Okay, second of all, here is my honest and constructive point.New England Fire Squad wrote: ↑Sat Jun 27, 2020 1:07 amI amJamiet99uk wrote: ↑Fri Jun 26, 2020 11:09 pm@New England Fire Squad:
Are you a religious person? A Christian?
Genuine question, not trolling, promise my next response will be a constructive one!
How about, if we are white and aware of our relative privilege, how about we treat it in a similar way to the way a Christian might treat their original sin?
I have been told that Original Sin is very widely accepted by Christians. So, presumably, you accept that you were born a sinner. Through no specific act or fault of your own, but because of the sin committed by Adam, you were a sinful person from the moment of your birth. Right?
Try to think of your white privilege in the same way. To say that you have white privilege is not to say that you, personally, as a white person, have specifically committed horrible acts against non-white people. But, it is to say that to be born white in a country like the USA is to be born into a heritage of abuse and exploitation, to be born into a racial class whose forefathers (as a class) owned slaves, and mistreated and exploited and abused non-white people for their own gain.
Accepting this is to accept that white privilege does not imply that you are personally richer or more influential than the average non-white person in your country, just as accepting your original sin does not mean that you personally know exactly what the forbidden fruit tasted like. Just as original sin means you are born sinful irrespective of your own acts, white privilege means that to be born white in the USA is to be born into a generally privileged racial group, irrespective of your own acts.
If you believe in and accept your original sin as a Christian, presumably you will take this as a motivation to lead a good life, to do good deeds, and to generally be a better person.
Likewise, then, I implore you to accept your privilege as a white person, and take it as a motivation to understand how non-white people have suffered in your country, and to be motivated to do good by them, to understand them, to counteract your innate privilege and generally be a better person.
Does that make any sense?