White privilege is an issue that negatively affects many Americans today. Many people that have lighter colored skin are not aware of their privilege. Darker-skinned individuals, along with those of minority status, endure the negative effects of white privilege every day. This paper utilizes symbolic interactionism to examine white privilege and provide ways to resist it.
Peggy McIntosh (1989: 1989: 10-12) describes white privilege as a number of activities that give an advantage to white people. Because male privilege over females is often unrecognized by the advantaged, McIntosh (1989: 10) compares it to white privilege. People of lighter skin color often do not recognize their advantaged position. White people being the hegemonic status, whether they recognize it or not, limits the oppressed possible selves. Possible selves are the ideal selves that one sees himself becoming. They are the selves that one can become. If dark-skinned individuals are at a disadvantage, it limits their perceived potential. If their potential is limited, then they are unable to see themselves in a future positive situation; further promoting their disadvantaged position. The possible selves of a white person are limitless; they believe they can be whomever they want to be. The possible selves of someone of minority status are not as limitless; they cannot see themselves in a better position in life. Clearly, limiting one’s possible selves eliminates one’s ability to move up the social ladder; further reproducing white privilege in today’s society. One step toward erasing white privilege is for white people to acknowledge their advantage; and be willing to reverse it.
There has been a long history of white domination over minority groups in America. Exploitation of the subordinate group by whites is nothing new in this country. Native Americans were pushed out of their homeland when Europeans decided to colonize America. For 245 years, slavery was everywhere in America. Then came the days of Jim Crow; laws put in place to segregate blacks and whites. Because of these disgraceful periods of time in American history, minority groups feel inferior to the white race. The long history of exploitation of minority groups in America has led to institutional discrimination today. Institutions can be inherently or overtly racist (Randall 2008). The discrimination that these institutions impose on subordinate groups often goes unnoticed by the oppressor (Randall 2008). Institutional racism plays a part in minority groups using the looking-glass self. Charles Cooley first came up with the theory of the looking-glass self. The looking-glass self has three parts. The first component of this theory is one imagining himself through the eyes of others (Cooley 1983: 182). The next aspect is one imagining the judgement of others based on how they think they appear (Cooley 1983: 182). The final component of the looking-glass self is one forming their sense of self according to this perceived judgement (Cooley 1983: 182) When institutional racism occurs, this allows for minority groups to use Cooley’s looking-glass self. Persons with a marked identity (having an identity that stands out as unusual or subordinate; like being black or being a woman) acknowledge that they are stigmatized. This stigmatization by institutions tells minority groups that they are being judged by their appearance; the second aspect of the looking-glass self. Then, these minority groups will act in a way that reflects this perceived judgement by institutions and their racism. White people, being the standard, never have to deal with institutional racism. These norms and values imprinted into our society allows for institutional racism. One way to eliminate white privilege would be to reduce or completely get rid of institutional racism.
To illustrate white privilege in America, in his book, The Possessive Investment in Whiteness, George Lipsitz (2006: 67) uses an interview between a French reporter and expatriate Richard White as an example. When Richard White was asked about the “negro problem” in America, he fires back saying that there is no negro problem at all, only a white problem (Lipsitz 2006: 67). Many people in this country believe that black people are at fault for their position in society, rather than accounting for the responsibility of white people (Lipsitz 2006: 67). This is considered blaming the victim; when the suspect takes no responsibility for their wrongdoings while also blaming the disadvantaged. Blaming the victim is sure to create tension between white people and subordinate groups. Blaming the victim creates a sense of inferiority among minority groups. They feel as if no matter if they are the perpetrator or the victim, they are to blame. To combat white privilege, white people need to stop blaming the victim.
In Days of Destruction Days of Revolt, Chris Hedges and Joe Sacco provide examples of white privilege in Camden, New Jersey. In Camden, poverty is a business and their Democratic leaders and political bosses make the most profit from it (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). More specifically, George E. Norcross III, a powerful political boss in Camden, makes the most profit off of the poverty in the area (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). This is an example of white privilege because Norcross is not from Camden, holds no elective office, and dropped out of college, yet nothing is done in the area without his approval (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88-89). The money that is spent to improve Camden goes straight into his pocket (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 89). When someone like Norcross takes advantage of a city of primarily minority status individuals, it leads to these groups developing a sense of double consciousness. These minority groups surely feel unwelcome or disliked when Norcross makes no effort to help them. This creates a sense of two identities; one being who they see themselves as, the other, which is typically negative, through the eyes of others. Double consciousness relates to “the veil”; a term first introduced by W.E.B. Du Bois. There are three parts to the veil. The first part to this concept is the difference in skin color between lighter and darker skinned individuals. The second aspect to the veil is black people not being seen as “true” Americans by their fellow white peers. The final concept is blacks not having the ability to see beyond the expectations of white America. In the Hedges and Sacco (2012) reading, Norcross would be considered living outside the veil; not acknowledging the macro-level damage he is imposing on the Camden citizens by not improving their living conditions. By living under the veil, these Camden, New Jersey residents are at a disadvantage from day one.
