Here we go. I'm going to potentially doom myself and write about an emotionally charged topic. Perhaps this post will be censored or taken down or I'll be burned alive in social media court, but remember it's just my opinion.
Talking About White Privilege
When I first heard the phrase "white privilege" I didn't like the concept and I didn't believe in it. I have always tended to agree with the argument that the answer to racism is not more racism, and outward finger pointing is just about the worst way to solve a problem. The finger should start by pointing inward, and honestly making sure you're not the one full of shit.
I didn't like the sense that bandying around the catchphrase "white privilege" seemed to be accusing others of racism, when they may not have been racist. The false accusations and declarations of guilt without a trial so common in media today are signs of our civilization's regression to something barbaric. The smart are losing ground to the stupid and it's depressing.
But I took a harder look at the concept of "white privilege" and although the extremists at either ends of the spectrum might disagree with my reasoning, I've come to an acceptance of it by recognizing it as an extension of a concept I learned about in management studies.
The Halo Effect
In behavioral science, the halo effect represents the tendency for certain physical traits to impart the benefit of the doubt to the possessor of the trait. An example is height. Height is often perceived as a leadership indicator, even if the tall person is a complete idiot and couldn't lead himself/herself down a one-way street. With time and experience, the truth of a person's capabilities becomes known, but fresh off the starting line, people with halo effect traits have an advantage.
The most common example I remembered from management classes where I read about the halo effect is beauty. Attractive people tended to get the benefit of the doubt on first impressions as trustworthy or competent. In a group of people all applying for the same position, the most attractive person had the edge in being given the opportunity. There's some biological explanation here too, I'm sure, as most would like to be around people considered attractive.
And yes, lighter skin is something that could be considered a positive trait. We'd like to think that isn't the case. We'd like to think that everyone is judged on their character and competence and not by how tall they are or the color of their hair or skin. But biology tells us that isn't the case. Even the most aware, intelligent, and disciplined of us can't change the fact that we're human and can succumb to stereotypes and preconceived notions when developing a first impression.
Demographics or Bias?
I have met people of all colors and can't draw any definitive association about racism to color. Yes, I've met white people that were rude and made racist comments, and I've met non-white people that have done it too. Conversely, I've met wonderful people of all colors.
As I said before, this is why I didn't like the idea of racial privilege. But that was smart me trying to reach for the ideal. I tried to reason that a white person has an advantage in an environment where whites are the majority. It made sense to me that people fear the unfamiliar and are more comfortable with the familiar. In a predominantly white population, it wasn't intentionally hostile discrimination but simply familiarity that would favor people of similar traits.
Then I heard that lighter skin is a halo effect trait and that even in populations that are non-white, the lighter skinned generally benefitted from it. There are a number of studies on this and I won't get into it here but this told me I was incorrect in assuming it was merely a matter of demographics (although I'm not ready to fully discount demographics as at least a factor in the equation). The halo effect, or reverse halo effect, could be active in any environment and like height or beauty, skin tone could have an effect, perhaps as a part of the perception of beauty.
Another superficiality that imparts the halo effect is the shape of eyes. I bring this into the discussion because in a totally different culture, you can see how a trait can have a similar effect. The Japanese graphic novels (manga) and animated cartoons (anime) are huge components of their culture's media consumption. In many of these stories, villains often have narrow or slanted eyes while the heroes often have circular eyes (and also often, lighter skin).
The Treadmill
So, ultimately, I've sort of come around to the idea of white privilege as a part of the halo effect. This does not mean that the people engaging in awarding or benefitting from the halo effect are racists. You can make the argument that it is a form of discrimination and that it has negative effects, especially when exercised by gatekeepers of opportunity, and that's an acceptable argument. We cannot however, assume that all people engage it in or that they are hostile. I'm living proof that you can be non-white and make a sustainable living by being employable and offering some value to an employer.
What finally convinced me to accept the concept of white privilege? Corny though it might sound, it was a video game analogy. In many games you may control a character that earns experience points and then gains levels, which then allow you to improve your character's abilities. This system of advancement is often referred to as a "level treadmill" as you keep grinding on the treadmill to earn new levels.
I came to think of it this way: On the level treadmill of life, the easiest difficulty setting is White Male. I'm ok with this analogy because it made sense to me. It's not saying the person on the treadmill is evil or racist which is good because they probably aren't. It's simply acknowledging the halo effect.
How do we solve this problem? I think it isn't solvable. It's like an incurable but manageable disease. Human beings are imperfect, that's part of what makes us human. It is through education and communication that we improve and learn and develop the wisdom to work against our base instincts, but you can never remove the base instincts. And it is very natural for humans to be wary when faced with something different or unfamiliar. But we can manage it better by installing better leaders and better teachers. That's probably one of the best ways to attack the issue. Unfortunately, we have problems in politics and business and especially law where questionable people achieve leadership positions. And we have problems in education where administrators are doing their best to make the teaching profession unattractive...but those are discussions for different blog posts.
I'd Rather be Here than Not
I need to tie this post into Memorial Day, so here it is. You may not like the level treadmill, which can also symbolize the Sisyphean life of working for retirement, but I'm darn glad to have it compared to some of the alternatives (like slavery). And we have it because someone died to keep us from some of those worse alternatives. Gratitude as always for our veterans.
No comments:
Post a Comment