What Does It Mean to Be White

1
What Does It Mean to Be White?

• This presentation is largely based on a
  PowerPoint created by Dr. Derald Wing Sue.
• Dr. Sues DVD-Video lecture is available from the
  Microtraining and Multicultural Development web
  site at
• http//www.emicrotraining.com/race1.html

2
WHAT IS WHITE PRIVILEGE?

• White privilege is a name for the unearned
  advantages and benefits that accrue to white
  (or lighter skinned) people by virtue of a system
  that establishes the experiences, values, and
  perceptions of their group as the norm and what
  is most desired or esteemed.
• White privilege
• (1) automatically confers dominance to one group,
  while subordinating groups of color in a
  descending relational hierarchy,
• (2) owes its existence to the history and
  ideology of White supremacy, both as an idea and
  a set of legal and social practices
• (3) is premised on the mistaken notion of
  individual meritocracy and deservingness (hard
  work, family values, etc.) rather than
  favoritism,
• (4) is deeply embedded in the structural,
  systemic and cultural workings of U.S. society
  and
• (5) operates within an invisible veil of unspoken
  and protected secrecy.
• (6) means not having to think about race all the
  time--the privilege to enjoy the benefits of
  whiteness without acknowledging those advantages
  and while denying that race matters

3
Signs of Privilege, Signs of Oppression
4
America White By Law

• In 1789 the Constitution of the U.S. established
  white supremacy by giving whites extra votes,
  including congressional seats awarded on the
  basis of the number of slaves held (though such
  slaves could not themselves vote)
  Representatives and direct Taxes shall be
  apportioned among the several States which may be
  included within this Union, according to their
  respective Numbers, which shall be determined by
  adding to the whole Number of free Persons,
  including those bound to Service for a Term of
  Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three
  fifths of all other Persons enslaved
  Africans.)
• In 1790 Congress passes a citizenship and
  naturalization act dictating that any alien,
  being a free white person, who shall have resided
  within the limits and under the jurisdiction of
  the United States for the term of two years, may
  be admitted to become a citizen thereof.

5
America White By Law

• In the Dred Scott decision of 1856, upholding the
  Fugitive Slave Law, the Supreme Court of the U.S.
  rules that even A free negro of the African
  race, whose ancestors were brought to this
  country and sold as slaves, is not a 'citizen'
  within the meaning of the Constitution of the
  United States. . . . Consequently, the special
  rights and immunities guarantied to citizens do
  not apply to them.
• In 1882, the Chinese Exclusion act states that
  the coming of Chinese laborers to this country
  endangers the good order of certain localities
  within the territory, and so the coming of
  Chinese laborers to the U.S. is outlawed.
• In the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896, the
  Supreme Court validates the separate but equal
  tactic of white supremacy, legalizing Jim Crow
  laws that would regulate every aspect of social,
  economic, and political life according to the
  interests of white supremacy.

6
America White By Law

• All railroads carrying passengers in the state
  (other than street railroads) shall provide equal
  but separate accommodations for the white and
  colored races, by providing two or more passenger
  cars for each passenger train, or by dividing the
  cars by a partition, so as to secure separate
  accommodations.--Tennessee, 1891
• Marriages are void when one party is a white
  person and the other is possessed of one-eighth
  or more negro, Japanese, or Chinese
  blood.--Nebraska, 1911
• The Corporate Commission is hereby vested with
  power to require telephone companies in the State
  of Oklahoma to maintain separate booths for white
  and colored patrons when there is a demand for
  such separate booths.--Oklahoma, 1915
• Any white woman who shall suffer or permit
  herself to be got with child by a negro or
  mulatto...shall be sentenced to the penitentiary
  for not less than eighteen months.--Maryland,
  1924

7
America White By Law

• No colored barber shall serve as a barber to
  white women or girls.Atlanta, Georgia, 1926
• Separate free schools shall be established for
  the education of children of African descent and
  it shall be unlawful for any colored child to
  attend any white school, or any white child to
  attend a colored school.--Missouri, 1929
• Separate free schools shall be established for
  the education of children of African descent and
  it shall be unlawful for any colored child to
  attend any white school, or any white child to
  attend a colored school.--Missouri, 1929
• It shall be unlawful for a negro and white
  person to play together or in company with each
  other in any game of cards or dice, dominoes or
  checkers.--Birmingham, Alabama, 1930

8
Asking the Question

• For his research, Dr. Sue stopped pedestrians at
  random around the San Francisco area and asked
  them the question What Does It Mean to be
  White?

9
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• 42-year old White businessman
• A Frankly, I dont know what youre talking
  about!
• Q Arent you White?
• A Yes, but I come from Italian heritage. Im
  Italian, not White.
• Q Well then, what does it mean to be Italian?
• A Pasta, good food, love of wine (obviously
  agitated). This is getting ridiculous!

10
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?
11
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• 26-year-old White female college student
• A Is this a trick question?...... Ive never
  thought about it...... Well, I know that lots of
  Black people see us as being prejudiced and all
  that stuff. I wish people would just forget
  about race differences and see one another as
  human beings. People are people and we should
  all be proud to be Americans.

12
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• 65-year-old White male retired construction
  worker
• A That is a stupid question!
• Q Why?
• A Look, what are you ... Oriental? You people
  are always blaming us for stereotyping and here
  you are doing the same to us.

13
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• Q When you say us whom are you referring to?
• A Im referring to Americans who arent colored.
  We are all different from one another. Im
  Irish but there are Germans, Italians and those
  Jews. I get angry at the colored people for
  always blaming us..... when my grandparents came
  over to this country, they worked 24 hours a day
  to provide a good living for their kids. My wife
  and I raised 5 kids and I worked every day of my
  life to provide for them.
• No one gave me nothing! I get angry at the Black
  people for always whining... they just have to
  get off their butts and work rather than going on
  welfare. At least you people referring to Asian
  Americans work hard. The Black ones could learn
  from your people.

