White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.
White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some coursework at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.
White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don't all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you're "untested."
White privilege is being able to say that you support the words "under God" in the pledge of allegiance because "if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it's good enough for me," and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the "under God" part wasn't added until the 1950s--while if you're black and believe in reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school, requires it), you are a dangerous and mushy liberal who isn't fit to safeguard American institutions.
The basic point here, I think, is that racism allows white people to be mediocre. In all honesty, I'm still thinking about a lot of this, and trying to see where I stand. I must be honest with you--this whole Barack Obama thing has fucked me up. We can talk White Racism all day, but I'm still grappling with the idea that this dude won primaries and caucuses in states that a lot of us always presumed were off-limits to black folks. I know that Appalachia explains a lot, but still, it didn't explain it two years ago. No one thought this was going to happen. The worst thing, I think, would be to continue to write and think like Obama didn't happen. All of that is to explain why I'm sort of wishy-washy on how race is being played out. Still, I do have trouble imagining any black person with Sarah Palin's MO being governor of anything.
The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood 
If you're the first, you have to be super. If the only female physics TA is not very good, she doesn't get judged as "not very good at teaching" but "gee I hate to say it but there's finally a woman here and she just isn't very good at her job." Men (in physics TA-dom) get to just be bad at it; women are disqualifying the whole gender.
One wants enough female CEOs that Carly Fiorina doesn't have to carry the mantle as "prototypical female CEO."
What about Marion Barry or even Kwame Kilpatrick?
I know prob not exactly the same thing but I think it's close enough to your point.
I think Wise gets its exactly right. You're privileged when you can be mediocre at something and not be treated like you're mediocre. I can't remember who said it, but someone recently noted that we'll have full equality in this country when we can elect a woman or a minority to a position with as low of expectations as we'd have for a while man. Obama has had to be extraordinary to get to where he is now, and Hillary Clinton had to be extraordinary to get as close as she did. Sarah Palin, I think it's fair to say, didn't reach the national stage on her own, and there's a whale of a difference between getting elected as governor of a state and being at the top of the ticket of a national party, and there's no way Palin would have been at the top of the ticket had she started running 2 years ago. There's not even a guarantee she'd be in the running in 2012 if McCain loses, much less if she'd not been on the ticket.
Obama never would have won Iowa without winning nearly all of the 2.5% of the population that is African-American.
I keep hearing how black and brown kids are bringing my school district's test scores down, and then one after another I keep meeting white folks whose kids have dropped out.
The kids have got to be off-limits. But are the parents fair game? The Palins are oh-for-two on getting their kids through high school, and one of them is about to marry another drop-out. If those were Obama's kids, you bet it would be talking point #1 on the nightly news.
This is maybe a bit personal so feel free to delete:
But until you turned up I couldn't have imagined a black college drop out blogging at the Atlantic. In fact I'd assumed you had to be from Harvard, Princeton , Oxford (UK) etc.
I'm glad I was wrong as you are now on my daily reading list but this shows that often we imaine that things are worse than they actually are.
What about Marion Barry or even Kwame Kilpatrick?
Kilpatrick did get away with a lot of crap, but that was in a city where his own race was the majority. If Kwame tried running for Governor, even after his first term, he would have been trounced.
So if there is a thing as black privilage, it only applied within the borders of Detroit.
The most obvious example wasn't even cited in your quote from Wise.
Imagine if Obama had an unwed, pregnant, teenaged daughter.
Feel free to put yourself in Sean Hannity's shoes.
I have to admit, although I am hispanic and have a different cultural experience in these United States than that of my african-american brothers and sisters. This Barack Obama thing has me messed up as well. I have yet to put it all together in my mind. My boy Richardson didn't even get a look in the primary, of course if he could inspire and speak as well as Obama he could have at least got my vote.
As pertaining to this post, as usual Chris Rock was ahead of us all:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrF6mG6Mx_8
As much as I completely agree with many of Tim Wise's points (esp. regarding teen pregnancy and McCain's memorable "I will always hate gooks" stance), we've seen several of these double-standards before, in campaigns with no minority candidates.
It's usually known as IOKIYAR. Now with extra racial subtext!
It takes the perfect storm of charm, guile, political intelligence, circumstance, lax press and gullible public. Also, a lack of engaging, talented competition. Palin is an aberration. Not that that means that there can be a black Palin. Although, maybe.
Alternatively, could there be a white executive Isiah Thomas?
Hookers and Blow writes: "The Palins are oh-for-two on getting their kids through high school, and one of them is about to marry another drop-out. If those were Obama's kids, you bet it would be talking point #1 on the nightly news."
You bet. I look at the Palins and all I can think is, "These people are fucking MEATHEADS."
Sure, she's a driven, ambitious, ruthless meathead, but she's still a meathead.
TNC:
This sort of reminds me of the defense lawyer's summary to the jury in John Grisham's "A Time to Kill." In the end, the lawyer asked the jury to close their eyes and imagine what had driven his client, a black man, to murder two rednecks who had beaten and raped his 10 year old daughter. And the lawyer goes through the entire situation and then asks the jury, "Now imagine she was white." And they come back with an acquittal.
Obama's defeat of Hillary Clinton had left me, perhaps naively, believing that America could look past race to judge a man on his qualities. Maybe much of America can. But it is pretty clear by the double standard that is being applied to Obama and Palin, that much of America cannot.
But I don't think that you can totally explain the dynamics of this campaign with race. Much of it is the same old shit that we have seen since the 1980's: Republicans (in the tradition of Lee Atwater, Roger Ailes and Karl Rove) will sink to any level to win an election and Democrats do not hit back. I credit Obama for trying to take the high road but he needs to get nasty and rip these fuckers' throats out. He should remember to smile while he does it.
Why are you so bigoted against the differently-intelligent?
Also, you are sexist. John McCain told me so.
I read Wise's piece earlier today and thought it was brilliant. To me the issue isn't whether or not the media and the public should be taking potshots at the Palin family. Of course we shouldn't. The issue is how respectful they are being to Bristol Palin's "life choices".
I'm glad that no one is berating this girl. I'm glad that her teenage fiance is not being raked over the hot coals by columnists who should be spending their time examining the very real problems in this country. I just wish the same sense of fairness and respectful distance were maintained when dealing with black and minority people.
You see, when a white girl from a two-parent family gets pregnant, it's a mistake, a trial, an individual who made a poor choice. When it's a black girl, it's a sympton of a larger problem, a decline in black family values or proof that racism and systemic prejudice are justified.
The commenter above had it right when they said the first of anything has to be the best. I know Americans hate fancy educations and all, but the idea that Palin is Obama's peer is quite simply disrespectful and absurd. Just because you don't agree with Obama doesn't mean you can compare graduating from the top of Harvard Law and teaching as a law professor to cobbling together a degree from Idaho U and being a sportscaster for a few years. The very notion is idiotic.
Palin received slightly over 110,000 votes to become governor, from a state that is probably more distant from "real America" than any inhabited by the bi-coastal elite; now they are essentially arguing that victory qualifies her to be next in line for the presidency.
The right is not even worried about how disingenuous or idiotic they seem; I'm seeing qualified Ivy League elitists (Douthat) suddenly pretend to be populists with a distaste for someone with the very same academic background that allowed them to reach their positions in the first place. Basically, the pundits on the Right are saying that we should listen to them because of their fancy resumes, but we shouldn't elect one of their ex-classmates to be president, because he's "out of touch". Wouldn't that make Ross, Reihan and Co. out of touch as well?
No Dave you're right. And that's the only reason I hesitate on Tim's piece. I'm kind of rethinking my whole shit on race these days. That said, his arguments are really solid.
Rajesh,
Thanks for the words.
This is consistent with how race has played out in this election. Racism definitely exists, just not in the form of "I'd never vote for him because he's black," but that the standards are simply higher for a black candidate. Obama really does have to be close to perfect and messianic just to match the appeal of a regular white person.
It's like Chris Rock said, "A black C student can't do shit with his life. A black C student can't be a manager at Burger King, meanwhile a white C student just happens to be the President of the United States."
"White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug."
Levi Johnston's MySpace with a few phrases swapped in for synonyms is about on the level of crunk rap.
"The Palins are oh-for-two on getting their kids through high school, and one of them is about to marry another drop-out. If those were Obama's kids, you bet it would be talking point #1 on the nightly news."
The Palins won't need their kids to graduate high school if she gets elected.
"Kilpatrick did get away with a lot of crap, but that was in a city where his own race was the majority. If Kwame tried running for Governor, even after his first term, he would have been trounced.
So if there is a thing as black privilage, it only applied within the borders of Detroit."
Sarah Palin is getting away with a lot of crap, but in a country where her own race is the majority. That said, it makes a hell of a lot less sense for white folks, considering Caucasians own and control everything in the first place, while African-Americans can at least make the claim that the white media is using a politician's "otherness" against him. Palinites have to use the "elitist" media angle, which is at least as knee-jerk and a bit less realistic.
That said, I don't put much stock in either bias claim as it applies to the individuals in question, as I feel the media at large is absolutely incompetent and needs to borrow a pair from Hillary.
Deleted. With due deference and respect, MLJ please send the dude an e-mail if you have a beef with him
"I credit Obama for trying to take the high road but he needs to get nasty and rip these fuckers' throats out. He should remember to smile while he does it."
While I agree, I'm pretty sure Obama loses if they can paint him as an Angry Black Man.
