Wait — How Did Learning About White Privilege Give You So Much More of it?

Let’s not lose sight of why white people should learn about white privilege

In recent years I have heard a few white people drop the term “white privilege” as though it is a codeword that allows them into a club of “wokeness.” Being aware of having privilege is good, of course, but awareness of white privilege isn’t supposed to be used to benefit individual white people.

Don’t use white privilege awareness to rank yourself or give yourself a pass

I had a colleague who liked to bring up how “woke” she was because she began reading about “my white privilege years ago” as though acknowledging it was the black belt in a mixed martial arts grading exam. She said, “I have done all the work,” but continued to order me around, second-guess most of my decisions, and stay mum while I was doubted, disrespected, and yelled at by other white colleagues even while being their rank superior.

Activist and author Rachel Ricketts (2021) writes,

“The ‘anti-racist’ practice of white people naming whiteness and their racism can actually reinforce white privilege…Here’s why: it creates a sense of the ‘good anti-racist’ white person versus the ‘other’ unconsciously racist white person…Not to mention that many white folx have now learned how to use anti-racist language without doing a damn thing to be anti-racist” ( p.52).

Use white privilege awareness to topple white supremacy

If people use the term white privilege to appear “woke,” this shows a lack of understanding about why people should even learn about white privilege, to begin with. You see, knowing about white privilege isn’t meant to give someone more white privilege, that would just be plain annoying. The idea is to take the privilege that comes from being white and use it to disrupt structures of racism. This can be done on an individual level, but it’s best if it is done by pushing for structural change. The clincher is that maybe no one will be witness to those acts, because it isn’t a performative gesture. It is a moment in a process of a commitment to social equity.

White privilege awareness isn’t a self-help endeavor

So, let’s remember that understanding white privilege is the first step. Given the many books coming out to help people address their white fragility and privilege, it is necessary to remember these resources are not meant to be self-help books only. These books are meant for white people to take action through the self. I think it is admirable that white people understand how knowledge benefits them, but the end goal is to put it into practice in the service of knocking down white supremacy.

Resources

Ricketts, R. (2021). Do better: Spiritual activism for fighting and healing from white supremacy. Simon and Schuster, LTD.