14
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• 34-year-old White female stockbroker
• A I dont know (laughing), Ive never thought
  about it.
• Q Are you White?
• A Yes, I suppose so (seems very amused).
• Q Why havent you thought about it?
• A Because its not important to me.
• Q Why not?
• A It doesnt enter into my mind because it
  doesnt affect my life. Besides, we are all
  individuals. Color isnt important.

15
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?
16
WHITE REACTIONS TO WHITENESS

• White people
• (1) often find the question perplexing,
• (2) would rather not think about their whiteness,
• (3) are uncomfortable or react negatively to
  being labeled White,
• (4) deny its importance in affecting their lives,
  and
• (5) seem to believe that they are unjustifiably
  accused of being bigoted by virtue of being White.

17
Whiteness and Color Blindness

• The pretense by White Americans that they do not
  see color is motivated by the need to appear free
  of bias and prejudice, fears that what they say
  or do may appear racist or as an attempt to cover
  up hidden biases.
• To be color blind not only denies the central
  importance of racial differences in the
  psychological experience of minorities (racism
  and discrimination), but also allows the White
  person to deny how his or her whiteness intrudes
  upon the person of color.

18
How Do People of Color Answer the Question?

• How are their answers different from those given
  by white people?

19
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• 21-year-old Chinese American male college student
  (Ethnic Studies major)
• A My cultural heritage class was just discussing
  that question last week.
• Q What was your conclusion?
• A Well, it has to do with White privilege. I
  read an article by a professor at Wellesley
  Peggy McIntosh. It made a lot of sense to me.
  Being White in this society automatically
  guarantees you better treatment and unearned
  benefits and privileges than minorities. Having
  white skin means you have the freedom to choose
  the neighborhood you live in. You wont be
  discriminated against. When you enter a store,
  security guards wont assume you will steal
  something. You can flag down a cab without the
  thought they wont pick you up because you are a
  minority. You can study in school and be assured
  your group will be portrayed positively. You
  dont have to deal with race or think about it.
• Q Are White folks aware of their privilege?
• A Hell no! Theyre oblivious to it.

20
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• 29-year-old Latina Administrative Assistant
• A Im not White Im Latina!
• Q Are you upset with me?
• A No... Its just that Im light, so people
  always think Im White. Its only when I speak
  that they realize Im Hispanic.
• Q Well, what does it mean to be White?
• A Do you really want to know?....... Okay, it
  means youre always right. It means you never
  have to explain yourself or apologize... ... You
  know that movie Love Is Never Having To Say
  Youre Sorry? Well, being White is never have to
  say youre sorry. It means you think youre
  better than us.

21
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• 39-year-old Black Male Salesman
• A is this a school exercise or something? Never
  expected someone to ask me that question in the
  middle of the city. Do you want the politically
  correct answer or what I really think?
• Q Can you tell me what you really think?
• A You wont quit will you (laughing)? If youre
  White, youre right. If youre Black, step back.
• Q What does that mean?

22
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?

• A White folks are always thinking they know all
  the answers. A Black mans word is worth less
  than a White mans. When White customers come
  into our dealership and see me standing next to
  the cars, I become invisible to them. Actually,
  they may see me as a well-dressed janitor
  (laughs), or actively avoid me. They will search
  out a White salesman. Or, when I explain
  something to a customer, they always check out
  the information with my White colleagues. They
  dont trust me.
• When I mention this to our manager, who is White,
  he tells me Im oversensitive and being paranoid.
  Thats what being White means. It means having
  the authority or power to tell me whats really
  happening even though I know its not. Being
  White means you can fool yourself into thinking
  that youre not prejudiced, when you are. Thats
  what it means to be White.

23
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WHITE?
Japanese Americans behind barbed wire at Manzanar
Internment camp, California, in 1942
24
What do the answers tell us about the meaning of
whiteness?

• For people perceived as white, whiteness means
• To be socialized into a world of White supremacy.
• To inherit and benefit from a world of White
  privilege.
• To knowingly or unknowingly have a stake in the
  perpetuation of White racism.
• To deny the reality of people of color and to
  define their experience from a White perspective.
• To be oblivious to your own biases and prejudices.

25
Whiteness means.

• To be right.
• To possess the luxury of not exploring yourself
  as a racial/cultural being.
• To be able to equate a human being with being
  White.
• To be in the position to be an oppressor with the
  power to force your will upon persons of color.
• More importantly, being a White American means
  living in a world of self-deception, color
  blind in the sense that you do not see that in
  this world your skin color is an asset while all
  other colors are a liability.

26
White Cliches We are the norm, we are the world

• People are people. We are all human beings.
  Were all Americans. Were all the same under
  the skin.
• We should emphasize our similarities, not our
  differences. I dont see color at all. We
  should be a color-blind society. Everyone
  should be treated the same.
• We should all learn to blend in. If you
  immigrate to this country, you should assimilate
  and acculturate. When in Rome, do as the Romans
  do. We are a melting pot.

27
AWAKENING TO WHITE PRIVILEGE

• In his own racial awakening, Robert Jensen, a
  White professor of journalism writes
• I know I did not get where I am by merit alone.
  I benefited from, among other things, white
  privilege. That doesnt mean that I dont
  deserve my job, or that if I werent white I
  would never have gotten the job. It means simply
  that all through my life, I have soaked up
  benefits for being white. I grew up in fertile
  farm country taken by force from non-white
  indigenous people. I was educated in a
  well-funded, virtually all-white public school
  system in which I learned that white people like
  me made this country great. There I was also
  taught a variety of skills, including how to take
  standardized tests written by and for white
  people.