Obama himself was onto this back when he was in law school. He pointed out that somebody with his credentials could get a good job regardless of race, but that a mediocre black law student at a mediocre law school was going to have a tougher time than a mediocre white law student. And that's just the mediocre black LAW STUDENT, who after all, had to graduate from college and get into law school. I imagine it just gets worse from there.
But this is still progress. There was a time when no matter how brilliant Obama was, he couldn't get to where he is now. Look at Sandra Day O'Conner's early career for proof of how things were in the "old days".
Getting your best and brightest through is a necessary first step, but just the first step. When you know prejudice is starting to wane is when "underrepresented" people are allowed to be just as mediocre as white people without taking down the entire group with them.
I don't get the criticism of attending four colleges in six years. I guess that's because I did.
Two while enlisted in the army to get enough money to go to college full time, because white privilege doesn't pay the bills. One for a year where I was throughly underwhelmed by the teachers and fellow students, though it was a fun place to hangout, and the University of Washington where I finished my degree.
How does this reflect poorly on my intelligence, or show lack of commitment? (I did graduate cum laude, so if my unconventional path shows a lack of intelligence, what does that say about my classmates.)
If saying the "Pledge of Allegiance was good enough for the founding fathers gets you instantly disqualified", what about claiming to have visited 57 states. People speaking off the cuff make mistakes. These are not the things we should judge people on.
BTW, no I don't think Palin's qualified (and I live in Alaska), but some of this white privilege stuff is nuts. Especially in the context of Obama having been, arguably, the least qualified Democratic candidate in the field, yet being on the top half of the Democratic ticket.
BTW, no I don't think Palin's qualified (and I live in Alaska), but some of this white privilege stuff is nuts. Especially in the context of Obama having been, arguably, the least qualified Democratic candidate in the field, yet being on the top half of the Democratic ticket.
White privilege isn't really privilege on an absolute scale. It's the privilege of being the default, the blank slate, with no assumptions and a good deal of the benefit of doubt. Obama is theoretically unqualified, but has proven himself over and over again in the last 16 months in terms of his level of understanding of the issues and from the decisions we have seen him make. But once again, because he is black, the bar for him is much higher.
Skyhook,
"Alternatively, could there be a white executive Isiah Thomas?"
Until the Kevin Garnett/Ray Allen deal his name was Danny Ainge. Now his name is Kevin McHale. I live in Minneapolis so I know.
There is another side to this when someone in power is cynical enough to use race or gender to get what he wants. Would a white male with Clarence Thomas' or Harriet Miers' resumes be nominated for the Supreme Court?
Dr. Dave, you have to remember that Palin is like Obama for a certain part of the Republican Electorate. .00000001 percent of this country actually benefits from Republican policies, at least financially. The voting manpower has been coming from the GOP's own version of an AA base. And Palin is one of them. They'll use their patented GOP beer hats to excuse any action or statement from her, 'cause she's one of them.
But hallelujah, all I want is the right to be as mediocre as any white person. I used to have this coworker who always asked me about different highly publicized Black crimes. I eventually got fed up and started asking him his views on Courtney Love and Susan Smith...
Spottie,
I think you are dead on. But the question I have is, is it partisanship or rascism? If Obama were white, I think the attacks on him would be the same, but instead of a dead heat he would be up 10 points. I think the attacks against him would be the same, even the ridiculous "he's foreign" meme. They did after all try to say that Bill Clinton was a draft dodging communist. As I said earlier this campaign has been quite the conundrum for me.
By the way, who else wanna f--- with Hollywood Cole?
My thought is that Obama's presence doesn't discount White Privilege. Rather it seems that some whites will see Obama as separate from the black people that scare them. I think classism mixes into this. A privilege of any group is present when it's an unthinking assumption of the way things are. Thus we have GOP privilege when Republicans can get away with things that would immediately take down a Democrat.
JimS,
But Obama earned his position by winning causcuses and primaries against a candidate who was seen as inevitable. Personally I think Obama is qualified because he has a better grasp of the issues than McCain. Notice how McCain and Bush are aping Obama.
With respect to the 57 states gaffe, Obama immediately corrected himsself. Palin's statement reflects the right's ignorance of American history.
Lastly, we need stop comparing Palin to Obama we are falling into the trap set up by the Repubs. They want to reduce this to race and gender. He is running for President and she for P. End of Story.
TNC,
I think you have a hard time understanding where "white people" come from with regards to Obama. Yes, Obama is a "black" man, which is to say he has dark skin and African ancestry. He's also a Harvard graduate and US Senator. The only people holding his "blackness" against him are people who weren't going to vote for a Democrat anyway. Most white people - even those who don't like him - see him for what he is; a politician with a somewhat (comparatively) light resume asking for their vote.
The best Barak Obama can do, realistically, is to carry states that Clinton carried - that means Missouri, Arkansas, Ohio - maybe Tennessee if things break his way - and take all the states Gore did in 2000. To do this, he needs to do what Clinton did - focus on the economy! And please, Obama - campaign your ass off in Missouri because Democrats always write that state off then find out later they could have won it if they'd tried harder. This election will not be about black versus white, Bud versus Heineken OR Sarah Palin. It will be about people scared to death over the economy and who they trust to do a better job righting the ship. Obama can win this, so have patience.
TNC tells me: "With due deference and respect, MLJ please send the dude an e-mail if you have a beef with him"
Without identifying the dude again, you have to admit "going from swimming with William Buckley to mudwrestling with Sarah Palin" is a good line. If I do say so myself.
Nathan: "The only people holding his "blackness" against him are people who weren't going to vote for a Democrat anyway."
I'm not so sure. I've been seeing race come up in subtler ways. For instance: I think there's a significant chunk of people who are a lot more willing to buy the 'Obama is unqualified, an empty suit' line because they look at him and see affirmative action. Never mind that the idea of getting to be editor of the Harvard Law Review via affirmative action is laughable, never mind that whatever you think of Obama, he's just obviously incredibly smart -- to a number of people, his being black seems to code him automatically as being unqualified, and to provoke all the resentment they have (rightly or wrongly; I think generally wrongly) about affirmative action.
These are not all people who would have voted R. in any case.
"A black C student can't do shit with his life. A black C student can't be a manager at Burger King, meanwhile a white C student just happens to be the President of the United States."
That's because a black C student may decide that its a good idea get rid of white people.
Here's the thing, a majority of middle of the road Americans aren't too fond of rednecks and white trash either.
Just as middle road African Americans aren't too happy with ghetto culture.
Keith-
I don't doubt that the partisanship is more at fault for the pundits' hypocrisy than racism. But the public criticism of Michelle Obama as being an "Angry Black Woman" is somethign that just wouldn't happen if she were white, and now we have proof: Todd Palin. What if Michelle had been a member of the Black Panthers? We would have never heard the end of it. But Todd being part of AIP, that's just another quirk of those lovable Alaskans.
The fact that Palin's kids haven't gone to high school, that's pretty much unforgivable for a black candidate, who must have a picture perfect family life to even qualify. Even Kwame Kilpatrick had a Congresswoman for a mother.
The thing that really rubs me the wrong way is how willing Palin is to trot her family out for good PR and then bristle when people examine their lives. You can't have it both ways, either they are off limits or they aren't. McCain at least has the class not to mention his son's service or use his children's stories (like Bridget's) for campaign purposes. Sarah Palin would probably have run an ad by now claiming how she "saved a heathen" by adopting her from Bangladesh.
The reason why this stuff is hard is because we've historically thought of "racism" as acting out and manifesting in one way (e.g. I hate niggers and i kill them too) and one way only. This election has shown us that race operates in myriad ways and that is hard for us. I think its hard for people who just want to say white people hate black people. And I think its hard for people who wanna say that we've overcome.
What has been frustrating for me is to see us still resist complex thinking on race. That maybe Barack's win is about him as a different kind of black man than what traditionally scares white folks. And the next step, right - that this could mean that we aren't as far along as we think we are. Or that maybe his wins in some states is precisely because they haven't seen any other kind of black man and this is inspiring, versus states like PA and OH which have histories of racially polarized voting regardless of what kind of black man/woman is in the race.
I think its dangerous and intellectually dishonest to continue to push this racism = hate paradigm because it is too simplistic. What Tim Wise does beautifully is get at what is deeper in America. That you may like a black person. YOu may be somewhat comfortable with them. You think its wrong to discriminate against them. But that doesn't change the fact that you do see their inexperience, or family life, or views, or culture as something inherently inferior.
We have to get past racism and start talking about white supremacy. It's probably harder since its the muscles and tendons that keep the arms of racism working.
I agree with the poster that said don't compare Obama to Palin.
Let's compare Obama to MCCAIN.
WHAT IF Barack Obama had graduated 5th from THE BOTTOM of any school...what would be said about him?
WHAT IF Barack Obama was on his SECOND WIFE MICHELLE and had left his long suffering first wife for her?
Who is going to try and BS me that this wouldn't be brought up as an 'example of his LACK OF CHARACTER'.
WHAT IF Michelle Obama had been an adulterous tramp?
WHAT IF Michelle Obama had been an addict that STOLE from a charity?
Someone wants to tell me that there wouldn't have been story upon story about:
a) the charity
b) the person Michelle tried to frame at first for the embezzlement
c) an education - finding a similar prisoner in for what Michelle did - pointing out HOW SHE GOT AWAY WITH IT
d) reminders every other day that Michelle STOLE even though she was worth 100 MILLION DOLLARS. Let Michelle had been worth 1 MILLION and they would have brought it up.
