What Is White Privilege, Really?

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White privilege

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Terms in this set (50)

Opportunities and advantages that white people enjoy solely because of the color of their skin. Typically, these advantages are not noted by those who have them; as a result, they are not aware of the prejudice, racism, and discrimination people of color have to endure due to the unfair nature of historical and current society.

Tangible

Something that can be experienced, touched, or measured rather than something that can only be imagined or visualized. In the article, the author explains that Peggy McIntosh’s essay “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” provides the opportunity for white privilege to be measured.

Widely represented

When a particular group is featured much more frequently and prominently than other groups in contexts like TV shows, business leadership, politics, and other high-visibility areas. In the article, the author explains that one way to understand white privilege is to consider that white people think nothing of the fact that people who look like them make up the majority of characters on TV shows, while people of color are featured less often.

Unconscious advantage

A favorable circumstance that one is not aware of. In many cases, unconscious advantage contributes to white privilege (“wWithin the context of the article, it helps to explain the concept of white privilege.

Overshadow

To appear more important than. In the article, the author argues that some more “cosmetic” views on white privilege obscure its deeper, more troublesome roots in racism and systemic inequities.