Lets get one thing straight: your personal struggles, strife, and other happenings in your life do not disprove the existence of White Privilege in the United States. The term, white privilege, refers to a specific subset of privileges set aside by society specifically for white people. In no way does the existence of white privilege discount struggles for white people. Its just that, largely, these struggles are defined outside of the context of race. Take classism for example. Although there is overlap in the end effects of both white privilege and classism, they are two separate ideas -- and for a good reason.
The reason these struggles are defined outside of the context of race is because it can happen to anyone in the working & poor classes, regardless of race. Yes, poor and working white people have struggles every day. Homes are being foreclosed on, people losing their jobs, kids growing up in poverty...these things transcend race. They can happen to anyone not born into economic privilege.
These problems are discussed at length here at dkos. All over this website, you can find diaries decrying in the most passionate terms the classism and discrimination on economic positioning that runs rampant through out our society. But just because a certain set of diarists and commenters choose to focus on a different topic (race and how it relates to privilege in society) doesn't mean that we completely deny the existence of your chosen topic (economic class and how it relates to privilege in society).
In fact, many of us think that these ills of American Society are intertwined, and that tackling the tangle from all sides is the answer. But just because I believe that many of society's problems are intertwined doesn't mean I deny the existence of one or the other. I believe that the solution lies in finding some common solutions to all of the problems American society presents, and some uncommon solutions to problems too specific to generalize. White privilege, and codified, legalized racism is one of the uncommon problems. We cannot simply generalize solutions designed to fight classism to fit a solution for white privilege because they are two entirely separate issues.
And if you believe that the term "white privilege" is too strong, or too divisive, let me ask you this: what else are we supposed to call it? I mean, its a simple observation. White people have privilege in society because they are white, thus "white privilege". We can't change the term, or make it "nicer", because its name will defy what it actually is. The truth of white privilege is ugly, thus the term is ugly. It will not be changed just because you don't like hearing it.
At this point, I am probably raging into the wind here. I hope I make some sense in this diary. I am in kind of a bad mood today, so my self editing may not be up to par. Anyway, have a nice day guys.
(I originally posted this diary a few hours ago with a different title, but pulled it to reword a few things.)
Updated by rexymeteorite at Wed Mar 2, 2011, 08:17:14 PM
Okay, I don't really care that you all are commenting in my diary 2 days after it was posted to continue some ridiculous flamewar, but I would kindly ask that we leave the allegations of offsite collusion, personal insults, and animosity out of it. Have your flamewar if you must, but keep it civil at least.
thanks