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Discussion » Questions » Life and Society » Do all white people benefit from white privilege or just some?

Do all white people benefit from white privilege or just some?

I was watching "Hello Privilege. It's Me, Chelsea" on Netflix and it outlines all the ways white privilege exists, from obvious things that are measured, such as income disparities through incarceration rates through less obvious things, like police supposedly being more willing to let a white suspect go with a warning than a black suspect. 

I don't think that, given the fact there's hard data, any informed or educated person can argue that white privilege doesn't exist. But, whereas Chelsea could pinpoint exact ways she's benefited from it, I don't know that every white person does. 

Are there more insidious ways it creeps into society? For example, would an impoverished white person who has never been in trouble with the law still benefit in some way? How so?

Posted - September 24, 2019

Responses


  • 46117
    Since I am not all white people, I would not know.  

    I am not trying to be flip.  This is a study. Not a thought.  We need to EXPLORE what it even is.   Most people just answer off the cuff and say things like "it didn't affect me, I'm not rich".  Nonsense like that.

    I am not privy to all the thousands of times white people were stopped and let go by a traffic cop and black people were ticketed or jailed.

    I am not even going to delve further into the smaller and finer nuances that go with being white in this country.  I don't get hassled and black people say they do all the time.  That speaks volumes.   I know it is true, I just have only begun to explore how deep the roots go.  




    This post was edited by WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH at September 24, 2019 7:15 PM MDT
      September 24, 2019 12:03 PM MDT
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  • Here we go again. (Eyeroll)f
      September 24, 2019 1:45 PM MDT
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  • 7919
    Is this a discussion we've had here before?
      September 24, 2019 3:26 PM MDT
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  • Us personally,no.

    Prodigal and loon lips about sun up the rational and objective side of this carp though.


      September 24, 2019 5:17 PM MDT
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  • 46117
    The YOUNG TURKS I posted a video Cenk Uygur knows a lot about what this topic really means.  Much more than I do or anyone else on this thread. It's really good.  

    The Young Turks is the best political internet broadcast that I have found so far.   Differing  opinions but all progressives.    Superb.   This post was edited by WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH at September 24, 2019 5:26 PM MDT
      September 24, 2019 5:22 PM MDT
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  • 46117
    Watch my tape.  IT IS GOOD. They even use the f word.
      September 24, 2019 5:29 PM MDT
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  • I don't know how you could really begin to even figure out if ALL the people from an entire race benefit or not benefit from anything so I will answer no.
      September 24, 2019 2:23 PM MDT
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  • 46117


    Apparently, it has a lot to do with more than just thinking that white people have it good and black people do not.  


      September 24, 2019 2:27 PM MDT
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  • I don't doubt that it exists...I mean it's pretty inherent that in any group the majority is going to benefit because they are the majority. I can't say I've been in a situation where I felt my race blatantly gave me an advantage but like you I can't say I've really spent any great deal of time exploring it.
      September 24, 2019 2:36 PM MDT
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  • I think the notion of white privilege has always been a hard sell to anyone growing up in rural, low income families. Over and over again, people struggling to overcome those limitations find doors shut to better schools, better healthcare, better jobs and better lives. 

    The claim that America is a "classless society" has always been a myth. Wealth divides and decides everywhere. And the idea that we can restore equality by focusing on race is naive at best. The toughest fight will be to win real living wages and income security for everyone not lucky enough to be part of the money aristocracy.
      September 24, 2019 2:32 PM MDT
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  • 46117
    I like what you say, but I still would rather be poor and white than poor and black in most places; but you are right as rain.  POOR people are even more loathsome as a rule to people with MORE.  They would prefer to be in a neighborhood with a well-to do black person than have poor whites come into the community.  

      September 24, 2019 2:38 PM MDT
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  • Totally agree that a wealth divide is more prominent than a racial divide.
      September 24, 2019 2:41 PM MDT
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  • 6023
    I like the example brought up by COMMIT TREASON ... regarding the traffic stop.
    Some people will say the white motorist got off with a warning, while the black got a ticket (or worse), because of "white privilege".
    But the only way to know, is to look at the actual details of the traffic stop.
    Did the 2 motorists take the same attitude about being stopped? 
    Was the officer having a "bad day" and wasn't in the mood for warnings?
    Did the police leadership tell officers they were issuing "too many" warnings?
    There's a LOT that goes on in a traffic stop, other than just skin color of the motorist.

    Sure, there's a little "white privilege".  But there's not as much as people think.
    There is much, much more "privilege" accorded to those with wealth and/or education.
    And there is a general spiral of ... more wealth = better education = more wealth = better education = etc, etc, etc.

    But if you took all the wealth in the world and divided it equally among everybody ... we would still wind up with a "wealth gap" within a year.
    Because many people don't have any idea of how to budget. 
    So they would spend it all, while those who know how to set a budget and utilize wealth wisely would make MORE wealth.
    Therefore, the key to reducing the "wealth gap" must be to provide a better education to those at the lower end of the scale.
      September 24, 2019 2:45 PM MDT
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  • 7919
    I was involved in an interesting situation a few weeks back. I went out to a bar with a group of friends and I carpooled with one. She's blind as a bat and particularly struggles with nighttime driving; a fact I didn't know until she picked me up at my house that night. And, she had forgotten her glasses. Later, as we got ready to call it a night, she and I were the only sober ones present and one of the girls asked her to help her get her and her car home, about one mile away. So, the friend that had driven me got into the driver's seat of the drunk girl's car and I followed behind in my "blind" friend's car. She was making a left out of the plaza and didn't see the median, so she turned into the (empty) oncoming traffic lanes. It was late and I was autopiloting it, so I followed suit. She tried to do a U-turn, but officers had been watching the people exit the bar and instantly pulled out and blocked her. I pulled into the plaza's next entrance instead, then got out of the car and went and sat about 50 feet from the "scene" and watched. My friend was detained for probably an hour. They put her through every field sobriety test imaginable and then ultimately called backup officers to bring a breathalyzer test. She passed everything with flying colors, but they still kept her forever and one officer constantly reminded her that, even if she passed everything, he still had the right to arrest her. Nobody ever came to talk to me even though I committed the exact same offense two seconds after her and stayed on the scene, even walking over to talk to her at one point. 

