Teaching About Privilege to the Privileged*

Dr. Tracy L. Robinson-WoodThird Race Relations Conference on New England Campuses

Northeastern UniversityNovember 16, 2006

* Amended for web posting. Do not quote from without permission from the author

Overview Discuss white skin and other sources of

privilege Discuss socially constructed meanings

and discourses about privilege Increase awareness of privilege toward

the development of insight, transformation, and justice-oriented action

Overview

Enhance understanding of privilege and its maintenance of hierarchy

Explore strategies for teaching about privilege

What we are not going to do

Focus on the five F’s often associated with Diversity Food Festivals Fabric Focus on people of color (not Whites) Focus on feeling good (not honoring

the difficult, uneven, and hard places)

A Lens to See Through

In this presentation, a constructionist perspective is used

It suggests that society creates race, gender, sexuality as meaningful categories of privilege among people

A Lens to See Through

A Constructionist perspective is different from an essentialist perspective which suggests identities exist independent of our perceptions

Discourses Defined

Uses of language Hidden meanings used in place of

overtly stated verbal exchanges that operate as forms of social practice to communicate and perpetuate particular meanings

Discourses Discourses regarding privilege,

oppression, and diversity often reflect confusion about Meanings Populations Distinction between stigmatized identities

and internalized oppression Dialectic—people often possess privileged

and stigmatized identities

Stigma

Bodily sign designed to expose something unusual and bad about the moral status of an individual

Stigma

Stigma involves objectification and devaluation

Objectification refers to people being treated as if they were objects, members of categories rather than people with a multiplicity of characteristics

Question

What are unconscious and/or unspoken discourses about privilege?

Unearned Privilege (white skin)

An invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports, codebooks, visas, clothes, tools and blank checks which can be counted on daily but about which the person was ‘meant’ to remain oblivious

From Peggy McIntosh, White Privilege

Race

Race often functions as a grandmaster status, eclipsing, dominating, and overwhelming other markers, such as: Professional dress Other attire (briefcases) Standard English

Guiding Tenet, 1 Some dimensions of diversity function

as master statuses Race Class Gender Sexuality Ethnicity Disability Religion

Question

How do discourses about privilege show up and what does their presence mean in the classroom, meetings, and in service delivery?

Guiding Tenet, 2

Dominant discourses may be unconscious and pervasive throughout society

Guiding Tenet, 3

Having unearned privilege is not a negation of oppression in one’s life

Not having unearned privilege is not an indication of powerlessness and inferiority

Reactions to learning about privilege

Hostility at the messenger Anger Confusion Guilt, embarrassment, shame Denial Minimization of the information Rationalization Avoidance of difference, focus on

similarities

Consequences of privilege (oblivion)

Fear of and discomfort with others perceived to be different

Feeling that people perceived to be different lack what we have

Lack of awareness about one’s privileged identities

Guilt feelings or feeling like one is supposed to feel guilty

Consequences of privilege (oblivion)

Limited emotional and intellectual development Inability to experience empathy for

others’ perceived to be different Attributing powerlessness and

disadvantage to people who do not have unearned privilege

Teaching About Privilege

Have a good support system Have clear boundaries and

expectations Allow people to feel what they feel

Teaching about Privilege

Narrative Encourage students to read other

people’s narratives and stories about privilege, oppression, and diversity

Encourage students to write their own personal narratives and explore privilege, oppression, and diversity

Teaching About Privilege

Develop your spiritual life which fosters a connection with all living beings

Teaching About Privilege

Be aware of greater similarities between people than differences The Human Genome Sequencing

Project has confirmed that humans do not fit into the biological criteria that defines race

The DNA of humans is 99.9 percent alike

Teaching About Privilege

Know the cultural competencies for your profession

Teaching About Privilege

Be aware of and honest about your location in privilege and oppression discourses

On a regular basis, name your personal biases, fears, and attitudes about sources of difference to yourself and others

Teaching About Privilege Be aware of U.S. cultural values and practices

and their reinforcement of privileging discourses:

Individualism/Autonomy/Self-Reliance Competition Standard English (Written Tradition) Meritocracy and Democracy Empiricism Materialism/Affluence Control, Power Convenience Heterosexism

Teaching About Privilege

Cultivate genuine relationships with people who are racially, sexually, and religiously different from yourself Close friendships across sources of

difference often encourage comfort with and openness to meaningful and transformative dialogue