Introduction To Privilege

[BlagHag]

I feel like the concept of "privilege" is a huge stumbling block for a lot of people when it comes to understanding social justice. I know it took me a long time to realize what it meant for me to have white privilege, and for me not to react angrily to the concept. So I thought I'd start a thread collecting resources for understanding privilege. Here's just one of my favorites:

Of Dogs and Lizards: A Parable of Privilege

[Pteryxx]

Will threads like this be a source for the Educational Resources main page?

[BlagHag]

If they prove useful, then sure

[mdevile]

Here are a couple of links that have been useful to me:

Unpacking The Invisible Backpack (understanding white privilege)
The Male Privilege Checklist

Edited to fix code

[Quester]

I recommend http://www.butyoudontlooksick.com/articles/written-by-christine/the-spoon-theory/.

[Joreth]

The revised article on why Greg Laden is not afraid of dogs, except when he is: http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/2012/ ... elevators/

[Xenologer]

This is a Privilege Discussion 101 tutorial that (for full disclosure) I wrote. It's got links to some goodness in there, though. Here is another one I wrote on What Derailing Is and Is Not, specifically about men coming into discussion of rape with their own experiences, and the need for them to do so in the Solidarity Way and not the Derailing Way.

Stuff which is not by me but which I like a lot:

Privilege is driving a Smooth Road and Not Even Knowing It

The Privilege of Politeness, about why it is unfair to always expect someone who was just harmed by systematic oppression (again) to be the "bigger" and most polite person ever about their hurt.

I Don't Care if You're Offended, on the difference between "offense" and "harm," and why we should care more about the latter than the former.

How to be Privileged and Talk About Marginalization

Once Again for the Clue-Challenged, criticism is not censorship and should not be treated as censorship or censorship waiting to happen.

"Check my what?" On privilege and what we can do about it

And this is just something I think someone in this space will get use out of. Keeping Us Going: A Manual on Support Groups for Social Change Activists

Hope something in there was helpful!

[Sassafras]

I really love John Scalzi's essay Straight White Male: The Lowest Difficulty Setting There Is.

[ikrase]

I don't think I can really do better than what is posted so far, but I do have this unusual thing to add. I hope it's not a derail though.

One issue that might come up is the criticism of 'counter-privilege' lists. Occasionally these have come up, mostly from MRAs claiming a huge number of things which are mostly untrue or examples of benevolent sexism. However, they may contain a few points that actually make some sense and for which some, but not all, of the theories relating to privilege apply. So far nobody has done a really good criticism of these.

On the non-MRA, explicitly egalitaran side is http://dannyscorneroftheuniverse.blogspot.com/search?q=symmetry which is NOT INTENDED to suggest that the oppressions are equal. by 'Danny'.

[Jadehawk]

to get people some resources on the flipside of privilege, maybe some reading about microaggressions?

I can unfortunately only offer dead-tree books as suggestions (though IIRC, the first book exists as a pdf somewhere on the internets)
"Microaggressions in everyday life : race, gender, and sexual orientation" and "Microaggressions and Marginality: Manifestation, Dynamics, and Impact", both by Derald Wing Sue.

The latter book has the amusing problem that it actually commits a microaggression against agnostics and atheists, by defining those terms incorrectly :-p

[Kassiane]

http://aspergersquare8.blogspot.com/2009/08/checklist-of-neurotypical-privilege-new.html <-neurotypical privilege (the drafts were longer and, frankly, better)

www.http://derailingfordummies.com If you've got privilege on the axis you're discussing, these are derailing & silencing tactics privileged people tend to like.

http://www.microaggressions.com/ For understanding microaggressions, which are those little. tiny. things. that add up and up and up.

[mdevile]

two videos about microagression here
Shakesville feminism 101 post on women just looking for things to be angry about also addresses microagressions

And microagressions.com, mentioned above is a good source for user submitted stories.

