I’m White and I Can Tell You First Hand White Privilege Exists

There are a lot of White people who chafe against the basic concept of White privilege. I get it. The premise comes with a shocking amount of guilt. Honestly, the idea that you are being treated better because of your skin color can be hard to believe.

Well, believe it. White people are generally treated better than virtually every other skin color out there. It doesn’t take white people paying too much attention to realize this is the case. That being said, admitting it seems to be a virtual impossibility for far too many of us.

White as a Ghost

I am White. I am about as White a person as you are going to meet. I live in the whitest part of Canada where I am surrounded by other White people. I’m so White that going to Costco on the weekend constitutes having “Saturday plans.” That’s just running errands.

I say this to make it clear that I speak from a White person’s perspective on the world around me. Additionally, I’m not saying that there’s anything inherently wrong with being White. All heritages and ethnicities should be celebrated. That being said, we’ve seen what happens when “White pride” is celebrated too feverishly, so let’s take a step back from doing that.

My point is simply that I grew up and continue to live in a mostly White community on the Canadian Prairies. Diversity has thankfully grown in this part of the world dramatically in the past two decades. Tolerance has improved but acceptance still has a long way to go.

The largest “minority group” in these parts is generally the Indigenous community. While there are a variety of heritages, the Plains Cree are, to the best of my knowledge, the most prevalent group where I live. As such, they are my frame of reference.

The Privilege

The reality is that I have seen firsthand on many occasions how being White has benefitted me with next to no effort on my part. This has been particularly true when I watch my community interact with members of the Plains Cree community.

I have gone into stores with security while looking like an absolute degenerate and gotten nothing but a friendly smile. Moments later, I have seen well-dressed Indigenous men come in and immediately obtain a not-so-subtle level of attention from security.

I have seen restaurants, stores, and more offer a much different level of service to Indigenous customers. Sometimes, it’s just being less courteous. Other times, it’s something more sinister and overt. Regardless, there’s an obvious ethnic component to the situation.

This is a reality that I have seen play out all over North America. Black people and Hispanics have similar everyday issues in the United States and Canada. And none of this gets into dealing with the police. I’m not afraid when I get pulled over. I don’t have to question how the situation could change when the officer gets a good look at me.

Accept Reality

These situations make me angry. I don’t like seeing this kind of prejudice in the world. I also don’t step in to do anything about it. Why? It’s not my place to make a scene on behalf of someone else if they don’t want it. If one of my Indigenous brothers and sisters need backup, I’m there. But me wanting to fight on their behalf is just my White guilt kicking in.

What makes me even angrier are the White people who deny that White privilege exists. It does. I’ve seen it. We literally live in a system designed to give White people the benefit of the doubt, something that is most certainly not extended to other ethnicities. It’s not hard to see when you pay attention. Well, unless you choose to ignore it.

It’s difficult to feel like you’re benefiting from some sort of privilege when you’re a dirt-poor White person. That makes sense. Our systems of government and justice still treat you differently, even if it doesn’t happen in the most obvious fashions.

I’m not asking White people to change the world overnight. That’s going to take a lot of time and effort. Just start by being open to the idea of White privilege and watching for examples of it in your daily life. Once you start paying attention, you will see it and you will want to do something about it.