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So You’ve Realized You Have White Privilege, Now What?

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It happens more subtly than you’d imagine. Perhaps you were permitted to wear your favorite jeans to work, but your coworker was sent home because her hair was ‘too distracting’. Or maybe you were able to secure a temporary vacation home but your best friend was denied because of the color of his skin. White privilege is something so blatant that it’s truly hard to imagine that it goes unnoticed and disregarded as chance.

I may be wrong, but I doubt it’s chance that allows white men to wear their black hoodies to the gas station or chance that allows white men and women to talk back to police officers and walk away unharmed.

When the fateful day comes and you realize that you were born with the better hand in society, there’s more to do than sit around and wallow in self-awareness.

Be Mindful of Your Privilege

Don’t be afraid to turn down the hostess who offers to sit you ahead of the black family with tired eyes that arrived before you. It’s one thing to be aware of your privilege, but that doesn’t mean you have to continue to exploit the flaws in our society. Judging looks from your fellow white comrades should be expected; it’s going to take some courage, but I can promise you that the payoff of seeing others slowly regain faith in humanity is far more worth it.

Don’t Try to Use Your Self-Awareness to Relate With the Black Community

No matter how often you claim you’re ‘woke’ or comment on the wrongness of the black-face party you attended in college, the color of your skin will never change. Privilege will continue to follow you like a lost dog, so don’t try to relate to the trials we face in society. Knowing nods when your friend gets pulled over by the police or snarky comments dissing the very community that birthed you won’t cut it. You’ll never have to tell your children that the people that are meant to protect you may end up killing you because you’re ‘intimidating’. You’ll never have to watch what you wear or how you talk because of the fear of being affiliated with gangs.You’ll always be free to walk in and out of a store without buying anything and without being questioned. So yes, you may be able to realize that you have white privilege, but don’t think that means that this realization is anywhere close to what members of the black community face.

Use Your Privilege to Help Others

Use your privilege to stand up for the black lady who’s getting ripped off at the convenience store. Because heaven knows that once the black lady begins to stand up for herself, she turns into the angry, loud black woman that society warned us about. God forbid she speaks her mind or she’s suddenly the depiction of the mad black woman that society loves to portray. This is where you come in because your complexion is seen as harmless and your tone is reasonable. You get understanding smiles where she gets grimaces.

It takes a lot to be an effective member of society where you always come out on top. It’s like given the answers to the test of life and watching people of color fail the exam. Privilege is a dangerous advantage in the hands of white men and women, but when people come to their senses and learn how to manipulate it to the advantage of the oppressed, it can be a lot more beneficial for a lot more people.

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