I'll see if I can find some more tomorrow. I know I read a fantastic blog about it somewhere a year or so, but my google-fu isn't with me tonight

[MekkaGodzilla]

It seems Tim Wise was not mentionned yet. Videos of his speeches about white priviledge were a good introduction to the concept of priviledge to me. I remember discovering Tim Wise thanks to a blog post by PZ.

Here is one of many available videos on youtube : Talk - Tim Wise on White Privilege

[kbonn]

Great post so far, and helpful as well. I do have one point I would like to make coming from a privileged point of view. As Jen mentioned, when you are first are introduced to it in a personal sense, it is unsettling, uncomfortable and can even make you angry or very upset. I stumbled into this myself on FtB, where I jumped into a conversation without really considering how different a situation is for people who are not in my group. Well, I should correct myself, I did consider it, but I simply don't have the knowledge to draw on to do so in any meaningful way. Not knowing the frequency of trolling on such topics, the nature or perceived tone of some of the responses to me seemed overly hostile(at worst) and unwelcoming(at best). I went back and forth a bit, almost everything I said made it worse, except that I did express why the issue(s) in question were important to me and some people accepted that I was not a troll and not trying to derail the thread. In doing so, they pointed me towards some of the Crommunist's posts, which I found very helpful.

Anyhow, the point I am trying to get to is this. The first time a person is exposed to the notion of being privileged, it is most often not pleasant, and they will probably get defensive/angry about it. It is important to not introduce them to it in a way that makes it more unpleasant. Please, please do not make this out as me trying to blame the underprivileged for the problem. But I imagine part of the point here is trying to spread the word, and that is going to include reaching out to a lot of people who are privileged in one area or another. Most of the work/effort to understand privilege is going to be on them, say its 90%/10% on the person of privilege, we still need to get as close to that 10% as possible. After all, we want people to stay, and contribute.

Saying things like "check your privilege" or "Your privilege is showing" is probably not the best thing to say to someone with a low post count, as they may not be familiar with the concept, or at least in regards to themselves. People who somehow find there way to this site and are atheists are probably not going to take the time to read intro material, (unless you force them somehow) they are far more likely to jump right in.

I think a good example of this is from the Dogs and Lizards post:

When she says “you don’t have to put up with being leered at,” what she means is, “you don’t ever have to be wary of sexual interest.”

Helping to break down exactly what the issue is helps to pinpoint what is meant by privilege, and why the person needs to be aware of it. Describing things that happen, without explaining why it is harmful to you makes it harder for someone who is not part of your group to understand what it is you are getting at, or why it is a problem at all. Without this understanding, things can decend into extremely unhelpful bickering, where there is no progress made. Potential allies can become enemies(NOTE: I am not blaming anyone here for this), most often due to their own inexperience and probably youth. I doubt much/most of the pushback against A+ is from actual overt racists, homophobes etc.. Are there a few? Probably. But for the most part, I doubt it. They feel attacked for being White, Male, and strait (or what ever group they are actually a part of). However silly or irrelevant you might think that is, most of these people probably agree with you on most things, yet now your are both at odds. I think too large a portion of white male strait athiests are being "turned off" from FtB and A+, I don't think it really has anything to do with Feminism, but has everything to do with privilege and the communication gap that exists there. People are stubborn, and once turned off, might not come back, when they feel insulted, might insult you back, etc...

I have more to say on the subject, but I think it serves the discussion better to do it one part at a time. Should this perhaps be a separate subject, I don't want to derail this one, perhaps "Communicating with people of privilege"?

I don't know that I communicated this in the best way possible, so if it seems hostile, it is not meant to be.

[Mad Maxine]

I like the idea of a "how to" do X thread for a lot of these types of topics. Privilege, in particular, is one of those things that seems to require a bit of patience and willingness to break through a mental barrier from both parties in the discussion. Tips and guidelines about how to best broach the subject and communicate the issue in an empathetic way would be appreciated.