Hedges and Sacco (2012:88) discuss when, in 2002, Camden, New Jersey was turned over to the state. This was the biggest municipal take over in United States history (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). Camden was given $175 in bonds and loans to remain afloat (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). Creating jobs, reducing crime, and improving the quality of life in Camden were three of the main goals of this takeover (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). This promise eventually led to absolutely nothing being done to reduce poverty in the area (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). Camden stayed below the poverty line; therefore, they were not any less dangerous than before the takeover (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). The money supposedly brought in to improve Camden was actually just a way for white, non-Camden native elites to make more money (Hedges, Sacco 2012: 88). One of Karl Marx’s theory of alienation applies here; alienation from “man-to-man.” A dislocated community came about due to white predators exploiting the Camden residents, alienating them from one another. This alienation relates to labeling theory and self-fulfilling prophecy. Labeling theory is when one is labeled in a certain way, they will in turn behave in a way that reflects the label. Self-fulfilling prophecy is when the negative or positive expectations put on someone causes them to act in a way that resembles the expectations of them. When this takeover became a money-making scheme for white people, it became apparent that Camden citizens were assigned the label of poor, uneducated, dangerous, etc. Once labeled this way, Camden citizens will tend to act in accordance to these labels; fulfilling their self-fulfilling prophecy. Because this self-fulfilling prophecy leads to social deviance, it just reproduces the stratification of Camden citizens and white elites; further promoting white privilege. The exploitation of minority groups in America needs to stop if we want to rid this nation of white privilege.
One way to fight white privilege is to create more mindfulness in persons of lighter skin color. To be mindful is to be conscious or aware of something. Therefore, to be mindless, one is not conscious or aware of something. The problem with white people is that they are unaware of their privilege; they are mindless. According to Ellen Langer (1990) there are three types of mindless behavior: trapped by categories, automatic behavior, and acting from a single perspective. A form of trapped by categories is when a category is so entrenched in your mind that you cannot see beyond it. In this instance, white people are trapped by the “there is no such thing as white privilege” category. They do not believe in it; therefore, they are trapped from seeing the negative effects of it. This mindless behavior is detrimental to blacks and minority groups because them being entrapped by this category disallows for them to offer any help to the disadvantaged groups. The next concept of mindless behavior is automatic behavior (Langer 1990). Automatic behavior is when you have done something so many times it becomes routine; allowing for things to get messed up if anything gets in the way of that routine (Langer 1990). In this case, white people are so used to their privilege in their everyday activities that it becomes automatic behavior to reap the benefits of their advantaged position. This is so automatic that if anyone were to step in between a white person and their privilege it would most likely be a big deal. This automatic behavior negatively affects minority groups in a similar way as trapped by categories. Privilege in everyday life becoming automatic for white people creates a different identity for them compared to black people. Unlike white people, black people acknowledge and resent white privilege; therefore, it promotes their inferior identity in society. This identity may ossify, or harden, into their sense of self; which creates difficulty in breaking this inferior ossified identity. The final aspect of mindfulness is acting from a single perspective (Langer 1990). Acting from a single perspective is when one acts as if there is only one way to get things done; one set of rules (Langer 1990). Blacks and whites both fall into this form of mindfulness; both reproducing white privilege. The “one set of rules” that people in America live by is that white people are privileged and everyone else is not. We act as if this is set in stone, unable to be reversed. Acting from this single perspective is ultimately what drives white privilege in America today. American citizens tend to stick to the status quo instead of fight for social change. Americans of all races need to stop acting from this single perspective. We need to collectively acknowledge and fight against it to create change.
White privilege is also apparent in emotion management. Emotion management is how people manage the emotions of themselves along with others in interaction. There are three forms of emotion management: regulating discourse, conditioning emotional subjectivity, and scripting mass events. In regulating discourse, the advantaged group gets to decide what to say, how it is said, and who gets to say it. This regulates emotion as well, which regulates action. When white elites regulate discourse, minority groups do not have much of a say. When minority groups are not allowed to have a say, then how can they move up the social ladder? They cannot. The second aspect of emotion management is conditioning emotional subjectivity. This is when the emotion expected of you in certain situations becomes conditioned as a part of who we are and how we act. This makes emotional labor in certain situations a habit. When white people condition the emotional subjectivity of minority groups, it is telling them to abandon their ways and join the dominant group. This concept furthers white privilege by promoting white as the standard race in America. The final aspect of emotion management is scripting mass events. Scripting mass events occurs when the desired emotions in a situation are induced into the masses of the people. Like conditioning emotional subjectivity, scripting mass events tells minority groups to join the dominant culture instead of embracing their own. Clearly, emotion management plays a role in white privilege today.
Certainly, white privilege is a huge part of American society today. Giving ways to combat white privilege is not enough; it is going to take a collective effort of American citizens (of all races) to rid this nation of advantaged and disadvantaged positons based on race. White privilege puts a significant number of individuals at a disadvantage. Society today is based on the American dream. Truly, the American dream has never existed and never will until white privilege becomes a thing of the past.