Melting The Snowflakes of White Privilege
A week ago, Thom Hartmann published a fantastic article entitled The Snowflaking of White Privilege. Yesterday, on MLK Day, I contacted Thom on the air during his award winning radio and television program to comment on the article. During our brief conversation, Thom asked me how did I define white privilege because I had left a written comment on the article that stated “Socrates said that the beginning of wisdom is a definition of terms. White privilege is the privilege to define what white privilege is. Whilst you white folks pontificate.”
I explained to Thom that the answer was a lengthy one that did not lend itself to the brevity of time we had to discuss the matter. Nonetheless, his query haunted me the entire day and though I had (and have) an answer to the pointed interrogatory, I realized that many do not fully understand the “definition of terms.” Ergo, once again Hartmann has inspired me as a writer and this article is a product of that inspiration.
At least I hope so.
White Privilege
White privilege is often conflated, or confused, with white supremacy. White supremacy is often conflated, or confused, with racism. Racism is often conflated, or confused, with bigotry. Bigotry is often conflated, or confused, with prejudice. In and of themselves all of these things are distinctly different; however, they are often incestuous which only amplifies the confusion. This is exacerbated by a largely miseducated and illiterate public.
Of all these things, white privilege is the dizygotic twin of white supremacy. Resultantly, they are the same in some aspects, but different in others. When the two fornicate the result is incest. White privilege has a more physical aspect than does white supremacy, although white privilege is a result of white supremacy. White supremacy is predicated solely upon a state of mind (which is why anyone can be a white supremacist), whereas white privilege often morphs into the physical.
For instance, Supreme Court Justice Clarence “Uncle” Thomas is a white supremacist if there ever was one. It is abundantly clear by his judicial temperament, profile and history that he believes white is right (literally). He loves Massa and living on the plantation. There are millions of Black People in the United States like that.
If I chain my dog to a tree she can only go as far as that chain will allow. Nevertheless, I can take the chain off and hit her in the head with a stick every time she goes beyond that same boundary that the chain mandated and she will quickly learn to not go beyond that boundary. It is taboo, perhaps voodoo, to state out loud but lack of utterance does not change the fact that many Black People in the United States are still slaves. Just like the hypothetical dog, the visible and physical chains have been removed, but their minds are more shackled, manacled and handcuffed than ever. This is quite by design, as is its perpetuation.
In spite of this stark reality, Uncle Thomas can be a white supremacist in his mind all he wants and adopt the attitudes of white supremacy. Be that as it is, once he disrobes his black robe (as few people would recognize him) his charcoal-black ass will get called a nigger and followed around at the local Target store just like the rest of us. He will get pulled over and disrespected by police just like the rest of us. His “vote” will be compromised just like the rest of us. His appearance, alone, will conjure up stereotypes, tropes, assessments and marginalization just like the rest of us.
White privilege is you expect me to pledge “allegiance” to your flag because I am to be too stupid, and or psychotic, to realize you don’t pledge allegiance to the flag of any “person of color” on planet Earth. Even though you represent a paltry 12 percent of the global population. White privilege gives you the privilege of judging how I should respond to a condition that you are incapable of fathoming.
White privilege is you expect me to stand in homage to that flag while you play a song that states “No refuge could save the hireling and slave, from the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave. And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave, O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.” White privilege gives you the privilege of being so goddamned aloof, inconsiderate, callous and ignorant, to never consider that you don’t stand in homage to the flag of any of the world’s majority on a compulsory basis.
Stunning.
White privilege is you take offense, especially you self-labeled “progressives” and liberals, when I do not support Joe Biden. For the record I don’t like any American politician; Bernie Sanders is as close to tolerating a politician as I can muster. Politicians are the human equivalent of chitterlings to me. I have never eaten a chitterling in my life and never will because they smell like shit (naturally). Not only will I not eat anything that stinks, I am way too talented for the Chitlin’ Circuit. Joe Biden has a long, long history of insulting people that look like me in both words and deeds.
White privilege is the privilege you have of telling me how I am somehow misguided, though you have never voted for a Black Person in the United States that has insulted you. In fact, you appear to have a penchant for killing those that dare confront you. Truth has consequences.
White privilege is when you stop at a red-light and a cop pulls up behind you, most of you feel “safe.” You “back the badge” and never consider that year after year, time after time, Black People in the United States are summarily executed by police along with hundreds of thousands of instances of police abuse and misconduct. The recurring nightmare is something of which you have zero frame of reference. White privilege allows you to be ignorant of the nexus between this behavior by police and slave patrols, which is their origin. White privilege is what allows you to expect, in some cases demand, that I be equally ignorant (and stupid).
Breathtaking, literally.
As yesterday was MLK Day, white privilege allows you the privilege of dictating to me who is worthy of my hero worship and who is not. You have the privilege of ordaining who is acceptable as a great Black Person in the United States, and who is not. You have the privilege of propagating the idea that Martin Luther King, Jr. was “good” and Malcolm X was “bad.” White privilege allows you to expect me to disregard the fact that, good or bad, you murdered them both.
White privilege allows you to never think about the fact that the demographic with the shortest life expectancy in the United States, is the Black Man in the United States. You have the privilege of disregarding how that fact, inherently, exposes your apartheid political system and policies. You see, I have just entered my sixth decade on this planet. Few men in my family make it to 65 years old, let alone 70. I am already four years older than my father (very, very weird in many ways).
I have been paying into social security for almost a half a century, as I got my first summer job when I was 12. White privilege is why you never, ever have considered that if this group has a demonstrably shorter life span shouldn’t the age be lowered for them to receive social security benefits? Marinate in the implications for a spell.
As I commented to Mr. Hartmann, white privilege is the privilege to define what white privilege is. White privilege is the privilege to define the terms and control the narrative in a petridish of white supremacy. White privilege is being your own yardstick with which to measure miles in an abyss of which you have neither experience, inhabitance, regard nor credibility.
White privilege is the privilege to insult and deny. White privilege is the privilege of being proud to be stupid. Proud to be murderous. Proud to be vicious.
In the end, white privilege is the privilege of being ignorant with pride and perpetuating institutions, beliefs and systems that codify that ignorance.
