Kati,
Nottingham, MD.
I did not know what white privilege was before coming to the US. I definitely see how I have it easier here than people with different skin colors. But I will be honest. I have had a hard time being told all the time that I cannot understand hardship because of my skin color. Why do Americans insist on one-upping each other on the hardship scale? It’s like everyone wants to have the biggest victim star, so they can tell everyone else how to live. You don’t know someone’s history just by looking at them. You don’t know what they have or haven’t experienced. Whether you are white, black, brown, green, blue, red. . . you still don’t get to judge.
She aslo adds:
Does white always mean white privilege?
I am Brasilian by birth and very white skinned. This is an honest question. i want to understand if people on this site see every white person as being guilty in some way for the racism they have experienced in their life. But often i have felt discredited from participating in this conversation because of how I look. But I am not “white-american” and grew up without ever recognizing colors of skin till I moved to the US. Am i just as guilty? Should i be made to feel as though I am part of the system that mistreats minorities? Is not making a judgment on white skin the same as making a judgment on any other color? And more importantly, when a person has been treated unfairly for how they look, what color they are, or any other external factor, does that give them the right to do the same? I know it’s complicated. I realize that so much of this behavior is just human. We all judge one another, and we all find it hard to forgive injustices. But maybe because I grew up outside of this particular set of prejudices, I see the tendency of the victim to adopt the very air of superiority that caused his or her pain in the first place. And while i don’t blame them, I do wonder if humans will ever be able to move forward, or if the pendulum must always swing
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