Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: busy

Baseline vs. Privilege

This essay neatly pinpoints something that has always bothered me: "white privilege" isn't about privilege.  It's about a baseline.  Being white means that most of the time, people treat you decently and don't go out of their way to ruin your life.  That isn't an extra-special perk; it's the way everyone should be treated.  The fact that many people are discriminated against doesn't change that, it just means society unreasonably lowers its standards of treatment for some people. 

Conversely, consider all the allegations that queer people want "special privileges."  No, they don't.  They just want access to the baseline: ordinary things like getting married, adopting a child, being able to visit someone in the hospital, filing a joint tax return.  Now if they said, "Queer people should get first choice of  children available for adoption, THAT would be a privilege.

A healthy society has a pretty smooth functionality most of the time.  Its members are able to carry out ordinary activities without interference.  Following the rules will lead to success for most people, and it's an option open to everyone.  Failing out of a healthy society requires a lot of dedicated screwing up and refusing the helpful options available; you can still do it, but not many people do.  And because most people's needs are pretty well met, there is a lot less incentive to stomp down other people in attempt to prop yourself up.

America doesn't have a healthy society.  Our baseline is ... fishnet.  If you're a straight white educated employed Christian man, you can generally get through life without people trying to screw you over because they find some aspect of your life displeasing.  If you're queer, a person of color, don't have a college degree, can't get a job, follow some other (or no) religion, are other than male, are very young or old, are unconventional in some way -- then society frequently considers it okay to deprive you of basic courtesies, interfere with your happiness and/or survival, infringe on your rights, ruin your life, and then blame you for the mess that results.  That's stupid and destructive and it needs to stop.  It's not just about this group or that group.  It's not about privileges or special snowflakes.

It is about treating every human being with respect and providing everyone a chance to make meaningful contributions in exchange for getting their basic needs (and preferably some of their desires) met.  That's the baseline.  Be decent to each other.  Get the job done.   
Tags: community, discussion, ethnic studies
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  • 32 comments
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ysabetwordsmith

Hmm...

ysabetwordsmith

July 28 2010, 16:56:35 UTC 10 years ago

>>Some things really are zero-sum, limited supply -- such as money, Ivy League education, etc. So it makes sense to say that someone who has them is 'priviledged', perhaps with an implication that the wealth should be shared more equally.<<

Some things are limited, period, like the amount of oil in the Earth -- it doesn't refresh fast enough compared to our use, so is finite. Other things are elastic. We can make more money, or distribute it differently. A given school can only hold so many students at a time, but a type of schooling could be replicated as far as we choose; Ivy League is deliberately limited (actually for the sake of privilege).

>>Marriages aren't in limited supply: everybody can have as many as they like.<<

Though not at the same time, which is another division: monogamy (or at least serial monogamy) is favored over polyamory or other orientations.

>>Marriage, and freedom of association, and other freedoms, aren't priviledges -- they are RIGHTS.<<

Agreed.

Courtesies are also not limited; you aren't going to run out of "Have a nice day, sir" just because you've said it to a lot of people.
houseboatonstyx

Re: Hmm...

houseboatonstyx

July 29 2010, 19:41:11 UTC 10 years ago

Yes, I was over-simplifying to make the distinction. Talking about things that are in limited supply RIGHT NOW (eg billets in Ivy League schools), not about whether the supply might be increased in future.