Yeah, you can tell me that they would have treated Michelle just the same...uh huh.
Part of the reason Palin can get away with that is that the Republican base was excited about her, as DrDave said.
But the other reason is certainly that voters can identify with her (and of course it is natural to irrationally ignore criticism of persons one can identify with). As explained in length in other blogs on this site, this was the main reason for the overwhelmingly positive first reaction to her. Race is obviously a part of that, as much as not having been a professional politician for long, of being rather ordinary person with an ordinary family, of not being part of Washington, of not having been to an Ivy league college.
It is unrealistic to expect voters to identify as easily with politicians of a different race, of different gender, etc. But isn't it a big step forward if being of a different racism towards politicians has mainly come down from "I feel uncomfortable voting for a black candidate" to "I can't as easily identify with a black candidate"?
Being able to identify with a politician isn't enough to think positively of him, after all (as I am sure Palin's falling favorability numbers will continue to show :)
Ta Nehisi:
Let me get you un-fucked up. You want to know how Obama won states like Iowa? It's THE GENERATION GAP.
In Iowa, for example, Obama got 57% of voters 17-29 years old, and 42% of voters 30-44.
It's the youth vote, stupid!
Of course, no one thinks about this with all the Palin mania. Maybe journalists should step out there and start interviewing us.
Obama will win this election by turning out the youth vote. Trust me, we are fired up! DOWN WITH THE BABY BOOMERS! A new generation is speaking out!
@John Henry: What? You think a black C student might decide "its(sic) a good idea (sic)get rid of white people"?
Now that I've decided to comment on your ridiculous remark, I find myself speechless.
"A black C student can't do shit with his life. A black C student can't be a manager at Burger King, meanwhile a white C student just happens to be the President of the United States."
This doesn't have anything to do with white privilege. It has everything to do with economic privilege and nepotism. Which student do you think gets more financial aid assistance?
This whole thing about white privilege with Palin is not convincing. People were taken with her because she was a pretty mom that reached a position of importance despite the fact that she was in other respects ordinary. This gave her some armor for awhile that looks to be wearing off. Did white privilege do anything for Hillary? What about Ferraro (I call that one anti-Italian discrimination but I may be prejudiced)?
On the other hand, as much as Obama has been hindered by his race, he has also been helped. Would Obama have had such a meteoric rise to the top of his party if he was all white? I don't think so. The fact that he is half black and therefore the "first black contender" was a narrative that liberals and media elites picked up at the 2004 convention and it helped to carry him to his current position. I'm not saying that he doesn't deserve the nomination (I plan on voting for him) but I think its a mistake to say that being white will always give you a leg up and being black is always a disability.
Maybe we should have a race war and see what happens?
White privilege aside, The Republicans have won if the Left is comparing Palin to Obama.
Obama's not running against Palin.
I'm so glad you published this. I got an email with Tim Wise's article this morning and immediately sent it out to my election group email list, most of whom are white, pro-obama and very progressive. I hesitated at the possibility of making them uncomfortable and me too, but I thought it's the elephant in the room that needed to be pointed out. I'm curious to hear their responses. Thanks for publishing this here and giving it (me) added credibility.
Great example of white privilege, but I think we are playing into that game when we compare Palin to Obama. She shouldn't be able to put herself on equal footing with a presidential candidate. Perhaps these comparisons should be seen as another example of her privilege. Sorry if I'm repeating a point, you get alot of comments.
Incertus: I think you heard Chris Rock say that on an HBO special.
"The best Barak Obama can do, realistically, is to carry states that Clinton carried - that means Missouri, Arkansas, Ohio - maybe Tennessee if things break his way - and take all the states Gore did in 2000. To do this, he needs to do what Clinton did - focus on the economy! And please, Obama - campaign your ass off in Missouri because Democrats always write that state off then find out later they could have won it if they'd tried harder. This election will not be about black versus white, Bud versus Heineken OR Sarah Palin. It will be about people scared to death over the economy and who they trust to do a better job righting the ship. Obama can win this, so have patience."
A) It's Barack, not Barak. Sorry to nitpick but the vast majority of time I see the latter spelling, it's coming from someone spreading some rumor about him being a Muslim or something.
B) Tennessee? I think you're the one that's missing the boat on white folks, considering the extremely centrist Harold Ford's race-baiting induced loss. Al Gore couldn't even win Tennessee and it was as close to a home state as he had. It ain't gonna happen for a black guy.
The first two examples above work well in establishing his point. The third example is one of partisanship. Americans do not seem to be sold on the idea that Obama is unqualified or that Palin is more qualified. Conservative partisans are able to delude themselves in this regard. And if the positions were switched, liberal partisans would likely delude themselves in the same way.
The last example is more one of issues. Most people don't know when the pledge was written and they don't think it is important when it was. And most people can be demogogued on terrorism/soft on crime issues. I don't think Obama would get in trouble for not knowing when the pledge was written. I think a white candidate would be equally vulnerable to the charge of being soft on terrorism for believing in the Constitution.
JimS- I think the point is not that there is necessarily anything wrong with going to multiple colleges, but if a black person who did the same thing it would be taken as revealing in a way that it is not done with a white person. In this case privilege is not so much being considered to be better than one deserves. Rather it is not having to worry abotu being considered to be worse than one us on the same evidence.
I think hilzoy brings a very good point. Affirmative action has poisoned the well in the minds of a lot of white people. The idea that Barack Obama got to be editor of the Harvard Law Review because of aa is indeed laughable. However, to your average chump who thinks his path to excellence has been blocked because his parents aren't rich and he's from the country, Obama could not have gotten where he is without help. We have this strong myth of equality in the United States that leads people to discount excellence. "Those fancy degrees don't mean anything -- they teach the exact same thing at Podunk U." This tendency is great in guarding against elitism's more deleterious effects, but does tend to put people who are the very definition of mediocrity or worse into office.
I have to say, I think laborlibert has it right. Sarah Palin is massively popular with social conservatives, and a lot of non-committed voters were initially curious about her. Admittedly, it's narrowly true that a black woman with Palin's qualifications would not have elicited the same curiosity. But neither would a non-wingnut white woman. Moreover, Palin is likely to fall back to earth, and most of the asymmetry noted in Wise's piece boils down to the incredibly low standards that right-wingers have for their leaders (see also Bush, George W.).
More on the "what if this was Michelle Obama's story?" front:
"When was the Palin eldest son born? The official wikipedia page has tactfully omitted the birthday. When Sarah Palin’s nomination was announced, some sources stated Track Palin as being 18, some said Track Palin was 19. As of today, Sept. 1, 2008, almost all websites with new posts state Track Palin as being 19. So, if Todd Palin married Sarah Palin on Aug 29, 1988, then Track Palin may have been conceived almost immediately to be born in time for his age to be listed as 18 - 19 in 2008. The rumor started because the birthdate was known to be in April 20, 1989. An old traffic offence record from a speeding ticket on Track CJ Palin stated his birthdate as April 20 1989.
Some websites wrote that Track Palin was born less than eight months after the wedding. The official period of gestation for a pregnant woman is 10 months, or between 40 - 42 weeks. However, a baby may be born prematurely before 10 months. Track Palin was born in April 20, 1989. Let’s give the Palins the benefit of the doubt. Track could have been a premature baby, born prematurely when he was 7 months, 21 days old. (give and take 1 day because the exact hours were not calculated)
Bristol Palin conceived a baby out of wedlock. The rumors are saying the Palin children follow a trend of being conceived out of wedlock."
So Bristol Palin followed in her mother's footsteps.
What would the wingnuts be saying if the Obamas had this history?
One wants enough female CEOs that Carly Fiorina doesn't have to carry the mantle as "prototypical female CEO."
---
To be fair to CEOs; Fiorina was a pretty bad one. Certainly better than bottom-feeders like Al Dunlap and preening douchebags like Michael Eisner.
I think there's a real generation gap when it comes to racism and homophobia among whites. Not that younger generations are blameless, but we under-30s (speaking as a white from suburbia) have grown up with gay friends and black friends - or at least with plenty of exposure to both. I've had gay, black, female bosses, teachers and coworkers - there's nothing "weird" to me or anyone I know about blacks or any other minority group member being in a position of power or authority.
Which isn't to make overly optimistic claims about the disappearance of racism or that white privilege isn't obviously rampant, but there's something to be said for the tolerance - tolerance at the very least - that comes from the simple amount of exposure younger generations have had to minorities. Even in suburbia it's not possible like it once was for privileged whites to wall themselves off from minorities.
I don't get the criticism of attending four colleges in six years. I guess that's because I did.
I have friends who took 6 years getting through because they had to stop and work a few semesters. But in a Palin narrative-driven campaign, "she worked her way through college, taking six years to accumulate all the credits while simultaneously working full-time as a welder" hasn't materialized, so the assumption is that she was drifting. (And while this is hardly my big issue, I do recall reading that she basically flunked out of one; not an advertisement for one's intellectual vigor.)
Of course, my dad almost flunked out and ducked by joining the army, then finished his degree elsewhere including a master's. So I don't see it as guaranteeing low intellect; just not as a particular plus in the governor's background. If it's true that Track dropped out, then that's a significant negative for me--how much can you value education if your kids don't even graduate?
But your objection doesn't really address TNC's point: that if Obama had an oldest child who dropped out and a second child pregnant by a dropout, her base would not be talking about how this is just stuff that happens with kids. So while I've found the left's joy in pointing out how poorly abstinence-based sex ed works very offputting, I don't think that's really the point in this post.
