Emily G's Reflection #3 on white privilege

Julie, Hannah, Ben, Emily G, Steph O

In Marita’s class we have had many lively and spirited (to put it nicely) discussions and debates about issues such as race and gender. One of the topics we inevitably end up coming back to is the idea of equality and what this word really means. We had to read an article at the beginning of the semester titled “White Privilege” by Peggy McIntosh in which she lists a variety of privileges she has in the United States because she is Caucasian. Examples included being able to use cash, checks and credit cards counting on the fact that her skin color would not work against her financial reliability, or how she is never asked to speak on behalf of her entire race. I know I come from a very privileged background and rarely have been discriminated against for my race, while many others struggle with this on a daily basis. In my response to the article, I questioned how we could help people who are disadvantaged, while still keeping others relatively happy. Then it dawned on me that equality not only involves helping aid the disadvantaged, but it also simultaneously requires taking away from the advantaged.

I have always been interested and involved in community service and helping others, whether it is helping build houses with Habitat for Humanity, tutoring middle school students or interning here in Khayelitsha. However, I am eager to help as long as I can eventually go home to the life I am used to, a life that includes attending college, having access to a car, and going on family vacations. So many privileged Americans are content writing a check for charity or volunteering a few times a month at a local non-profit organization. However, this is not nearly enough if we are trying to work towards a world of equality. In the capitalist society we live in, consumerism and the importance of money is so deeply embedded in the mentality and values of Americans that we tend to forget that money isn’t everything. There is no doubt that living comfortably with three meals a day and a means of transportation is something we all want, and I am not proposing we all become communists. However, Americans are so attached to surrounding themselves with televisions, nice clothing and other material items, that they often too strongly correlate living a live of luxury and comfort with success. Spending time in the township where most of my coworkers live in shacks, is a blatant reminder that even if we give a lot more to help others, we will still be at a huge advantage. Being successful involves more than material items; it involves the idea of ubuntu and that one person’s suffering is everyone’s suffering and everyone is inextricably connected because we all are a unique part of a community. Therefore, by enjoying one’s own advantages and ignoring those who are suffering, this person is hurting the whole community.

Khayelitsha

In order to overcome the inequality in places like Khayelitsha or Hartford, we must take a more active and assertive approach to fighting poverty and discrimination. I thought about the example of affirmative action, and how I support the policy, but know I would be angry if someone I considered “less qualified” got into a school or got a job instead of me because of their race. Then, I thought about who even determines which people are most “qualified” and how the person who theoretically got the position instead of me very likely had nowhere near the amount of resources during their education or the money to participate in other experiences that would enhance their application or résumé, as a white kid like me who attended private school.

This is just one example of how people of privilege must give up more of their advantages and feelings of entitlement in order to work towards equality. My mom is a minister and during one of her sermons, she recalled that when she and my dad were younger, they were trying to decide how much money to give as an offering to the church and other charities. They settled on giving an amount that they would noticeably miss. This idea of giving really resonates with me in a broader sense, whether it be with money, labor or time; we should give enough that we will miss the time or money we did not get to enjoy or spend on ourselves. This way we know that we are making a valid effort to sacrifice some of our advantages to help those struggling. I am aware we live in a world dominated by corporations driven by a capitalist system where the economic goal of the rich is to get richer which leaves the poor poorer. As long as there is capitalism, there will be “haves” and “have-nots” and total equality is an idealist and unrealistic idea. However, if we can’t achieve this, then we can do our best to work towards the goal of closing the gap and improving overall equality.

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchhill
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~