A Synopsis on Privilege in Modern America

Bryce Boggs

May 31, 2020

Throughout this paper, I outline the statistical and theoretical inequalities that minority groups within
America face as well as the prevalence of white privilege within modern America. With these statistics
and studies, I place the argument that the prevalence of white privilege, systematic oppression, and
systematic racism, are hindering our society from progressing as a whole. While discussing topical and
statistical analysis, I also dissect my thoughts on said information and what we can do to assist those
who are victims of such travesties.

Introduction

As America makes so-called progress within the state of our country, one factor has always remained
constant: the prevalence of white privilege. As defined by the Cambridge dictionary, privilege is an
advantage that only one person or group of people has, usually because of their position or because
they are rich. And while many say that they were not born into such privilege, our skin color on its own
is giving us a leg up in this self-proclaimed progressive nation. We as allies of people of color must use
this privilege to move our country in the direction that it needs to be going and I can assure you that the
deaths of innocent people of color at the hands of people that we trust to uphold our nation is not the
direction that we need to be traveling in.

White Privilege: An Invisible Knapsack

Peggy McIntosh, an American feminist, anti-racism, activist, scholar, speaker, and Senior Research
Scientist of the Wellesley Centers for Women in her 1988 article White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible
Knapsack outlines the ideology and societal implementations of white privilege. While this article is a bit
outdated, many concepts that are outlined are still very pertinent in the modern world. The most
apposite information from her research study included a list of 50 things that she viewed as such
privilege and thus, I will list off a few of them.

2. I can avoid spending time with people whom I was trained to mistrust and who have learned
to mistrust me

7. When I am told about our national heritage or about "civilization," I am shown that people of
my color made it what it is

10. I can be pretty sure of having my voice heard in a group in which I am the only member of
my race

21. I am never asked to speak for all the people of my racial group

32. My culture gives me little fear about ignoring the perspective and powers of people of other
races

39. I can be late to a meeting without having the lateness reflect on my race

50. I will feel welcomed and "normal" in the usual walks of public life, institutional and social
You as a reader may be inclined to search out for the full list of 50, and I highly recommend doing so. I
think being able to reflect on the actions of our day to day lives can unravel what we often overlook.
Being able to have your voice heard, have your skin be a reflection of your societal perception, and
being able to live life fearlessly because of your white shield that encapsulates your mind, body, and soul
is a privilege. It is something that many people of color in this nation have to wake up and come to
terms with every single day of their lives until they lay upon their death bed because the land of the free
and home of the brave limits itself when it comes to the lives and wellbeing of minority groups.

Statistical Information

All of the following information is from an article on thenewprogressive.net that outlines significant data
throughout modern America which is statistical evidence of white privilege. All statistics thin the study is
linked to FBI reports, scientific research, census data, as well as a range of other sources of which are
deemed to be credible. I will break up this section into categories similar to the article. Feel free to
elaborate on the statistics to yourself.

Police

- Young black boys/men, ages 15-19 are 21 times more likely to be shot and killed by the
police than young white boys/men.
- Blacks are less than 13% of the US population, and yet they are 31% of all fatal police
shooting victims, and 39% of those killed by police even though they were not attacking.
- Under the NYPD's "stop-and-frisk" program, in every year since 2009, 87% of those stopped-
and-frisked were black or Latino in comparison to 10% white, and yet although only 2.6% of
all stops resulted in the discovery of contraband or a weapon, Whites were more likely to be
found with contraband or a weapon.

War on Drugs

- Blacks are less than 13% of the US population, and they only make up 14% of regular drug
users, but they are 37% of those arrested for drug offenses, and 56% of those in state
prisons for drug offenses.
- Black kids are 10 times more likely to be arrested for drug crimes than white kids – even
though white kids are more likely to abuse drugs.
- In the late 1990s, black and white women had similar levels of drug use during pregnancy,
but black women were 10 times as likely as white women to be reported to child services for
potential drug use.

Prison

- 1 in 3 black men can expect to go to jail at some point in their lifetimes

Criminal Justice/Courts
- Once arrested, blacks are more likely to remain in prison awaiting trial than whites; in some
place, they are 33% more likely to be detained while awaiting trial than whites.
- Black men are nearly twice as likely to be arraigned on charges that carry a mandatory
minimum.
- A study in Georgia in the 1980s found that more than 20% of black defendants convicted of
murdering white victims received the death penalty. However, only 8% of whites who killed
whites and 1% of blacks who killed other blacks received the death penalty.

Education

- Whites are 78% more likely to be accepted to the same university as equally qualified
people of color.
- Only 17 states provide more education funding to high-poverty districts than to low-poverty
districts.

