This week in our multicultural class we discussed the topics of racism and White privilege. As a white individual, white privilege is not something I had really thought about much until this point, sadly. The reality is, not many white people think about white privilege. White people, often do not realize how things in our society are "advantageous" to light skin tone.
My roommate and close friend, Sehar, is Pakistani and has a medium to dark skin tone. We were discussing the things I learned in class this week (as we do every week) and were discussing how our society is so biased towards light skin tones and it is often unacknowledged. We started by talking about Band-Aids. When I get a cut or scrape I can put a Band-Aid on it and it blends in with my flesh color. For Sehar, that is not the case. If she were to cut her hand, putting a Band-Aid on it would make it more visible. They have started making clear Band-Aids, but this is a relatively new phenomena.
Another example involves the color "nude." Last year in my sorority we were required to get nude heels for part of recruitment. We all wore similar outfits and needed nude pumps. The color "nude" is the color of a white person's flesh tone. When I went to shopping and told sales associates of that I needed nude heels, they pointed me to the tan colored shoes without a hesitation. The color of my heels, nude, does not reflect the skin color of Sehar, or anyone with darker skin. To them, it is not nude like the word implies. This word should not be used to describe a color. To someone with darker skin, nude is a darker color.
Makeup. I wear foundation and can get my light-toned color just about anywhere, Walgreens, Walmart, you name it. Sehar cannot. The availability of colors in the stores are primarily for lighter skin tones. There are less color choices for those needing darker foundation colors. White privilege.
Just acknowledging that white privilege exists is not enough. Taking a social justice attitude and using my own white this privilege to help "spread" this unequal power that has been given to me and not to others is necessary. I need to advocate when I see racism and use my white privilege in those situations to educate others who may be willing to listen to me because of my race. This video is an example of how one person uses their white privilege to point out racism and educate other white individuals:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTvU7uUgjUI
I like how you brought up the nude heel example. I was also in a sorority, and we were told to find nude heels to wear for recruitment. The point of wearing nude heels is to make your shoes blend in with your skin. We did have non-whites in the my sorority, and I wonder how it made them feel when they were told to wear nude heels. I will have to ask them!
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