have lived in areas where white privilege exists and I have also lived in areas where asian privilige exists (especially asian male privelige)

Interesting point there. With the Rotherham sex gangs et al. Who has the privalige there? The white girls/children or the Asian men?

I can't remember who posted it now, but I found the factory setting analogy very powerful.