When I go shopping alone, am I likely to be followed or harassed by a store employee who assumes I may steal something merely because of the color of my skin?

If I need to go to an emergency room for a medical emergency, do I need to be concerned that I may not get quality care because of my race?

When I apply for loans or want to buy a house, do I need to worry that the color of my skin might negatively affect the loan officer's perception of me as a financially reliable person?

Is my children's race likely to put them at emotional or physical risk because of bias or prejudice? 

It was questions such as these that led Peggy McIntosh, a professor at Wellesley College, to write an article on the often unrecognized (at least by white people) aspects of white privilege.  An important part of unlearning racism is to become aware of the special privileges that come to us as members of the dominant group.

Having white privilege has been likened to riding a bicycle with the wind at your back helping you along.  The wind has always been there, so you don't notice it.  You may wonder why other cyclists are going so slowly, not noticing that they are dealing with more difficult wind conditions.

We who are white are not the only ones who hold racial stereotypes or who act prejudicially.  When white privilege and prejudice is the focus, some might ask, "Wouldn't it be more equitable to also include vignettes where people of color make racist statements to each other or to white people?"  It is true that throughout the world there is racial prejudice and unfair advantage based on race.  In the United States, however, whites are the predominant group.  We are more populous (approximately 82 percent of the total population in 2000).

Moreover we are usually at the top of the power structure whether in business, government, or education.  Thus, prejudice on the part of white people has the potential of doing a lot more damage than that of people of color.  Whites are often in the position of making policy, hiring people, making decisions about loans, and handing down judicial decisions.  To be a target of prejudice can be upsetting for a person of any race.  However, when prejudice against your racial group negatively affects your education, your livelihood, your housing, and your freedom, it magnifies its effects exponentially.

As whites we have the luxury of not needing to extend ourselves to do this uncomfortable work.  It is usually easy to isolate ourselves, to associate mostly or only with other white people and our lives will still go along well enough.  People of color usually don't have that privilege, especially in the workplace.  We are in a position where we don't have to know about those who are not white.  We can shield ourselves from their viewpoints and from the struggles they go through as a result of prejudice and institutionalized racism. 

In unlearning racism, the work we do as white people is different from the work people of color do.  The stories I have heard from many people of color describe intense and painful processes that are required as they attempt to free themselves from internalized oppression, devastating anger, and resentment that can result from being in a minority in a racialized society. These initial experiences are often most effectively addressed within a group of people of color.

Those of us who are white, on the other hand, face the task of coming to recognize an often unconscious sense of superiority and entitlement.  Once we recognize this, we may need to find ways to address the difficult emotions such awareness elicits.  Additionally, there is the task of exploring ways to dismantle the subtle, or not so subtle, ways racism plays out in our own behavior or in our institutions.

It has been my experience that most white folks in this country are not particularly drawn to explore the subject of racism.  It's an issue that is often painful and confusing.  It can bring up feelings of fear, guilt, anger, confusion and sadness.  An issue where there is usually little agreement between people across the color line.  A problem for which there are no obvious solutions.

There are a number of different viewpoints which might make whites want to avoid acknowledging the harmful impact of racism or shy away from confronting their racial blind spots.  I have listed some of the ones I could think of. 

-- The racial problem has been mostly solved.  The playing field has already been leveled.  For example, look at Colin Powell.

-- We are all human.  To focus on race is to focus on what divides us.  When I look at someone I don't even want to notice what race they are.  I try to be colorblind.

-- People of color are too sensitive.  They tend to see race in every issue. Many of them have adopted a victim mentality.  They need to free themselves from that mindset.  Sometimes I believe that they're just trying to get a free ride.

-- It's their own fault.  Don't blame us whites. For example, look at the rates of crime and drug addiction in black communities.  They need to take care of their own problems. 

-- I also hate the fact that there was slavery.  I worked for civil rights in the '60s. I'm an advocate of affirmative action.  What more do I have to learn about racism?

-- I'm also from an oppressed group -- for example, as a gay person I cannot legally marry in my state.  All oppressed groups could use more understanding and support.  Why single out the oppression of racism?

-- It's too painful to look at what my people have done to others.  I'm ashamed.  When I'm around black people, especially those who appear to be struggling financially, I feel uncomfortable and guilty.  I don't know how to deal with my guilt or how to make it better for those people of color who've been injured by racism. 

In doing the work of exploring your racial attitudes and assumptions, it is helpful to know where you are starting from.  Reflect on which of these positions, if any, match your own.  Do you have other reasons for not wanting to do this work?  Or maybe you find no resistance at all.  You need not deny or bypass how you think or feel.  It is okay to begin just where you are.  

My hope is that you will at least be open to the possibility of making discoveries which change your assumptions.  It is especially valuable to work with these vignettes in a group setting in order to go through a discussion process where you can hear various viewpoints.

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