Diversity and the Myth of White Privilege (Sen Jim Webb)

[notesdev]

The NAACP believes the tea party is racist. The tea party believes the NAACP is racist. And Pat Buchanan got into trouble recently by pointing out that if Elena Kagan is confirmed to the Supreme Court, there will not be a single Protestant Justice, although Protestants make up half the U.S. population and dominated the court for generations.

Forty years ago, as the United States experienced the civil rights movement, the supposed monolith of White Anglo-Saxon Protestant dominance served as the whipping post for almost every debate about power and status in America. After a full generation of such debate, WASP elites have fallen by the wayside and a plethora of government-enforced diversity policies have marginalized many white workers. The time has come to cease the false arguments and allow every American the benefit of a fair chance at the future.

I have dedicated my political career to bringing fairness to America's economic system and to our work force, regardless of what people look like or where they may worship. Unfortunately, present-day diversity programs work against that notion, having expanded so far beyond their original purpose that they now favor anyone who does not happen to be white.

In an odd historical twist that all Americans see but few can understand, many programs allow recently arrived immigrants to move ahead of similarly situated whites whose families have been in the country for generations. These programs have damaged racial harmony. And the more they have grown, the less they have actually helped African-Americans, the intended beneficiaries of affirmative action as it was originally conceived.


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http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703724104575379630952309408.html

[meowomon]

1. Yes, I unrecced

This is just more smoke and ashes to divert from the truth that institutionalized racism is still around and unfortunately we still need laws in place to ensure that this type of racism never is allowed in our society again. Yes, a few white men or women might get passed by for an equally qualified candidate. But, as a white woman in this society, I say we still owe it to those who are still being descriminated against. I live in the south and the institutionalized racism is still here. It is just insidious and cleverly disguised.

[Kweli4Real]

11. Not to pick on you, personally, but ...

Your post shines a light on just how deeply ingrained white priviledge is in our society. Specifically, your comment "Yes, a few white men or women might get passed by for an equally qualified candidate" points this out.

If one person gets passed by by another, equally qualified candidate, what's the problem? If both candidates are white, no problem. If the successful candidate is white, also no problem; it seems only to be a problem when the successful "equally qualified" candidate is Black. So inherent in this worldview is that despite being "equally qualified," the Black candidate is somehow deficient or inferior.

I hope you understand that I am not attacking you, personally. I just hope to point out that our orientation is based in white supremacy and we must take care to identify how we participate in this system, even when we think we are not.

[elocs]

2. White privilege is no myth and only a fool or a white person would believe otherwise.

A few years ago I heard a feature story done on NPR that had a high school class of mixed races do a project that was a study of race. Each was to rank the different races based upon what they believed was the level of privilege of each race in regards to opportunities, jobs, housing, and social treatment in general.

Somehow each different race perceived themselves to be at the bottom and what started out as being a rather light-hearted study about race turned to one of introspective sadness. There were young high school students of color who although they knew, were confronted in their faces with the fact that in our society it is a privilege to be white. These kids were in tears as they came to that realization and having to openly express it and it was so sad to hear that they knew that their lives would be harder than white people simply because of the color of their skin.

Yes, only a fool or a white person would believe that white privilege is a myth.

[Igel]

13. You talk about perceptions.

Self-rankings based upon introspection and examination of personal beliefs.

Then you say the conclusion based upon these self-rankings is a fact about how society is actually structured and works.

No, wait. You didn't say that. "Each different race perceived themselves to be at the bottom." "Each."

But then only some groups' perceptions are taken to be valid. They "wre confronted in their faces with the fact that in our society it is a privilege to be white."

At least state that perceptions of certain groups are obligatorily to be considered identical to reality, while the perceptions of other groups are inherently flawed. It's apparently your assumption, may as well be proud of it.

Then again, perhaps "mixed races" entails "no whites." Or perhaps you didn't really mean "each different race" to include whites.

I take the ad hoc study to be good self-therapy.

[elocs]

16. I grew up in La Crosse, Wisconsin which for years was one of the whitest cities in the U.S.

in spite of it being up North. It is a privilege to be white and I have clearly seen and witnessed that. Even here there have been doors open to me because I am white that were not available to anyone of color.

I believe it is simply stupid to assert that overall in this country that it is not a privilege to be white.

[Scuba]

3. The smartest thing I ever did....

....was to be born to white, upper middle class parents in America. Nothing I have done since approaches that in accounting for my success in life.

[meowomon]

7. Me too, and to really top it off, I shoulda been born with a penis.

But, I really don't want that dangly thing. Even if it does mean an automatic 30% raise! Wait a minute. Wow, that would be a lot of money. No, never mind.

[Scuba]

25. They're also handy on picnics, but women do have other advantages. n/t

[ShamelessHussy]

4. it's all in your head

talk about pandering, and keeping us at each others throats, instead of focusing on the elite, who have created the greatest crimes of all.

[marmar]

5. Wow.....I remember being glad this guy was elected.

He's turned out to be a fairly big disappointment.

[Blue_Tires]

19. agreed

and I`m one of his voters...

nothing short of shameless...

[Douglas Carpenter]

6. I do not agree at all with Sen. Webb's analysis - but I do wonder if

it would be better if affirmative actions were based more on economic background than on ethnic/racial background.

A simple view of data will show that entrenched racism is still a very real force in keeping people down. However, I suspect that most white Americans simply don't see it. But as Shirley Sherrod said in her now famous speech, "You're never allowed to point out that our entire system is based on the haves playing the have-nots against each other."

