White Privilege???

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   gmwilliamsposted 5 years ago

   
   Is there such a thing as White Privilege?  Or is the concept pure hyperbole?

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   Ed Fisherposted 5 years ago

   This thread is hyperbole !

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3. 61

   Live to Learnposted 5 years ago

   At what level of society?
   
   In business? I'd say you run across areas which favor networking systems from things such as Ivy League schools, they might favor networking systems from certain civic societies, or other such created in order to gain a competitive edge in the marketplace. Is it specifically white? Probably not. These networks are equal opportunity organizations striving to discriminate against any other than them.
   
   Is there white privilege in government? None that appears. I'd say in government hiring the opposite is true.
   
   In society in general? You'd have to define white privilege. I think society discriminates against those customers who appear to be poor, across all boundaries. Society discriminates against those who appear in a threatening manner, across all boundaries. But, yes. I do think in some situations there is a privilege associated with being white, just as in some situations there is privilege for being any particular minority.
   
   Sadly, we focus only on one subset of the overall problem because it's trendy on the left to bash people because of their skin color. Thank heaven racism isn't catching across all of society. Maybe, someday soon, we'll go back to the goal of judging people by their actions and not their level of melanin, or sexual preference.

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      wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      I read just the other day that Ivy League (Harvard, as I recall) is going through much hand wringing because they're taking flak for their "affirmative action" type of admissions policy.  Seems that without denying qualified white applicants in order to wait for a minority one (any of several minorities) the mix they desire is going to die.
      
      White privilege.  Give up your ivy league admission because your skin is the wrong color.

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         Live to Learnposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         I do think diversity is important. If only white and Asian descent applicants meet the qualifications for admission I think universities should reach out and find ways to change the dynamic of that class matriculating. But, at what cost?
         
         Lowering standards sets the preferred student up for possible failure.  The standards exist because courses are tough. So, in some instances, forcing diversity causes the minority student to rack up debt, only to find they can't keep up and eventually drop out. It's unfair to them and it is unfair to the student who was qualified for the slot by their academic standing.
         
         I'm not advocating turning a blind eye to the need to ensure diversity, but I do think blanket adherence hurts, in some instances, the very people you are trying to help and it sets the stage for the likes of Elizabeth Warren to be used to fill the quotas.

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            wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            Yes, reducing requirements and blanket adherence can hurt.  It can hurt the people you are trying to help, and it will certainly hurt the person denied admission for no more reason than insufficient melanin in their skin.
            
            Better is a completely blind eye to race, sex and all the rest of it.  It will take longer to achieve a balanced mix, but no one gets hurt, either.  Perhaps the real question is should a school (or anything else) put more emphasis on meeting quotas or should the emphasis be on preventing racism.

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               Live to Learnposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               I do believe diversity matters. We are attempting to teach our young people not only the book basics, but how to function in society, successfully. You want them prepared to do their part in building on the ideal of a better world. You want to strive to ensure all demographics are included in that attempt. If you don't include all in the system then in later years there can be an imbalance in different levels of the workforce in upper levels. Which leads us to another unfair system where attempts at affirmative action hurt qualified people, again.
               
               The problem starts at birth, imo. Low standards of conduct set by parents, a lack of family structure, single moms working overtime to keep a roof over the heads of children who become neglected in the process, coupled with society making excuses for every statistic showing the problem we have. We can't take a hard look, because that is considered laying blame. So, those who do what they can to set the stage for their own success continue to suffer the consequences.

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                  wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

                  Sounds like what you're saying is that we must, forever more, choose students, workers, whatever, based on the color of their skin.
                  
                  I have a real problem with that - no matter the reasoning used to get there it is racism at it's worst.  The ends do not justify the means.

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   2. 83

      gmwilliamsposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      Totally agree.  I don't think that there is so-called Caucasian privilege.  However, there is socioeconomic privilege.   Poor Caucasians have it bad while affluent non-Caucasians DON'T.   Facts are facts.  It is socioeconomics that determine privilege, not so much as race.....

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4. 60

   laugherposted 5 years ago

   I think there is definitely such a thing as "white privilege." To be sure, whites with money and social capital have it better than whites with less/no money and social capital.
   
   At the same time, I think minorities with less/no money and social capital have it worse than whites with less/no money and social capital.
   