If saying the "Pledge of Allegiance was good enough for the founding fathers gets you instantly disqualified", what about claiming to have visited 57 states. People speaking off the cuff make mistakes. These are not the things we should judge people on.
It's more about expectations. John McCain used to offer the press complete access and talk at length until everyone ran out of stuff to ask and watched football. And it bought him a lot of extra room to make the occasional gaffe, because when all the press in the room had watched him talk about this topic for literally hours, they didn't leap on a misstatement.
Obama's misstatement is a kind of odd choice to pounce on. On the one hand, because we all know there are 50 states it's easy to see that he's wrong, whereas if a candidate mischaracterizes the Sarbaines-Oxley agreement....well, who are we to judge. It just won't get traction if people can't tell it's wrong. But by the same token, no one except the most extreme Manchurian Candidate theorizers thinks he honestly never learnt this bit of American history, and recognize he was really referring to 57 contests or whatever. It's a "your guy does it too!" point rather than a "your guy knows nothing about American history" point.
I don't care what Palin thinks about the Pledge of Allegiance. She didn't know when "under God" was added (or even that the pledge wasn't written at the same time as the Declaration and Constitution) but, again, no biggie. (For the record I believe those who want to remove the line are technically correct, but I say the line and my children say the line and I just don't give a damn.)
But because of the way she was rolled out by the campaign, she is in Dan Quayle territory, where every possible proof of ignorance will be amplified. And the closer it is to the 57 states line--something we actually know--the more it will play. They could have avoided this by seriously vetting her over a few months and rolling her out with several interviews a day: "Here's Sarah! Our domestic policy guru, she's here to tell you everything about energy policy and then some. Then we'll move on to what she's done in Alaska and how that will apply to the nation as a whole...."
Instead the campaign is afraid to let her take interviews, is terminally offended at "sexism, like SNL was not respectful of our candidate," and tosses out lines like "She commands the Alaskan National Guard!" and "Russia is near Alaska!" Everything they've done convinces me the McCain camp thinks very little of their candidate. And against that background, plus the significant lying issue, any misstatement will be vastly magnified.
White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.
Context, context. What's the "shit" he's shooting? Animals. Mooses. That's Daniel Boone, Davy Crockett-type stuff. It isn't so much that he's white, it's that he's country. If he were a black, rural Alaskan self-professed redneck, I mean, it'd be pretty novel, but I'd view him the same way.
People,
Don't let skin color blind you to a long history of preferences for those in power. If Palin was, let's say, a mid-level accountant in a job interview, don't you think she'd have to explain a few things?
Also, do not give into the temptation of believing that white people - like some mythical mindless horde - all go in the same political direction because of skin color. Even if you are stone cold stupid, i.e., more stupid than her future son-in-law, you are brighter than that!
Let me break this down for you - Obama will win in a squeaker that conceals a landslide. He'll get 51% of the PV and just enough of the EV. He will obviously get north of 90% of the BV and the press - in their infantile quest to sell ad space - will proclaim this as the headline.
Great win for black people?
No, great win for all of us.
The hidden landslide will be educated white voters under 35, a group Obama will OWN. The BBC and certainly the Economist will not miss what will be proof of profound generational change. Domestic newspapers are just stupid, including the NYT.
Obama will also get the majority of white voters between 35 and 55. Education levels fall by generation, so while 1/3 of the 20ish people have a college degree it's likely 1/2 that ratio or less for people over 60. Hence, Obama's performance among white voters 60 and over will be overwhelmed by the uneducated portion of that demographic. You know, the flag-waving, bible-beating, porch-sitting, rumor-mongering, I-don't-have-to-think-because-I'm-retired kind of white people who - despite knowledge to the contrary - have faith that Obama isn't Christian.
Knowledge leads, faith follows.
Obama will not win a majority among uneducated whites - he doesn't have to. The combination of minority voters (roughly 1/3 of all voters are in a defined minority group) and educated white voters should be just enough.
The Obama victory will be more than a victory over bigotry. This is what you all miss - it will also be the triumph of knowledge over ignorance, the final, just repudiation of a culture that substitutes faith (so called) for education.
So fuck the stupid white bastards. We don't need them.
Race bigotry among whites lives in the uneducated, especially in whites aged 50 and over. Here's the other thing you don't get. The "new bigotry" among whites has nothing - I mean NOTHING - to do with race - it's about education.
Educated people of all colors trade in knowledge; uneducated people trade in beliefs. The two have never mixed. Consider educated vs. uneducated blacks and the marriage crisis among educated black women. This cuts across racial lines, all the way down to reality.
As for Palin, for Obama supporters, it's a great move. Putting her on the ticket only means that McCain gets a few more WWJD votes. The cost will be alienation of middle-road whites with common sense, of which there are many. That puckish boomerang is in flight and it is already circling back towards McCain. Palin is a redneck retard who bum rushed an election in a state where the mere sight of a woman is happy news to most voters. A whole lot 'o white people in the lower 48 get this. Shooting animals from a helicopter? Yeah, lot's of people do that in (insert name of white suburban place here).
Now, if you didn't get anything thus far, pay attention here: Obama has the great qualities of every superior 20th century president. He's got Wilsonian intellect, Trumanesque humility & work ethic; more charisma than Kennedy; and Reagan's ability to inspire. That's why the Retardicans call a BLACK man from humble origins an ELITIST! He is the Retardican's worst nightmare!
Still don't get it?
Obama has been touched by greatness. Only a blind fool could miss this. Now go tell your friends.
As a special bonus, we have Michelle, who won't shun Jews as did Mrs. Truman, hire astrologers (Nancy) or sit idly by (Laura). Can't remember what Mrs. Wilson was known for. The 1st one died while Woodrow was in office; the 2nd one is believed by some historians to have run the government for awhile after Woodrow's stroke.
Michelle will be the most incredibly great first lady in our history.
End of fucking story.
Class dismissed (you all have a nice day).
Lee
Speaking as a middle-aged, relatively privileged white guy, I don't think Wise and Ta-Nehisi are going far enough in linking Palin to "white privilege." Palin's ascendancy is pure identity politics, Republican style. She's the candidate of white privilege. The white privilege that says this country was founded by white people, for white people, and should be run by white people. There is code for all this, of course ("Christian nation" - Obama not a "real American" etc.), but "values voters" know what it means. And it's not surprising that this kind of identity politics is most appealing to whites from the lower ends of the socio-economic and educational spectra, because it's what they have to hang onto for their status. It's a lot easier for me to stop clinging to white privilege, because my professional education and my money guarantee my status anyway, at least as long as the other rules of social advancement don't change.
The "culture war" is about white privilege as much as it's about anything. After MLK, it was considered both politically unviable and morally unacceptable to espouse openly racist views, but Nixon knew how to exploit "white grievance," talking about crime, welfare and taxes and all the cultural issues. The Republicans started doing that, and all the former Dixiecrats realigned themselves into the Republican coalition. And if that ain't about race, then I'm Strom Thurmond.
Systemic change seems to be impossible when cultural remnants (or so we thought--maybe it's more prominent than we thought) of depictions like a renewed version of Aunt Jemima of a presidential candidate still exists.
I mean, seriously, Obama Waffles and the whole racist bullshit that goes along with it? And check out the reactions of folks in the town where it originated. This is f-ing disgusting!
www.governmentalityblog.com
Not sure if this has been said, but the white Isiah Thomas is Matt Millen. That one's easy.
"racism allows white people to be mediocre."
This doesn't make much sense. If one of Palin's colleges were racist and kept out better-qualified blacks, thus giving Palin an opportunity she wouldn't have had otherwise, you might have had a point. But we know that's not the case, so what is your point?
"In all honesty, I'm still thinking about a lot of this, and trying to see where I stand. I must be honest with you--this whole Barack Obama thing has fucked me up. We can talk White Racism all day, but I'm still grappling with the idea that this dude won primaries and caucuses in states that a lot of us always presumed were off-limits to black folks."
You need to think a little harder on this one and the answer will become clear to you. Whites in states with hardly any blacks (e.g., Iowa, Vermont) are the most likely to have positive feelings about blacks -- because, for the most part, they haven't had negative personal experiences dealing with the black underclass. They haven't been forced to bus their kids to unruly, mostly-black public schools; they haven't had to deal with Section 8 residents bringing a criminal element into their neighborhoods, etc.
This doesn't make much sense. If one of Palin's colleges were racist and kept out better-qualified blacks, thus giving Palin an opportunity she wouldn't have had otherwise, you might have had a point. But we know that's not the case, so what is your point?
He's not talking about colleges, he's talking about the perceptions in american society, as it applies to the election. A white candidate has the possibility of being mediocre and still elected. A black candidate does not.
Moe,
It doesn't matter when Sarah or Bristol Palin were pregnant. What matters is that they made the right decision and kept the baby. They didn't get rid of it.
Are you aware that 90% of babies with Down's syndrome are aborted in America today?
While it is true that Ms. Palin's political accomplishments may not be the most numerous in the world, all people of good will, regardless of their politics, should extend her their respect and admiration for having made, five times in her life, a choice for life, and for having encouraged her daughter to do the same. I don't intend to vote for Ms. Palin or her running mate, but I do greatly respect her as a woman, a mother, and an American citizen.
