Racial privilege (you may have heard it called white privilege), it’s a term regularly used in HR briefings and training seminars, but not many people really understand it. Peggy McIntosh’s 1988 essay “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.” defined it articulately as unseen, unconscious advantages. Everything from finding products catered to your skin color to seeing people of your race represented on TV. There’s more to it than just the small comforts though, and understanding it is key to stopping racial inequality.
What is racial privilege?
To help explain racial privilege, here’s a simple (but real) example:
“A new restaurant had become very popular, the queues (and waiting times) for a table had become very long. The queues were predominantly filled with young Asian American’s. The manager routinely walked the length of the queue and prioritized a table for us (a white American couple) knowing that we would spend more on drinks.”
From the perspective of the couple that benefited, the restaurant manager made a decision based on their spending. The manager didn’t actually know that the couple would spend more. It was an assumption on the basis of the couple’s race. The couple had unknowingly benefited from racial privilege, which isn’t unusual. Most people don’t recognize the privilege they enjoy. In fact Pew Research Center found that only 46 percent of white Americans thought they benefit “a great deal” or “a fair amount” from societal advantages, which were not afforded to Black people.
And yes, the manager had racially discriminated against the other people in the queue. For the prioritization to be made on a financial basis, the manager should have asked every couple in the queue, if they would agree to a minimum spend for faster entry. This isn’t as strange as it sounds. Many night clubs have VIP entry lists. Business class airline passengers are prioritized before economy passengers. There are many examples of businesses providing benefits to those who pay more.
Racial privilege is not about affluence or hardship
It is important to understand that racial privilege has nothing to do with affluence. Nor does it suggest that people of a particular race have not endured hardship or struggles.
Most people that have achieved financial success have worked really hard to get there. Many from very humble beginnings. Racial privilege isn’t about that.
Racial privilege makes it easier for a group of people to move through life with comparative ease.
It’s small, but it adds up
The fact that it’s a small benefit, makes it difficult (for the person that benefits) to comprehend. The couple at the restaurant felt great about being brought to the front, so they didn’t notice what had happened.
All the small benefits accumulate, and they are noticeable. Taika Waititi puts it’s very nicely in his award winning advert: “It won’t make any difference to you. To the people receiving the racism, they’ll be getting hundreds of small bits every day. It will add up. It will be noticed.”
To the impact that privilege (not racism) can have, and how it makes a difference – even in an “equal opportunities” environment I’d recommend watching this video:
Educate your community
So now you understand privilege, what can you do about it? First and foremost, get past the awkwardness, muster your courage and object to casual racism when it happens. Don’t laugh at racist jokes, call them out as wrong or racist. Remember that silence (or a chuckle) is an endorsement.
Don’t use unearned benefits
You don’t need to march down the streets with a placard. Intervene when you see someone being treated differently because of their race. Stand up for co-workers that are being sidelined because of their gender, refuse a taxi or lift ride when you see someone being disadvantaged. Let people know that they have your support to stop bigotry.