   Everybody is discriminated against in this world.

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5. 0

   Ed Fisherposted 5 years ago

   
   
   White privilege ? If it wasn't for a certain democratic white privilege ,democrats would have no cause to exist so enjoy it , because of YOU white democratic privilege is eternal .
   
   Clean up your own house first .

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6. 77

   Jack Burtonposted 5 years ago

   "Privilege" does not exist ex nihilo. It had to start somewhere with some people.
   
   I have no problem with others admitting to the world that my ancestors were more apt, more intelligent, more able, more sophisticated, and much more likely to come out on the winning side of any conflict with their ancestors. If they want to take it back 50 years, 500 years or 5,000 years I am up for that. The better team apparently won the privilege game and took home the trophy. The 2nd place team took home -- well -- 2nd place.
   
   If they say the game was rigged, then my ancestors were smarter than theirs and figured out how to rig the game and theirs didn’t. If they say my ancestors were more savage than theirs then that means theirs were weaker than mine. If they say there were more of mine, then that means that mine were simply better at understanding how to use the environment and technology to sustain a greater population. If they say that my ancestors were better geographically situated that means that they were better realtors, able to find and hold superior territory. If they say my ancestors had bigger, badder, and more destructive weapons that means than their ancestors were probably stuck in a stone-age existence for 10,000 years past their time.
   
   No matter how you slice it… they are making the claim for me that their ancestors could not quite hack it when it came to competition for the “privilege” of being on top. They were weaker, ineffective, and overall a fine example of Darwinism in action. Seems to me as if they are pointing the "finger of blame" at the wrong set of ancestors. I'd suggest they have a heartfelt talk with their grandma and grandpa and ask them why ~their~ grandmas and grandpas were so pitiful in the game of life.
   
   Now understand that ~this~ is how ~they~ see the world. This is what ~they~ are admitting happened. Unless, of course, they want to somehow claim that "privilege" just happened along one day from out of nowhere and someone picked it up off the ground and has been using it ever since. Should be an interesting and amusing read.
   
   Because they believe that since what they call "privilege" was obtained either unfairly or by simple luck they have a "moral right" to take it from us.
   
   Bring it on and we'll see how the rematch goes.

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7. 84

   psycheskinnerposted 5 years ago

   There is racism, so there are people who don't have to deal with racism--that is white priv.  Simple.

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      wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      Only if you assume that racism can only go one way.  As it absolutely goes every way possible that assumption cannot be correct.

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         hard sunposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         Here's something we can agree on Wilderness.  I don't go for this thought that minorities cannot be racist. I think we've all seen it in action.

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            wildernessposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            Claiming that racism can only go from caucasians to all other races is nothing more than an attempt to excuse the racism of non-whites.  Yes, we've all (even the ones making the claim) have seen it in action.

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               hard sunposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               Yeah, I don't think it's good to rationalize poor treatment based on skin color. The same folks who do so are horribly offended when a white rationalizes racism. The Obama era should have helped slow racism. However, some racist whites couldn't deal with a half-black President and other whites saw it as a way to rationalize bending over backwards to disparage their own kind and excuse the racism of minorities.

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   2. 83

      gmwilliamsposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      +100000000000000000

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   Ed Fisherposted 5 years ago

   Aren't those at Harvard simply saying " This black privilege thing just has to end  " after all , we all know there is such a thing as black privilege ?

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9. 80

   Wesman Todd Shawposted 5 years ago

   

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10. 0

    Ed Fisherposted 5 years ago

    
    
    Wesman ,  remember Reginald Denny , he sure was privileged ?

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       Wesman Todd Shawposted 5 years agoin reply to this

       Yes, he was given SUPER white privilege. So privileged.

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          Ed Fisherposted 5 years agoin reply to this

          Yes , You know those white truck drivers are so privileged , just the other day one of them actually waved at me when I let him go ahead of me in traffic , How Dare He !

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    Ed Fisherposted 5 years ago

    In fact , If we don't have a universal forgiveness for all 'minority racism ' in America , it only stands to reason that we would also have to hold minorities responsible for all the discrepancies* in minority culture issues ;
    -Fatherless homes, single parenting
    -Higher percentages  all violence categories
    -Drug ,alcohol addiction
    -High school ,college drop outs
    -Incarceration rates and related medical issues
    
    *NAACP

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