[Mocha]

I think one of the best starting points I've read is "Oppression" by Marilyn Frye. I think it does a really good job of explaining the ideas of oppression and privilege.

I think Peggy McIntosh has a good piece on white privilege.

Some other good books, although I've only had the pleasure of reading bits and pieces, is "The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy" by Allan G Johnson, and "Ways of Seeing" by John Berger, especially chapter 3.

I think I saw someone link to the spoon theory earlier, so I'm not going to link that one, even though it's my favorite.

I think someone also linked to Shakesville, which is a yay!

[Momo Elektra]

John Scalzi tried to explain privilege in gamer's terms.

[AnatomyProf]

Are there any resources on regional differences in the frequency or intensity of male privilege (or any other for that matter). I'm asking this as a person who has lived in Utah and California. In Utah there was a purge of female higher ups when a new President came in to our school. In CA the chancellor, president, and 3 of 5 deans are female. These aren't the same worlds by any means in regards to male privilege (or white privilege for that matter). There must be comparative studies of this stuff.

[Mocha]

AnatomyProf, I think your best bet is going to be looking at it indirectly--studies on male v. female wages by region, studies on percentage of female higher ups by region, studies on female political leaders by region, etc.

I few more pieces I thought of:
"Welcome to Cancerland" by Barbara Ehrenreich, a piece on ableism, feminism, and lovely intersectionality.
"The Cancer Journals" by Audre Lorde, a book about her journey with breast cancer.

A blog, that sadly no longer is posting new content, but is full of awesome content: Feminists With Disabilities. I enjoy the 101 posts and the Ableist Word Profile (links can be found under the site map).

[rumblestiltsken]

This is more for privileged people who already accept privilege exists, but don't understand it yet, nice little primer for avoiding common pitfalls -

How to minimise your privilege in discussions

[Ozymandias]

I have a pretty good idea about what privilege is and how it applies. Some of the above links are awesome resources for understanding privilege and how it functions in society from a theoretical, anecdotal and parable point of view. I was wondering is anyone aware of any good scientific studies of privilege?

[Jadehawk]

I have a pretty good idea about what privilege is and how it applies. Some of the above links are awesome resources for understanding privilege and how it functions in society from a theoretical, anecdotal and parable point of view. I was wondering is anyone aware of any good scientific studies of privilege?

the two books i cited above are full of citations to psychology studies about microaggressions. microaggressions being the flipside of privilege, that might get relatively close to what you're thinking of.

A while back I also pulled another set of studies about the effects of bigotry/harassment/microaggressions out for someone else, so I'll just coppasta that in here. Those might be similarly helpful, since again, privilege would be the lack of, and ignroance about, these effects

*some papers on stress and bigotry:
http://pwq.sagepub.com/content/24/1/93.short
http://psycnet.apa.org/?fa=main.doiLand ... 7/a0016059
http://jbp.sagepub.com/content/30/3/406.short (this one conveniently shows how this all relates to atheism: 1) if religious faith is a coping mechanism, then reducing that which must be coped with reduces the utilitarian function of religion; and 2)if social networks are important, then providing non-religious alternatives is a way of reducing the utilitarian function of religion, as well)
http://www.springerlink.com/content/4168640702004p51/
http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10 ... 103.070137
http://spq.sagepub.com/content/68/1/75.short (this one is idiotically named, but effectively deal with the silly claim that only blatant sexism is harmful (or even sexism at all))
http://vaw.sagepub.com/content/12/10/970.short

and some specific to “harassment” and stress responses (note among other things what sort of behaviors were used to stimulate the responses):
http://www.jpsychores.com/article/S0022 ... 0/abstract
http://www.jpsychores.com/article/S0022 ... 3/abstract
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... x/abstract
http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2 ... 1105076581 (this one has the benefit of also clarifying why fighting harassment inside the atheist movement might be relevant, since harassment and various organizational dysfunctions are correlated)
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... x/abstract

[unbelieveably_happy]

Thanks for starting this thread - it's a lot of really good reading.