I would say exactly the same thing if Ms. Palin were black, indeed I don't understand why people like Mr. Coates are not more exercised about the fact that abortion has been a weapon used disproportionately against African Americans and has resulted in much fewer African American children being born than would otherwise have been.
Hector writes: "I don't understand why people like Mr. Coates are not more exercised about the fact that abortion has been a weapon used disproportionately against African Americans and has resulted in much fewer African American children being born than would otherwise have been."
Probably because he thinks that's a stupid argument, Hector.
"It doesn't matter when Sarah or Bristol Palin were pregnant."
I agree. I don't give a rat's ass. But we both know that if the babies were in the other side's wombs the wingnuts would have a shitfit. Can you imagine Limbaugh and Coulter going on about it?
"He's not talking about colleges, he's talking about the perceptions in american society, as it applies to the election. A white candidate has the possibility of being mediocre and still elected. A black candidate does not."
Do you really want to defend the statement that no mediocre (or worse) black candidates have been elected to office in this country?
It goes beyond elected office. Do you think Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas were the best-qualified jurists of their respective generations? Do you not think that symbolism played a role in their respective appointments to the Supreme Court? Sure, Marshall played a pioneering role in Civil Rights, but there were probably Jewish lawyers as knowledgeable on Civil Rights and better overall lawyers besides.
Lee:
I am an educated, 50+ year old white guy. And Barack Obama is the best political candidate of my lifetime. Because he is bright, he is visionary and he gets it. (I have also considered the possibility that he's putting on a really good act but I don't thinks so...)
When I first voiced my support for him, if the issue of race came up, I blew it off by saying, "I am firmly behind the half white guy."
I find Barack and Michelle inspirational because they, like me, busted their asses to get where they are. They understand and appreciate the value of hard work and beating long odds and they understand that part of improving society is giving people the hope that if they work hard, that they can build a good life, too.
Barack has the ability, not unlike Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan, to transcend race. And in doing so, he is tearing down barriers. But those barriers have been there a long time and they will not vanish overnight.
Do you watch Bill Maher? He had a great line comparing the Obama's and the Palin's the other week. Maher said, "You will never see one of the Obama girls coming home knocked up in high school. Because Michelle will take those girls in the other room and tell them in no uncertain terms that if they do something so stupid that she will slap the black out of them." Because Barack and Michelle know that it is less important to preach your values or force them on others than it is to actually live them.
"Are you aware that 90% of babies with Down's syndrome are aborted in America today?"
There sure are a lot of pro-life women killing their babies, huh? Interesting.
Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas
Were not directly elected by a national electorate.
Stop changing the parameters. For a national presidential election, what TNC is saying does make sense.
"Stop changing the parameters."
Fine, we'll keep it to elected offices (you didn't say anything about "national" office in the comment of yours I quoted). This is what you wrote:
"A white candidate has the possibility of being mediocre and still elected. A black candidate does not."
Here are a few blacks who have been elected to office. Tell me they weren't mediocre or worse:
Sheila Jackson Lee
Marion Barry
Kwame Kilpatrick
Sharpe James
As for Barack Obama, aside from being a good speaker and having a well-run primary campaign, what is exceptional about him? What great accomplishments did he achieve in public office? Did he attack the entrenched corruption in Chicago?
Stacy,
We are all sinners. The pro-lifers among us no less than anyone else.
I would hope that if one of the Obama girls came home pregnant, her father and mother would be supportive and loving, and encourage her to keep the baby and perhaps give it up for adoption or whatever. "Slapping the black" out of a young girl does not seem like the best way of building a culture of life.
Hector,
I'm fully aware that everyone fucks up. I'm simply noting that its interesting that a lot of women are only against abortion when its some other woman's abortion. 90% is a huge number. That means that a very large number of pro-life women are killing their babies when the situation is less than ideal. Its the hypocrisy that always gets me...
I don't even see your point about Obama's girls. I also don't see what "slapping the black" has anything to do with it, either. Are you just quoting Bill Maher?
DrDave,
What makes you think Michelle Obama "busted her ass" to get where she is? By her own admission, she didn't have the grades or scores to get to Princeton, and they accepted her anyway, partly because she was black, presumably, and partly because she was the sister of her more-talented brother. After she got her law degree, she spent a few years at a fancy firm (the one point in her life where she probably had to hustle a little) and then settled into a cushy diversity sinecure at the U. of Chicago hospital. Getting $300k per year for "community relations" or whatever her job description was isn't exactly my definition of busting one's ass.
Interestingly, by way of comparison, Greta Van Susteren interviewed Sarah Palin's husband Todd and asked him about his work as an oil roughneck on the North Slope of Alaska. She seemed to expect him to complain about how cold it was up there and how difficult the work was. Not one complaint from him, and he expressed gratitude for getting the opportunity. No 'tude or giant chip on his shoulder like Mrs. O.
Fred,
Did she not bust her ass in law school? Did she not bust her ass in undergrad? Seriously, your point is a silly one. You act as though everything was handed to her. Why don't you just quit posting for a while. You could hire me and I'll do it for you. You've become so predictable at this point it is ridiculous.
Where is the giant chip on Michelle Obama's shoulder you refer to? It is kind of cute that you feel as though you are able to get in Greta's head, however.
As far as rethinking race in America post-Obama... there's something I like to call the Tony Dungy rule. I grew up in Indiana, which is a very conservative state with a history that includes some of the worst racism in the Midwest. But it's also a place that is entirely willing to embrace and celebrate successful black men who speak and act the way the locals expect white men to speak and act: Be humble, give credit to God, talk about the importance of family and hard work, don't curse, never say anything that could be construed as playing the race card, and stay out of the police blotter.
It probably helps if your skin is a little bit lighter than average. It definitely helps if you can win the Super Bowl. And it goes without saying that any offense will be judged more harshly than a similar offense by a white person and will be taken as evidence of "thuggishness". The one-drop rule has been replaced by the one-strike-and-you're-out rule.
Any analysis of the Tony Dungy Rule is going to uncover a distinctly white and very provincial set of assumptions about how to judge a man's character, and the difficulty anyone from a different background will face attempting to meet those cultural expectations. But it's clear (to me, at least) that most white Americans, in their heart of hearts, believe that they are not racists and will often seek out counter-examples to prove to themselves and others that they are not racists.
Once you get past the first impression, most white Americans do not actually judge people by the color of their skin, per se. They judge them by how successful they are at passing in white society. Is this racist? Sure. But it's very different from the old theories of racial essentialism. It's entirely possible to rationalize this behavior by claiming it has nothing to do with race and everything to do with cultural values.
It's analogous to anti-Catholic bigotry, circa 1960. Which brings us back to Obama, who very nearly won the Indiana primary (in fact, if you exclude the Kentuckified suburbs of Louisville, he did win.) Obama isn't going to win the landslide he deserves, but he stands a good chance of winning a nailbiter. Just like JFK.
@Fred: Appointed to the highest court != appointed to the highest position.
And how facile is your argument that 'black candidates have been elected' - just 'cause folk in segments of society are willing to elect a minority for their lil burg doesn't mean it holds true on a nationwide scale.
Oops - meant 'appointed to the highest court != elected to the highest position in the land.
Systemic change seems to be impossible when cultural remnants (or so we thought--maybe it's more prominent than we thought) of depictions like a renewed version of Aunt Jemima of a presidential candidate still exists.
I mean, seriously, Obama Waffles and the whole racist bullshit that goes along with it? And check out the reactions of folks in the town where it originated. This is f-ing disgusting!
http://www.governmentalityblog.com/
A very on topic bloggingheads episode:
http://bloggingheads.tv/diavlogs/14432
DrDave,
What makes you think Michelle Obama "busted her ass" to get where she is? By her own admission, she didn't have the grades or scores to get to Princeton, and they accepted her anyway, partly because she was black, presumably, and partly because she was the sister of her more-talented brother.
Fred,
There are only 3 seriously competitive public high schools in Chicago. Michelle Obama went to one of them. The school, Whitney Young, has consistently, scored second in the STATE for years. A slacker school it was not.
Michelle Obama graduated second in her class.
SECOND.
So, please tell me how you believe someone who graduated second in her class from the second ranked school in the STATE isn't qualified to go to Princeton?
She graduated with honors from Princeton.
So, how again was she not qualified for Harvard Law?
TNC
Some have argued the NBA is the most egalitarian part of our society. Mediocre black coaches can be hired a second time (Don Chaney, Isiah Thomas) just like mediocre white coaches (Doug Collins, George Karl).
Compare it to journalism-- Jayson Blair is considered all that is wrong with affirmative action (some fools even argued that his failure would influence the Supreme Court during the Michigan cases) while Steven Glass is seen as a misguided youth. Both f'ed up-- yet one is seen as a sociatal failure while the other gets a movie made about him.
The first in anything generally has to be the best. Jackie Robinson was not the most talented African-American player--- but he was considered to be the least likely to react angrily to racists.
If Obama wins, someday, America will elect a black George W. Bush. And the day after another black president is elected (after the black George W. Bush leads us to hell), we will have become a truly colorblind society.
Tim Wise is clear-eyed, fearless and always dead-on. He should be required reading in every college in the land.
This is not an either/or scenario: either America has magically shed 400 years of racial oppression and the deliberate cultivation of a vicious myth of racial inferiority or we're still just one big bag of racist thugs.
Obama's success, even to this point, means something. But it doesn't mean everything.
OK, TrackBack - YOU ARE A RACIST!
THIS IS COMPLETE BULL!
WHY CALL EVERYTHING WHITE PRIVILEGE?