Employment

- A black college student has the same chances of getting a job as a white high school
dropout.
- A white male with a criminal record is 5% more likely to get a job than an equally qualified
person of color with a clean record.

Wealth

- The average net worth of black households is $6,314 compared to $110,500 for the average
white household.
- While a college-educated white American has an average net worth of $75,000, a college-
educated black American has an average net worth of less than $17,500
- The black-white wealth gap is greater in the United States today than it was in South Africa
in 1970, at the height of apartheid. We also incarcerate a higher percentage of blacks today
than apartheid South Africa did.

Workplace

- Black men make 72 cents for every dollar a white man makes
- Black women make 64 cents for every white male dollar, and Latina women make 53 cents
for every white male dollar.
- Once released from prison, if they can get a job at all, the wages of black ex-convicts grow at
a 21% slower rate than white ex-convicts.

Voting

- An exhaustive analysis of all election-crime prosecutions since 2000 identified only 7

- According to a study in Canada, non-white women who go missing receive 27 times less
media coverage than white women.
- While African American children comprise 33.2% of missing children cases, only 19.5% of
cases are reported in the media

Housing

- Blacks and Latinos face housing discrimination an estimated 4 million times each year

As seen by all of the statistics given above, it is clear to see that there is still racism, discrimination, and
blatant white privilege in many sectors of our country. I highly suggest readers to look at the actual case
because I did not list every present statistic for the sake of space but there are several more which are
just as pertinent as those that were discussed above.

The Misconceptions

Along with many other current issues within America, white privilege comes with a lot of
misconceptions. These misconceptions often lead to outrage among people who have been too ignorant
thus far to understand what said privilege is. Two of the most common misconceptions concerning this
privilege is the fact that a white person has never struggled and the idea that white people do not work
for the position that they are in. Both of those concepts often deter outsiders from agreeing with the
actual conceptualization of white privilege. With statistics and research that is stated above, it is clear
that the color of your skin plays a huge role in achieving the American dream. While many white people
are not born into money, a life with bountiful opportunities and a carefree lifestyle where everything is
handed to them, the color of their skin will likely play a role in their future success.

What We Can Do

We need to ask the question as white people in America, "What can we do to combat future systematic
racism and oppression in our country?" As a whole, if we do not combat the issues at hand, we will have
no societal progress and we will continue to see the news reports that make America stand still, the
protests, and the riots that we are seeing today. We need to show our full support to those in our lives
that have firsthand experience with this systematic oppression and use our privilege for a positive
impact. Become an educated voter, take part in protests, ask those around you, learn from the past, and
listen to those around you.

As a track and field athlete, I am continuously surrounded by a very diverse group of people. Admittedly,
I should do better. I should practice what I preach. I know for a fact that I can learn from these people, I
know that I can listen to what these people have to say, and in turn, I can attempt to the best of my
abilities to help change the task at hand so future generations will not have to go through such trying
times. I think that Peggy McIntosh was an absolute genius in making a list of her privileges and I have
chosen to create a similar list but not of the privileges that I have, but what I can do to embrace all
people with open arms, open ears, and an open heart. I will provide that list below.
 1. Learn from other people's experiences.
2. Keep up to date with current issues that people of color are facing and what I can do to assist
them.
3. Become an informed voter – vote for people who seek the change who is needed to progress as
a society.
4. Educate myself on historical events that have played a role in the society that we see today
5. Educate and inform others with what I learn
6. Use my privilege to change society, not maintain society

7. Listen.

Although the list I mentioned above is minuscule compared to what I can do to combat the way that we
view current issues, it will be ever-growing as I learn more from those who surround me.

Conclusion

a white person in America, I am beyond blessed to have privileges that many people will never
experience. I believe that change is possible, but we have to learn from one another and not repeat
history if we ever want to change. And repeating history is an inevitable consequence of forgetting
history, so we must not forget. We must not forget how we have gotten to the point that we are at
today. We must educate ourselves on issues that have occurred in the past and not overshadow them
with the ones that we find relevant to our personal gain. We are in a time that change is mandatory, and
I think the current news reflects that. I am ready for change, I am ready to learn from those who
surround me, and I am ready to see our society become prosperous for everyone who lives in it. It is
time for civil disobedience.
 Works Cited

"PRIVILEGE: Definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary." PRIVILEGE | Definition in the Cambridge
English Dictionary, dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/privilege.

McIntosh, Peggy. White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. Wellesley College Center for
Research on Women, 1988, www.racialequitytools.org/resourcefiles/mcintosh.pdf.

"The Ultimate White Privilege Statistics & Data Post." 100+ Stats That Prove White Privilege, 10 Nov.
2019, www.thenewprogressive.net/ultimate-white-privilege-statistics/.