I think I understand privilege, though I'm not mindful of all of it, all the time. I couldn't tick off every item on the referenced checklist, as there were experiences there that I've shared. I'd happily transfer every remaining privilege to my daughter, if that were possible. I'm sure her presence has help keep it in the forefront of my mind.

I'm going through self-education at the moment, shifting my views so they are more aligned with being aware of privilege.

My previous contribution would have been along the lines of 'I find discussion can go okay up to a point, but that my identification, implied or otherwise as white and male often leads to a sense of being shut out of discussions'.

I guess my point is that I can more fully understand why that is just an infinitesimally small concern compared to the overwhelming problems caused by privilege. The part I find harder, is that the coolness often ends with things such as 'now you know what it feels like', and it's extremely hurtful. It's not this statement in itself, but because of the life I've had I've encountered a lot of discrimination in other ways including being violently attacked specifically and repeatedly because of being white and male (an admitted rarity in the world), but much more on other levels as well that are very personal, and I don't really want to get into all that every time I'm posting something.

So I usually just leave it there, but the urge to challenge the assumption inherent in 'now you know what it feels like' is strong. Is that unreasonable?

Dealing with this constructively is what I really want.

[Tigger_the_Wing]

Thank you, BlagHag, for starting this thread; there is a huge amount of helpful content already!

I see that other people have already posted all the things I found helpful.

The thing to do is to be mindful of privilege all the time.

Which means I shut up (don't post) and learn when the subject of the conversation turns to a situation in which I have privilege. It means I don't pull out all the ways in which I don't have privilege, as a sort of 'badge of honorary membership of the oppressed group' because that doesn't work; it looks competitive, instead. It isn't the Olympics!

For instance, it is derailing if I mention in a thread about the particular difficulties of women of colour in a predominately white society that I'm disabled so I know what it feels like to be discriminated against; I should take my complaints about my own under-privilege, in whichever sphere(s) they may be, to threads specifically for that purpose and leave the discussion to those who have experienced the relevant problems. I should read and learn, so as not to be unaware of/add to the problems. I have nothing to say that they won't have already heard a zillion times, except "I'm really sorry for all the ways in which I may not have recognised, or have inadvertently added to, your problems."

When I was young, the concept was known as being more, or less, fortunate; I think that it was easier to digest the concept when phrased like that. There is no extra baggage attached, implying any responsibility for the situation which is where I think people having their privilege pointed out get defensive. Privilege can be taken to imply responsibility in ways that fortune isn't.

Our parents, teachers, priests etc. would exhort us to do things for those 'less fortunate' than ourselves, without us in any way feeling that their status was in any way our personal fault. Because we could all recognise ways in which we were 'more fortunate' than some people, without losing sight of the fact that we were also 'less fortunate' in some ways than other people. 'Privilege' was almost exclusively used to describe those in the very top tier of society!

Telling someone to "shut up and check your white privilege" stings; telling them "If you were fortunate enough to be born a member of the dominant culture, you can't ever know what it would be like to grow up as a member of a less fortunate/minority group; we understand that. But you could listen and try to learn - that'd be a great help!"

[unbelieveably_happy]

"If you were fortunate enough to be born a member of the dominant culture, you can't ever know what it would be like to grow up as a member of a less fortunate/minority group;

Telling other people what the boundaries/validities of their experience or knowledge are seems to be heading in the wrong direction.

When you're looking at intersectionality in feminist theory, surely it runs contrary to that view. Otherwise you invalidate a group's (say, gay men) experience of oppression the basis that they are also part of a dominent group (men). It also leaves out the fact that other groups (women who have children) have dominance in that area, and may not in others - i.e. that they could never know what it would be like to parent (or work) as the non-dominant caregiving gender. Surely their other experiences of discrimination would inform them to some degree, whether or not it was something they empathised with.

If there's a bridge to understanding surely intersectionality is it.