YOU ARE CLEARLY BLACK PRIVILEGED TO WRITE THIS GARBAGE AND INSINCERE BULL CRAP!
YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF AND STOP F-N PLAYING THE RACE CARD WITH YOUR DAMN WHINING!
My favorite comment of the day:
"there were probably Jewish lawyers as knowledgeable on Civil Rights and better overall lawyers besides"
At the rate things are going, rightwingers are going to put political satirists out of business. They're writing the jokes themselves.
"So, please tell me how you believe someone who graduated second in her class from the second ranked school in the STATE isn't qualified to go to Princeton?"
From Newsweek:
"She didn't get the attention of the school's college counselors, who helped the brightest students find spots at prestigious universities.... Some of her teachers told her she didn't have the grades or test scores to make it to the Ivies. But she applied to Princeton and was accepted."
You ought to do a little more research on the Civil Rights era before you explicitly make a fool of yourself.
I don't have to do research on it, you miserable clown, I was part of it, actively involved.
Fred - the only reason I even respond to your showing your ass is as an affirmative action gesture to incredibly stupid white people.
Does MikyDee think that "Trackback" wrote this post? That's pretty awesome.
‘Some have argued the NBA is the most egalitarian part of our society.’
It may be true.
In 2007, the New York Liberty traded Becky Hammon, a one-of-a-kind blond cutie with game, for the draft rights to Jessica Davenport.
I still can’t believe it.
"What makes you think Michelle Obama "busted her ass" to get where she is? By her own admission, she didn't have the grades or scores to get to Princeton, and they accepted her anyway, partly because she was black, presumably, and partly because she was the sister of her more-talented brother. "
So are we bitching about affirmative action for black people or affirmative action for legacies? I don't think this is really relevant in any case, considering Michelle's law school pedigree. It doesn't matter how you got there, it matters what you do once you're there. And unless you've got a really low opinion of the Ivy League, I think you have to concede that it takes some ass busting while you're there.
Fred,
As someone who counseled talented students to help them get to college before it became a cottage industry, you are delusional, if you think that Michelle Obama was some average student that they let into Princeton. The College admissions game doesn't happen that way. IF you come from an Urban school, your grades MUST be top knotch, period. Michelle Obama played no sport, and Princeton isn't a NCAA powerhouse, so her brother being on the basketball team didn't mean squat. White kids from so-called 'superior private schools' get in with 'B' averages, but a Black kid applying to one of the Ivy League Schools, and who gets in, is no slacker.
I'm not reading all these comments -- just want to say "amen" to this post.
This is the real reason Palin is insulting to feminists, as well as to anyone black or anything other than McCain's base's definition of "mainstream." Take feminism, for example. What's the point of trying to get an education or a career if the woman who becomes VP is better just because she won a beauty contest? Women have always been valuable to men because they were pretty. Feminism stands for the idea that women can be valuable for something being other than pretty.
The biggest racial irony in this campaign is that there are Republicans complaining about a black man not taking welfare.
@Fred:
Fine, we'll keep it to elected offices (you didn't say anything about "national" office in the comment of yours I quoted).
Here are a few blacks who have been elected to office. Tell me they weren't mediocre or worse:
Sheila Jackson Lee
Marion Barry
Kwame Kilpatrick
Sharpe James
So you concede that the point stands for national office. Pointing out that white privilege doesn't exist where there are black majorities does nothing to refute this. If I didn't explicitly say that I was talking about national elections I apologize, but that is what I meant.
As for Barack Obama, aside from being a good speaker and having a well-run primary campaign, what is exceptional about him? What great accomplishments did he achieve in public office? Did he attack the entrenched corruption in Chicago?
He did, in fact:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/11/us/politics/11chicago.html?_r=1&sq=&pagewanted=print
"...in 1998, Mr. Obama passed one of his signature achievements in the Illinois Senate: sweeping legislation that banned most gifts from lobbyists and the personal use of campaign money by state lawmakers."
Of course it won't be enough for you, because your standards for him are higher, due to partisanship or otherwise.
Context, context. What's the "shit" he's shooting? Animals. Mooses.
That's not what a "fuckin redneck" shoots. Rednecks mostly shoot traffic signs, beer cans, then they get more drunk and start hauling things out of the kitchen like watermelons and plastic bottles of ketchup and who knows what. I've witnessed it.
Yo, my brother Barack is being discriminated against. Straight up bulls***. We actually have the chance for a qualified black man to be president, and all you racists out there won't vote for him for one reason... he's black.
"White kids from so-called 'superior private schools' get in with 'B' averages, but a Black kid applying to one of the Ivy League Schools, and who gets in, is no slacker."
At this point, I don't think that white kids from "superior private schools" can get in with B's unless they're from a big time legacy family that gives a lot of money to the school. I went to one of those superior private schools, and things don't work the way they used to. Because Ivies want their students to come from a variety of backgrounds, the bar is pretty high these days, even if you're coming out of a top notch prep school, considering that a huge number of kids are going to apply to Ivies from those schools, many of whom will look the same on paper. This isn't to say that things have gotten any easier for inner city black kids applying to the nation's best schools, but they have gotten a bit tougher for those who would previously have been almost automatically accepted. Point being, these days anybody who gets into an Ivy is going to be pretty exceptional in one way or another.
brucds to Fred: "I don't have to do research on it, you miserable clown, I was part of it, actively involved. "
That's unfair to clowns.
from fred
"She didn't get the attention of the school's college counselors, who helped the brightest students find spots at prestigious universities.... Some of her teachers told her she didn't have the grades or test scores to make it to the Ivies. But she applied to Princeton and was accepted."
Hey Fred, umm, I was told by my teachers and my counselors that i didnt have the grades or test scores to get into several top schools that i applied to, and yet, I got acceptance letters from almost all of them, and I am neither a minority nor a legacy. I fail to see your point.
White privilege is when you can call yourself a "fuckin' redneck," like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass," and talk about how you like to "shoot shit" for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.
But this only works in certain circles. Clearly, many people see him as white trash and not a responsible, all-American boy.
Don't fret! The next generation is taking over, and they're voting for Obama.
Rock the Vote!
No. I don't. But, the fear is there among whites. What do you think all this stuff about Culture War is all about.
I have read many articles about Palin. But I don't think Palin privilege is "white privilege", but the fact that she is a woman. If she was a 44 year old man, do you think McCain would have chosen her. IF a man gave that convention speech everyone would be calling him a right wing nut. McCain would not touch her with a ten foot pole if she was a man.
Now let say if Obama's mother married a white guy from Kenya and Obama was white. The rest of his life was the same, he went to Indonesia, went to Harvard, married Michelle would he be here today. Maybe not but eventually he would make run. I think everyone would agree a white "Obama" is far more likely to be President than a male "Palin".
Fred said:
What makes you think Michelle Obama "busted her ass" to get where she is?
Because I know how hard I had to bust my ass to get into the professional program I attended at Cornell. And I grew up in relatively affluent suburbs, had my own bedroom, and attended outstanding public schools. Michelle Obama had none of these advantages but her parents instilled a work ethic into her and into her brother.
You don't get into an Ivy League professional program if you don't have the credentials. (cf. Bobby Jindal, who was accepted to both Yale Law and Harvard Medical Schools and earned a Rhodes Scholarship). Unless, of course, you come from a patrician New England family willing to endow the school in exchange for admitting your dumb ass (cf. George W. Bush, who was rejected by the University of Houston's law school but accepted to the Harvard Business School where he learned how to run businesses--and our country--into the ground).
And no one pays you $300K per year unless the value of your work is much higher than that.
But you knew that, didn't you?
Acknowledging the ugly history of white privilege in this country, I respectfully submit that there is something else entirely at work here. Barrack Obama and Sarah Palin are running for different positions. Obama is running for President of the United States. Palin is running for Vice-President. That is a huge difference. It is appropriate that we should look more closely at Senator Obama than Governor Palin.
If John McCain should win the election, Sarah Palin, with her wafer thin resume, will be, as they say, one heart beat away from being President. If Barrack Obama, with his arguably equally thin resume, should win the election, he will be President. He won’t be one heart beat away, he will be IT.
Look at it another way. Has anyone suggested that we should scrutinize Joe Biden as closely as we scrutinize John McCain? No, of course not. It would be absurd.
So, I think the high standards expected of Barrack Obama, the man who wants to be President of the USA, are entirely appropriate. It is not a matter of race.
Hank Thayer
That's not what a "fuckin redneck" shoots. Rednecks mostly shoot traffic signs, beer cans, then they get more drunk and start hauling things out of the kitchen like watermelons and plastic bottles of ketchup and who knows what. I've witnessed it.
All the same, that's not thuggery, it's hooliganism. And in the case of the traffic signs, defacement of public property.
DrDave writes: "I know how hard I had to bust my ass to get into the professional program I attended at Cornell. And I grew up in relatively affluent suburbs, had my own bedroom, and attended outstanding public schools. Michelle Obama had none of these advantages but her parents instilled a work ethic into her and into her brother."
I like knowing that Michelle Obama is not just brighter by far than Fred but that she could probably also kick the crap out of him any day of the week. Fred is cordially invited to post his pugilistic credentials to argue otherwise ASAP.
I had a somewhat unconventional route to the Ivy League myself. I failed 10th grade biology because my lunatic teacher hated me and I barely finished in the top 10% of my public high school class of just under 500 as a result. But I was tied for the best math SAT score in the class and I had the second best English score and a bucketful of 5's on AP exams, and my recommendations kicked ass, and I only applied to 3 schools anyway.