    Did the officers genuinely not see me? Did they (accurately) presume my error was following her rather than driving drunk? Did they assume that, if I was guilty of drunk driving, I wouldn't stick around? Or, did they detain her and put her through all the tests because she's a Latina and not do the same to me because I'm white? Until now, I simply assumed nothing nefarious occurred and was glad I didn't get hassled. Now, I wonder. And, I will probably never know the truth.  So, yes, a lot goes into a stop- much more than skin color, but I think these are questions we should be asking. I think they're questions we should all want to know the truth behind. It would be really interesting if data from bodycams got used in a research study to see if there are disparities in who the cops let go. There were studies done a while back that showed that all officers (even black officers) were more likely to draw their weapons on a person of color. It's probably not a stretch to say there's an imbalance with routine stops too. 

    All that said, I concur with all the discussions brought up here about wealth, and especially the point you made about what would happen if it was distributed evenly as well as the solution. 
      September 24, 2019 4:03 PM MDT
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  • 32529
    I believe it is more class privilege than color. 

    With law it is how you act with an officer. 

    My middle child is mouthy. I have explained to him more than once if act like that with police or a boss. It will not go well. 

    First impressions matter. If you look like a stereotypical criminal....that is what the police will expect. And if you give them attitude you confirm what they thought. 

    Not every cop is good. But you do not challenge them at that time.   They are in charge even if they are wrong. If you challenge them they will have an reason to shoot you. So wait and do it afterwards. 

    We have done this. With a bad cop. I know he did get investigated and was eventually fired. 


    Respect is something you must project. 
      September 24, 2019 2:58 PM MDT
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  • 7919
    But considering minorities are statistically more likely to belong to a lower socioeconomic class, isn't that a race issue?
      September 24, 2019 4:05 PM MDT
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  • 32529
    No, it is class issue and attitude issue. 
    And there are more poor whites than blacks. At least according to food stamps recipient stats. 

    There studies that show police are less likely to use deadly force on a black perp. (Likely because of the risk of being called racist)

    https://www.policeone.com/legal/articles/482683006-Perceptions-about-police-use-of-deadly-force-and-race-A-psychologists-view/
      September 24, 2019 5:46 PM MDT
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  • 46117
    WRONG.  WRONG and WRONG.  Sorry.  It is my humble opinion that you just spewed some facts that you read.

    It is far easier to shoot most black men than it is to shoot most white men.  As far as repurcussions are concerned.  First of all I get to have a nice lawyer who will defend me.  The black family gets a public defender.    

    Since you will deliberately misconstrue my tape I produced by someone who can argue white privilege very accurately, I'll give you an example:  He uses Bristol Palin's pregnancy and how it was a PRIVATE MATTER THAT WAS PERSONAL versus if she was knocked up black in the projects.  If she is black that spreads the problem of blight and decay in the black community... and how that spreads all over those communities.  DECAY.  

    White girl, has a personal problem 
    Black girl spreads urban decay because of her lazy shiftless welfare living family.

    That is white privilege to me.  Being a HILLBILLY like Bristol Palin and having a redneck boyfriend who likes to swear and shoot things, but looking away at that scene and continue  looking down your nose at a minority in the exact same situation. CLASSIC.  


    This post was edited by WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH at September 24, 2019 6:03 PM MDT
      September 24, 2019 5:48 PM MDT
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  • 32529
    No those examples are still about class. Palin have money and the black girl you mentioned does not. (And I did not say those words about her...you did) 

    Yes more young black men are shot. You know who is next....young white men.  You know who harms the most police officers....young black men.  It goes to actions, attitude and class. If you get stupid with police....you it does not go well for you. 
      September 24, 2019 6:45 PM MDT
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  • 7919
    I just looked up the stats. The US population is little more than 12% each Black and Hispanic and 62% White. 40% of SNAP benefit users are White, 25% Black, and 10% Hispanic. So, yes, there are more White people using food stamps, but the numbers don't align with the population. Otherwise, only 12% of SNAP users would be Black, not 25%. Even still, that's not really representative of who's living in poverty. It only shows who's receiving benefits. The poverty rate for Whites is about 12%. Blacks are at 26% and Hispanics at 23%. https://www.povertyusa.org/facts Ergo, there are more poor whites than blacks, but the numbers are disproportionate. Minorities (aside from Asians) are more likely to be poor than whites.

    I also read the link you shared. It doesn't say that police are less likely to use deadly force on a black perp. It says that some studies have shown officers hesitate longer when firing at black suspects and that officers sometimes self-report using restraint and that concerns over being accused of bias is one potential cause of this. There was a previous study (I can't find now) that said all officers (all races) are more likely to draw on a black suspect. 
      September 24, 2019 8:04 PM MDT
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  • 1305




    This post was edited by kjames at September 24, 2019 7:36 PM MDT
      September 24, 2019 5:33 PM MDT
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  • 46117
    They would know. They have Ph.D's in this subject.  
      September 24, 2019 6:03 PM MDT
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  • 1305
    I think Dave Chappelle and Chris Rock are superb comedians, I don't think they'd be able to be this free with their comedy now, not with political correctness, I just spent 2 hours watching old clips on YouTube.
      September 24, 2019 6:25 PM MDT
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