Sexism and Revisiting White Privilege

The sexism discussion didn't mean that much to me. So much of it focused on the interpersonal issues of men and women in heterosexual relationships. Honestly, the power dynamics between individual men and women are meaningless to me. I care a hell of a lot more about the systemic sexism that has the FDA approving medication for all people after drug trials on all-male test groups. I care a hell of a lot more about the insidious sexism that has little girls starving themselves to fit an unachievable standard of beauty. I care a hell of a lot more about the institutional sexism that has 3 year old "beauty queens" prancing around with pancake make up, teased hair and sexually suggestive clothing. I care about the sexism of our society that allows the president of Harvard say that women are biologically disposed to not pursuing careers in science and math. How the married couple next door makes parenting decisions or divides household chores is irrelevent to me.

But, this issue of white privilege has been under my skin for awhile. Considering that these trainings I have done are coming from the anti-racist movemet, I see too much racism still in the presentation of the material. This morning, as I took my shower, I experienced a moment of clarity. The term "white privilege" was knocking around in my brain. I have never liked the term, but have never quite known why. Today I realized the cause of my dislike.

Language is a subtle, complicated thing. Using the term "privilege" glosses over the reality of the situation. By calling it privilege, anti-racists give White people permission to maintain the status quo. After all, privilege implies that White people have something extra, something more than the acceptable minimum. Rather than admitting that people of color do not have enough, White people talk about the extra, nice luxuries that privilege gives folks with light skin.

In reality, White people do not have the privilege of access to medical care. People of color are denied the right of medical care. White people do not have the privilege of culturally relevant education. People of color are denied the right of education. White people do not have the privilege of safe and comfortable housing. People of color are denied housing rights.

But, by calling these things privilege, White people are glossing over the reality of the systematic denial of rights faced by people of color. If we were talking about the rights that go with Whiteness, the lack of rights of people of color would be laid out on the table. The term privilege allows White anti-racists to sugar-coat their oppression of people of color into something that is more palatable to their liberal psyches.

But, the real question comes next: if we do away with the term "white privilege," what term should we replace it with? And, as a white woman, what right do I have to coin the term?