Fred probably finished higher in his high school class because he played recorder in the band and got credit for it. I'm happy to announce that I never even considered high school band. Some things are beyond the pale.
Of course, I can’t change the fact that I’m white, nor could a black man do anything similar. I have had my ups and downs in life. I can’t ever really know how much my race helped me along in life, if at all.
But it strikes me as true that racism need not a corresponding measure of white privilege. Racism exists, to be sure. White privilege may exist, although I have my doubts. However, my point is, white does not have to be up for black to be down. If we can make a crude analysis of the effects of racism in our country, let’s try this. White can be the baseline standard; with smart white being plus 1, rich white being plus 10 or what have you. While black, black can be minus 5 to start and so far and so forth.
To use a more concrete example; Bush had no white privilege, no advantage above the average person just due to his skin color. But he was a member of a very rich family and his grandfather was a senator who golfed with Pres. Eisenhower and his father was President. Clinton had a harder road to hoe, not a whole lot of privilege there.
Palin doesn’t strike me as benefiting from white privilege. Putting aside the fact of the lack of creditable black Republicans, Palin was not picked because she was white. She was picked…well, God knows why really…though we can all assume because she is a woman who appeals to far right social-conservatives. Of course, one could always ask the question of whether or not a black person could ever be elected Governor of a state after only being mayor of a town of 5000. That takes us into an entirely different conversation, one that is a bit complex for this hour.
Still racism is in play in this conversation. It is evidenced in the way that some like to paint Palin and Obama as equal. I don’t think being Governor of a state of 800,000 for two years and mayor of a town of 5,000 is equal to being a US Senator for 4 years and being a Illinois State Senator.
But put all of that aside for a moment. What did Palin do before she first held elective office? Besides being a local sportscaster for a second or two. Put that up against Obama, who was a Constitutional Law Professor at the University of Chicago. That’s what really gets my goat. Elections are tricky things after all, there’s no cosmic court of justice to make rulings that are above reproach, at the end of the day voters decide who is qualified and who isn’t.
But the University of Chicago is a great, great school. For an economics major, or a history major like I was, it would be an absolute dream to ever go there. If Obama was white, they might have tried to paint him as an egg-head for it but they never would have pissed on it as being irrelevant. To me, that’s the best and clearest sign of racism, right there.
Nuada concludes: "But the University of Chicago is a great, great school. For an economics major, or a history major like I was, it would be an absolute dream to ever go there. If Obama was white, they might have tried to paint him as an egg-head for it but they never would have pissed on it as being irrelevant. To me, that’s the best and clearest sign of racism, right there."
Precisely. For a Repiglican like Dumbya the Ivy sanction is presumed to be a qualifier. But not for Obama (in some quarters) even though he kicked ass once he got there, which Dumbya most assuredly did not.
Nixon knew how to exploit "white grievance," talking about crime, welfare and taxes and all the cultural issues. The Republicans started doing that, and all the former Dixiecrats realigned themselves into the Republican coalition. And if that ain't about race, then I'm Strom Thurmond.
Taxes! That's racist stuff! Come on. In the late 60s there was a ton of crime. Crime doubled from when Kennedy took office to when Nixon got elected. Whites and blacks alike weren't happy about it. Nixon claimed he could reduce it. Nixon did reduce it (largely with the help of methadone clinics). But to you and so many others it's a sin to talk honestly about crime in a political campaign. As for the Dixiecrats, what did they get in return for switching their allegiances? On whose watch did the schools really get desegregated? (Hint: his name starts with an N.) Who brought affirmative action to a federal contractor near you? The reality is, Nixon was such a brilliant politician that forty years after the fact he still has people conned into thinking he served southern white interests. If you want to pick on covert Republican racism, pick on Reagan.
Nah, it's not white privilege.
The GOP wants a victory to the White House so badly that McCain could have nominated a pile of manure and they would be asking if they could kiss it.
It's partisan hackery, pure and simple.
Thanks for the Tim Wise piece. Articulates precisely my own feelings on the matter. I'm a 53-year old suburban white woman. When the Bristol/hockey kid baby thing erupted, my first thought was, wow, imagine if this level of dysfuntion was occuring in the Obama family. Election would've been over then and there. A lot of us see the unfairness and the dishonesty and are outraged by it. Ditto on Palin's incontrovertible lack of intelligence, experience, and discernment.
And, yes, the University of Chicago is one our our finest institutions of higher learning. It's a jewel and a gift that keeps on giving in all the right ways.
It is not white privledge as much as it is class privledge. The Bush boys were foisted on us because they are rich.
Clarence Thomas.
First-time commenter. Love this blog.
Lee: "So fuck the stupid white bastards. We don't need them."
This is the essence of it. People who think racism is not a problem, that blacks sort of "deserve" all the negative stereotypes, etc., and people who are just too dumb for us to bother with. They are 100% committed to a world-view that's been sold to them in exchange for their political support. If you're dumb enough to buy into ignorance and hatred, I'm not sure what we can do about that. (Maybe after McCain loses he can lead a commission on this.)
Some 50 million or more of them will turn out in November for McCain, and even if (when!) they lose, they'll be with us for a very long time.
But the best way to move forward with our society is to ignore these people. Eventually they will die off.
It's supposedly not White Privilege or not as much it is class privilege but:
[1] Bush and everyone else who has the privilege happens to be White; and
[2] Sarah Palin -- you know, the actual person this story centers on -- bills herself as someone who didn't come from an economically privileged background.
The moral to this is: some people will do anything to deny racism and White Privilege. You know it's WHITE PRIVILEGE when Whites, especially via White women, benefit from affirmative action yet opposition to affirmative action is directed NOT towards all beneficiaries... and, worse, the impetus for so-called "class based" affirmative action is the notion poor Whites get cheated not that anyone honestly checked to see if colleges have long standing measures to include, even modestly, people of all races, poor Whites included, who are economically disadvantaged which I'd argue that they have.
So in both so-called race-based affirmative action (how can it be race-based when Whites benefit?) and class-based affirmative action there is WHITE PRIVILEGE or, should I say, Whites are privileged regardless.
Well, I’ve been off the net for a while- still no power here in the ‘Ville- so maybe I’m about to repeat someone else. Can’t help it. First, Fred, let’s talk Section 8. It’s not a black thing, it’s a poor thing. My wife was on Section 8 for a while and she managed to raise a son, by herself, working minimum wage jobs the whole time. He is a junior at U of L, on the dean’s list every semester, on a scholarship. Academic, not athletic. Before you jump on the single mother bandwagon, that too correlates better with economic class than with race.
Next, why does a list of four disappointing black politicians consist of any sort of evidence? I can demolish that whole list with one name- John Lewis. Or I could just list some chewed up white pols, but you get the idea.
Finally, you claim that the only whites that have a positive view of blacks are those who don’t know any. To the contrary, my experience is that even the most ignorant and racist numbskull, given the opportunity to live and work in a multi-racial environment, soon sees the error of his ways. Unless, that is, he dedicates himself to NOT seeing the evidence of his own eyes. I saw this for 22 years in the Army- put an Alabama redneck and a brother from the inner city living in the same barracks room and watch them become best buds. I just LOVE that shit. Also, note that the highest levels of interracial marriages will be found in the U. S. military- like me, for instance.
Essentially, you are just relying on stereotypes, not on facts.
*White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller...then Governor...makes you ready to potentially be president, ...while being a black U.S. Senator...means you're "untested."*
I think timing is important here.
During the primary, the question was "is
We answered yes, mainly because we liked Obama.
Now the republicans have nominated someone with similar experience, and the question is already answered. Changing our answer hurts Obama more than McCain.
Clarence Thomas is a tool for conservative white power. He is exactly to blacks as Palin is to white women. Their power comes from their ability to degrade their race/gender. Their very mediocrity serves to reify white male supremacy. Palin charged women who were raped for the forensic kits used in their cases & she just admitted firing a man because he was lobbying Congress for money to combat child & domestic rape / abuse in Alaska. Reminds me of the Taliban. If a woman is raped or abused it is her fault. This women is a tool of the most retrograde forms of white male power.
Sure racism is a huge factor in this country. BUT, I think that Kerry was treated more harshly than Obama has been to date (there's still time for that to be changed by his detractors of course.)
I firmly believe that the major difference in between the credentials of Obama and Palin rest with the tendencies of their respective parties. Democrats have done a better job at presenting their best and brightest while the GOP serve up "Tim the Toolman". Many voters don't seem to care that a person is unqualified or not (Quayle, Bush II, Palin)
I wouldn't have been surprised had the GOP brought in a black man or woman as VP. They simply would not resemble the vast majority of black americans. I could be wrong but that's the GOP game isn't it?
I am wondering why Baby-daddies "if anyone messes with you, you'll "kick their fuckin' ass" isn't considered Thuggery? Or is it hooliganism?
What did Barack Obama do as a State Senator?
He authored HUNDREDS of pieces of legislation.
The most important for me was getting criminal questionings placed on videotape.
Illinois is a state that sent THIRTEEN MEN that we know of TO DEATH ROW
FOR CRIMES THEY DID NOT COMMIT.
Not, getting off on technicalities.
but FOR CRIMES THEY DID NOT COMMIT.
And a chunk of them were confessions OBTAINED THROUGH TORTURE TACTICS OF A CHICAGO COMMANDER NAMED JOHN BURGE.