[Kweli4Real]

12. But to base affirmative action programs on economic background ...

ignores the remedial purpose of affirmative action programs. The root cause of economic disadvantage is not the same for Black folks and white folks. The economic problems of Black folks is largely a vestige of slavery; whereas, the economic problems of whites is largely owed to the system.

To base Affirmative Action programming on economic background would be like treating all people with coughs with cold medicine, when one group have TB and the other group simply have a common cold. Assuming there is a medicine that can cure the common cold, the one group will recover, i.e., be lifted up; while the other group will continue to suffer.

[h9socialist]

8. I'm surprised there was nothing here complaining about "Meat Head."

[Bluenorthwest]

9. The homophobic bigot Webb quotes bigot Buchanan

Defends Pat, chides those who gave Pat trouble for Pat's words. Let us then, take a moment with the context of what Pat has said over the years.
On David Duke: "Take a hard look at Duke's portfolio of winning issues and expropriate those not in conflict with GOP principles, such as reverse discrimination against white folks." (syndicated column, 2/25/89 this was during scandal about Duke in Nazi uniform.)
A memo to Nixon:
"There is a legitimate grievance in my view of white working-class people that every time, on every issue, that the black militants loud-mouth it, we come up with more money.... If we can give 50 Phantoms to the Jews, and a multi-billion dollar welfare program for the blacks...why not help the Catholics save their collapsing school system."
On the world of his youth:
"There were no politics to polarize us then, to magnify every slight. The 'negroes' of Washington had their public schools, restaurants, bars, movie houses, playgrounds and churches; and we had ours."

So Senator Webb, when Pat 'gets in trouble' for talking about race, religion and sexuality, there is good reason to be found in the history of Pat's vicious hate mongering, racism, sexism and homophobia. Ooops, let us not forget the antisemitism.

[Alcibiades]

10. Has he ever been in the Deep South?

"if Elena Kagan is confirmed to the Supreme Court, there will not be a single Protestant Justice, although Protestants make up half the U.S. population and dominated the court for generations."

He might also have mentioned that one of the main reasons there are no Protestants is that the GOP Roe litmus test has favored Catholics.

"WASP elites have fallen by the wayside"
Not so much. They are still here, and, for many in the South, the family fortunes established during the slavery era are still intact, and they give it to people like Webb.

"The old South was a three-tiered society, with blacks and hard-put whites both dominated by white elites who manipulated racial tensions in order to retain power."
Oh, but that's the Old South. If anyone thinks there are not plenty of places still like this, they are wrong.

[Kweli4Real]

14. First, it's not the "Old South" ...

that was a three-tiered society, it IS a three-tiered society. And never has the hard-put whites been on the same tier as Blacks.

[Alcibiades]

15. Add a fourth tier

undocumented foreign nationals. A source of easy-to-exploit labor that cannot make demands? The folks who run things down here have loved having them at their disposal because, well, they are disposable. Just like the good old days, but without the heavy investment up front. Much worse off than the poorest black folks. (The only way that many could be said to be better off is that many are young men who live with a lot of roommates, and who understand their situation as temporary, that they can support their families back home in their home country economy, but workers here don't have that option).

Hard to see what Webb is doing. I thought maybe he was up for reelection, but that's not until 2012. More than anyone, this move reminds me of George Wallace. Webb here seems to be moving to the right of even most Republicans. I absolutely do not understand how someone, a southerner, a white southern Democrat, who has lived to see what has happened over the course of his lifetime, could write lines such as: "the supposed monolith of White Anglo-Saxon Protestant dominance served as the whipping post for almost every debate about power and status in America." Whipping post? Is this reaaallly where you want to go when claiming that race doesn't mattered, that the political agenda of white superiority was simply overstated, and no longer exists?

I don't care if this is bait, intended to raise the ire of liberals so that he can turn around and net teabagger votes in 2012. Fuck him. Fuck him very much.

[Fearless]

17. Treating people with equity should be our goal.

Anything else in either direction (I'm not saying either occur) should be stamped out as soon as possible.

[Kweli4Real]

18. I agree ...

But understand ... treating people with equity does not necessarily mean treating everyone the same.

[Fearless]

20. I understand the definition of the word equity. Thanks.

[Kweli4Real]

22. I wasn't intending to be insulting ...

I just wanted to clarify.

[Fearless]

23. That's fine

:hi:

[Psephos]

21. Yes, well said. n/t

[classysassy]

24. And racism does not exist in America

Just another myth.

[Karenina]

26. This is all about supporting the meme of white vicitimisation

by them NASTY BROWN FOLKS. He's looking for WHITE VOTES and he'll GET THEM. Good on him. :eyes:

[MissMarple]

27. That sounds like an over simplification.

I certainly don't agree with everything Webb says, but I do know that how we reach our goals is as important as achieving our goals. The process directly affects the product. He may have a point we should be cognizant of. Perception can be a bitch. Taking it into account doesn't mean caving into it. Like Shirley Sherrod said, "God helped me see it's not just about black people, it's about poor people."

And, no, I don't support "white victimization" any more than I support the concept of the "poor down trodden white male". There is a disturbing amount of hostility, fear, prejudice and racism in this country. We need to learn how to curb that. Better employment opportunities would be just one place to start.

[slackmaster]

28. I had my "Not being hit on the head privilege" temporarily revoked when I was married

It's good to have it back.

Webb is an idjit.