What Experiencing a Privilege Walk* Feels Like?
Realizing how social inequalities come into play and growing more empathetic to the ones affected…
Some people are born into families where they have to survive on just one meal for 2–3 days. All I have to do is run to the kitchen whenever hungry and fill my empty stomach. That’s a privilege. Some people don’t get to see their parents daily while mine is just a phone call away. That’s a privilege. Some have to rely on external support to walk, see or hear. All I have to do is wake up and all my senses are in play. That’s a privilege. Privileges are these unearned advantages and quite often we are unaware of them. Gratefully, I was bestowed upon an opportunity to be part of a privileged walk in college. A definite eye-opener. This walk, not only made us aware of the advantages we didn’t have but also the ones we did and took for granted. It made us think of certain aspects of our life in a way we would have never thought of before. It was almost like a visual representation of the inequalities we face in society and how it manifests to create stresses in our lives.
The very first thought that came to my mind during the activity being conducted was “Hey this is like we are being segregated based on the haves and have nots”. (Sorry for the History recap) Karl Marx had asserted that the capitalist society divides the people into the haves and the have nots. Many of the statements in the walk reminded us of the financial privileges we had or didn’t. Whether we had the money to go shopping or seek medical aid or afford a trip abroad. Even speaking fluently in English was considered a privilege. In a capitalist society, there are bound to be differences in a person’s income. Therefore there is bound to be a person lower and a person higher. Climbing on top of the ladder becomes the ultimate goal, each person wanting to acquire the privilege associated with it. The individual’s ambitious traits push him to achieve greater heights in his occupation. In essence “Haves” can be categorized as those individuals who are driven by initiatives, knowledge, ambition, entrepreneurship, a desire to contribute to society, thus becoming a source of further employment for others. On the other hand, are people who are on the lower rungs of the society who are categorized as less productive i.e. the have nots. This could be because they do not have exposure to knowledge or they lack certain skill sets. They may also be a group having knowledge but lacking in initiative and drive to achieve greater tasks and responsibilities, in an unfavourable atmosphere. (Ocheja)
One would therefore conjure that the society leads to the emergence of certain privileges and inequalities. The market forces indulge in us the work ethic and the motive to be higher than others. However, if it was a socialist framework, the wealth is sought to be distributed amongst all irrespective of whether one is productive or not. Therefore getting rid of the inequalities people face and the certain privileges people hold. Capitalism is overthrown and with it the whole baggage of racial and gender inequalities too. Probably if we all had come from families having the same income we would have all been in the same line and not ahead or behind during the walk. (Sonnenberg, 2014)
We were asked about how we felt being at the front or the back of the group, how we felt when the hand holding contact was broken. I couldn’t help but think that if I was standing way behind the rest of the group the feeling of alienation would take over. Here it is the privileges that we don’t have that are making us feel alienated. It alienates us from the same world we all belong in. The person feels no more equal compared to the rest. The person feels alienated from the whole process that the other person has easily gone through. He sees others in the game walking ahead and enjoying a certain way of life. For example, we were asked to step back if our family primarily relied on public transport. This was where I took a step back and the hand holding contact, broken. It brought in me a sense of not having something. Not having my own vehicle even if my father did work in a company for cars. Privileges that you don’t hold therefore create alienation from the process, from one’s own being and other people. Maybe having a specific privilege could help you get along well with a certain group. At the same time not having one could obstruct one from being a part of a group. For example, a person who has come by someone’s influence gets an opportunity to be a part of the college even if his or her grades were lower compared to another person who didn’t. A person who isn’t visually or physically challenged has higher chances of getting into a departmental festival of the college than the person who is. Hence, it is our utmost responsibility to keep in check these privileges and create a shared space for those who don’t. And even more when we are aware that such alienation and isolation are key areas for mental health issues to take over.
Many statements in the walk were based on race and gender. Therefore it wasn’t hard to notice that belonging to a certain race could also lead to fewer privileges. Belonging to a certain race could also alienate oneself from his or her own identity. It describes the sensation of feeling as though one’s identity is divided into several parts, making it difficult to have one unified identity. For example, even today the media sells us images of black men as rappers, athletes or criminals and as a result, we perceive black men as such. Young black males, therefore, see these limited paths as their only sole identity. This is the way privileged white men in the media continue to shape perceptions that blacks have of themselves. Leaving them in a conflict between their two identities. One is what they hold and the other is made for them by people. We tend to associate a particular body colour or a person living in the slums as prime suspects of crime. We often see beautiful models, air hostesses and actresses of a lighter skin tone. Race and racism is therefore an engine of producing inequality in a society. Hence people belonging to a race that society looks down upon ultimately face numerous challenges. Making them the underprivileged of that lot. Due to all of these reasons I feel race is a strong indicator of the privileges a person has and therefore a sign for us to grow more compassionate.
All in all the privilege walk was an enlightening experience. It helped to understand the effects of societal privileges. When you can visually represent it like this, it definitely takes a different form. In a nutshell, the walk helped us understand how bias is an unavoidable aspect of human psychology. We have diverse perspectives on people and assign varying amounts of social relevance to them. As a result, we must take steps in all aspects of our lives, including work and home, to uncover and dismantle these flawed perceptions of others. It wasn’t easy to see our own friends standing far away from us. It opened our eyes, helped us reflect on ourselves and also made us aware of our peers. In a world where we are always complaining about what we don’t have, this walk helped us learn to be grateful for what we do.
*Privilege walk — All of the participants form a horizontal line. The facilitator reads out statements, and participants move forward or backwards depending on whether or not the statement applies to them. The assertions are about privilege in general.
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