(google John Burge and torture)
Obama's legislation demanding that criminal questionings be placed on videotape, while not a panacea, went a long way to restoring some semblance of confidence in law enforcement.
I think white privilege allows white people to be mediocre in the same way that using affirmative action as a patch for not educating black kids allows a lot of black people to be mediocre.
Why would anyone find that even remotely convincing?
It lists a bunch of reasons why Wise thinks Palin should be widely regarded as the WORST PERSON EVA! and simply asserts that the reason she isn't is because of white privilege.
"I think white privilege allows white people to be mediocre in the same way that using affirmative action as a patch for not educating black kids allows a lot of black people to be mediocre."
I'm not sure where to start...
How about legacies, the single largest program for getting kids into colleges they wouldn't otherwise qualify for.
How about the fact that a large proportion of students of all races are woefully unprepared for college- a failing of the public school system in general, not confined to black students at all.
Or, let's admit that often, when a white student is denied admission and sues because he thinks a minority student, possibly "less qualified" (by what standard and whose test?), was improperly admitted, that white student was denied his first choice- not the opportunity to attend period.
AA was and is intended to compensate for inherent inequalities of opportunity that still exist in every aspect of American society. Lyndon Johnson perhaps said it best...
"You do not take a person who, for years, has been hobbled by chains and liberate him, bring him up to the starting line of a race and then say, `You are free to compete with an the others,' and still justly believe that you have been completely fair."
It would be more accurate if we said that poor kids in this country, rather than being allowed to be mediocre, are not being allowed to excel.
Is it racist for me to be surprised to learn that Tim Wise is not an angry black guy?
MLJ:
You make me laugh.
I took the long road. Screwed up as an 18 year old undergrad, dropped out and worked as a car mechanic, went back a couple of years later and got a business degree and then several years later went back and re-did my sciences as a 28 year old. Graduated Cornell at age 34 and no one, absolutely no one, appreciates having a second chance more than I do.
Yes, I am sure Michelle could kick Fred's ass. But I think she could also dress him down verbally and leave him quivering and begging for mercy.
Has anyone asked Palin if she's actually SEEN Russia? She seems very careful to word her answers about Russia's proximity to Alaska so that she makes it clear that it is possible for a hypothetical person to see an island that is technically Russian territory. If she's going to, seriously, use this as a foreign policy qualification, shouldn't she at least have actually done this?
I think "mediocre" wrongly implies there's only one scale on which to rate candidates, and only one pathway to office. In fact, there can be several scales of judgment and several pathways. I think it's more true to say that, for candidates who tread the same old path, the minority and the woman need to be better, do better. But an articulate, bright, and nice-looking candidate can, within limits, find his or her own appeal and own pathway. That's true today, it wasn't true in the past. We're going to find out if those "limits" are flexible enough for us to have our first black President.
It's a little like pro sports. Who's better, Bob Cousy or Magic Johnson? Magic was no Cousy, but he played a different game. Was Randall Cunningham a better quarterback than Doug Williams? (Who has the ring?)
Asher:
I didn't mean to suggest that there aren't a lot of good reasons to support lower taxes for reasons that have nothing to do with race. But if you think the potency of that issue in electoral politics since the Republican ascendancy began in 1968 has nothing to do with white resentment against the redistribution of wealth to "undeserving" black folks, I think you're deluding yourself. Before the 1960s, white working class voters perceived themselves - not urban minorities - as the beneficiaries of high taxes on the rich.
I never suggested that Nixon served southern white interests particularly well (although I think you overstate his contributions to desegregation in the south), only that he used "identity politics" effectively by appealing to a sense of white grievance. And he learned some of that from California Governor Ronald Reagan, who may well have won the 1968 nomination if he had gotten in the race earlier. Read Rick Perlstein's book "Nixonland" for more illumination on this. "Crime, welfare and taxes" are all fair political issues, each in its own right. But there's no question that this particular combination made for effective politics because it spoke to white fear and anger arising out of the urban violence of the mid-1960s (Watts, Newark, Detroit, etc.)
I think "mediocre" wrongly implies there's only one scale on which to rate candidates, and only one pathway to office. In fact, there can be several scales of judgment and several pathways. I think it's more true to say that, for candidates who tread the same old path, the minority and the woman need to be better, do better. But an articulate, bright, and nice-looking candidate can, within limits, find his or her own appeal and own pathway. That's true today, it wasn't true in the past. We're going to find out if those "limits" are flexible enough for us to have our first black President.
It's a little like pro sports. Who's better, Bob Cousy or Magic Johnson? Magic was no Cousy, but he played a different game. Was Randall Cunningham a better quarterback than Doug Williams? (Who has the ring?)
In some ways, it's just simple. Most women and minorities have found that they're held to completely difference standards than white men.
But in today's America, this also has a lot to do with class and privilege and power. Colin Powell wouldn't get this crap. Sarah Palin got a pass. If you're on the "right" side, part of the club, then you're okay. And if you're not, then any available excuse can be used to hold you back.
DrDave writes: "You make me laugh.
I took the long road. Screwed up as an 18 year old undergrad, dropped out and worked as a car mechanic, went back a couple of years later and got a business degree and then several years later went back and re-did my sciences as a 28 year old. Graduated Cornell at age 34 and no one, absolutely no one, appreciates having a second chance more than I do."
Great, great story. I often wonder what it would have been like to be an undergrad 10 years older than most of the rest... this is from a licentious hound-dog viewpoint if you know what I mean...
And for your sake I hope you do...
i had a whole lotta snark for ya at first but after writing it i realised i shouldnt laugh at yr efforts to try and promote obviously valid pt - even though yr aiming at a crowd that watches nascar. sry but nascar. nascar? but still. luck n appreciation to thee ta-nehisi...establishing - whatever its now called - in the country that re-elected w....better grab a snickers.
If Obama was white, he'd be a strong candidate in any election cycle, and the current race would be a cakewalk. But because he is black, he only has a shot in an election where the incumbent party is historically unpopular, and even then it is a neck & neck race. Rather than having demonstrated this country as having somehow fundamentally shifted in its racial attitudes, Obama is a clear demonstration of the burdens of being black.
"still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug."
I think some of what was in it makes valid points, but do people really see this guy that way or are they just being polite?
I think he's probably a punk or a dufus, but if it's just him shooting his mouth off he's probably not a thug. (I think of "thug" as having an actual record or something like it) Sometimes you have to accept you're relative is going to marry a moron, I had to accept this just a week ago. Ulimately it's her life, Bristol's, and she's not running for anything.
Just as an aside, both candidates in 2000 came from backgrounds of serious privilege, and I gather neither one was particularly distinguished in school, though both had Ivy League educations. John Kerry also had an Ivy League education and impressive family connections, if not quite up to the standards of Bush or Gore. And John McCain also benefitted from his enormously influential family in the Navy. (I'll go out on a limb and guess that having two admirals in the family gave him a leg up on getting into Anapolis.)
Now, this isn't some kind of nebulous white privilege that doesn't pay the bills but maybe keeps the cops from beating you up. This is the kind of privilege that gets you into better schools than you'd normally get into, that gets you a very desirable slot as a pilot ahead of other people, that ensures that youthful indiscretions like DUI convictions are expunged from the record.
Obama is the first major-party candidate since Clinton to not have come up with the support of powerful family connections. Palin, for whatever it's worth, also didnt have those connections. Both had to make whatever successes they've had without someone holding a safety net underneath them.
Obama may have gotten into Columbia University or Harvard Law School partly based on racial preferences. I don't know of anyone who has hard evidence either way on this. Getting to edit the law review and graduating magna cum laude implies that he belonged there, in any event. I have no idea if Palin ever benefitted from any preferences, though I assume not.
"The basic point here, I think, is that racism allows white people to be mediocre."
NO, it is mediocrity that makes people racist. The more mediocre a white person, the more he needs to cling to racism and racist institutions to preserve him in some position of status and authority. Without racism, without white privilege, a mediocre white person is a ZERO. He needs racism.
I see this all around me--the more mediocre a person, the more racist he is.
Nanking:
This fits a pattern I've noticed. Specifically, whites who are loudly proud of being white and do the whole racial identification thing in public are, almost inevitably, the dregs--the guys who can just about hold down a job at Wal-Mart or as a mall security guard. Plenty of successful whites (especially older ones) are quietly racist, and some not so quietly, but I very seldom seem to see the whole racial identity thing going.
By contrast, blacks who are loudly proud of being black and do the whole racial identity thing are often quite successful, folks at the top. (Though I don't know how many blacks at the bottom also do the racial identity thing.)
Anyone have any guesses for why this is? I have some, but I'll admit they're not based on much besides casual observation and speculation.
I think there's a concept called something like "Herrenfolk." The poorer or more loserish whites were often looked down upon by wealthier whites so they emphasized whiteness as a way to keep themselves from being seen as the very bottom. This doesn't just happen with the South or Black/White issues. One of the most virulently anti-Chinese groups in America was founded, and largely led, by Irish-Americans. In more modern times it might simply be a need to diminish others to feel better about one's own weak position in terms of class and prestige.
Traditionally for blacks feeling good about their own race might have been, or appeared to be, unbeneficial in a majority white society. So those that do it might have needed to have the "luxury" to do so. Or possibly since the black experience is often defined as poverty wealthier blacks are made to feel "inauthentic" and therefore feel a need to emphasize their race.
But I'm a small-town white guy so this theory might even be offensive. If so I apologize.