There is a white privilege but I don't believe it is necessarily the key factor in privilege. I understand that despite the my hardships and barriers to progress I have privilege. No matter how angry I can be at the unfair conditions created by luxury and convenience, I cannot prove that privilege is determined by race or even ethnicity. I know that the way the human species has evolved leads me to believe that the dominant culture or the culture with the most privileges are those that thirsted for power and authority. For numerous theoretical and historical reasons the European peoples were great at leveraging their privilege. This to me is white privilege.
The cognitive dissonance around privilege, especially my privilege, creates emotional burn out. I cannot be fully spiteful of white privilege because in reflection the consequences have also rewarded me and my family. It is easy to point how unfair it is to work for the man and slimly having the opportunity to be the man. It is irritating having to learn about oppressive policies and then also have gratitude for charity from the same institutions. Don't bite the hand that feeds you but you can't tell the difference between that and the hand that beats you.
The idea of privilege is not for debate but a subjective measure of existential awareness for who I am in community. I don't want anyone to believe that they have what they have because of privilege. I hope that we evolve to society that understands that blessing are not intended to better the individual life but to be a way to improve the wellness of all. The hard and difficult challenge is that each one of us has our own truth about wellness.
When there are people who have far too many resources and can look at others who are deprived saying they need to try harder, we cannot be well. When we have people who will value extravagance ignoring necessities, we cannot be well. When we have people who take a blessing and make it unattainable through economics, politics, or religion, we cannot be well. As long as there are people who deny their privileges, we cannot be well. As long as individuals live to satisfy their own hungers, and not limiting hunger to food, we will continue to compete and value advantage.
There is a way to be extraordinary without competing, separating, conquering, or advertising. I trust that I am wealthy enough. I will grow to be desirable without deception or marketing. I will do my best to not compete but contribute. I will do my best to have grace for those who champion a different understanding of wellness. I will respectfully pity those who value winning and suffer from defeat. I will learn continuously about justice and being dignified. This will be my responsibility and my counterweight to my expressed privilege.
