a thoughtful web.
Good ideas and conversation. No ads, no tracking.   Login or Take a Tour!
comment by aidrocsid
aidrocsid  ·  3409 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Explaining white privilege to a broke white person

It's not just the word. A huge part of the problem is assuming level of privilege based on surface-level demographic information. You may assume that a given individual is privileged because they're white and male, for instance, but what if they're mentally ill or physically disabled? Is a healthy black woman more or less privileged than a homeless disabled white veteran with PTSD and one leg? When you're talking to someone online and you know that they're white, do you then assume that they're also healthy and have a place to live?

The problem is assuming that you know about someone else's life with only the most basic demographic information at your disposal. The problem is that we should be promoting humility and tolerance rather than arrogance and judgement.