Growing Up in a White Privileged Society Prevents Real Understanding About Racism

Fact: No one really knows anyone unless they live with them, and even then, we all have secrets. Knowing this prevents judging others without knowing them. Becoming aware of this reality offers a better understanding of why racism continues to not only exist but grew to become a greater problem between 2015 and 2021.

I grew up in Los Angeles in the 1950s and 1960s. I wasn’t aware that I lived in a society of ‘white privilege,’ at least until my junior year in high school. It was then, at 16 years of age, that an important part of my education began.

What I learned of most importance is the fact that although I am concerned about racism in America and am aware of some of the struggles experienced by Black Americans, I can never fully understand what it is like to grow up in ‘the other America.’ I did not experience what my friends experienced growing up in a very different part of the same large city.

Some very white people who sit on the right side of the aisle in the Capitol Building, and several fake news broadcasts, led by Fox News, become very angry when these three words are read or heard, “Critical Race Theory.” They attempt to portray the subject as an attack on all white Americans. They fail or choose to ignore the fact that CRT is a revelation that racism is built into our nation’s most important agencies and organizations. This is why racism and the white nationalist movement continue to exist and have become more pervasive over the last seven years. A short summation of CRT was offered in an article in Brookings:

CRT does not attribute racism to white people as individuals or even to entire groups of people. Simply put, critical race theory states that U.S. social institutions (e.g., the criminal justice system, education system, labor market, housing market, and healthcare system) are laced with racism embedded in laws, regulations, rules, and procedures that lead to differential outcomes by race.

Black men and women generally refuse to discuss racism with their white friends. It is not possible to compare the differences between growing up white and Black. Unfortunately, the situations are incomparable. Only living in a Black community and being a Black American can accurately explain the differences. The fight for equality began 400 years ago and continues in the 21st century.

However, we can commiserate and understand why organizations like Black Lives Matter exist. Dr. Martin Luther King began what I hope will become the primary method for ending social injustice. Violence breeds violence; only peaceful protests can create change. This includes the need for all Americans to stand up against injustice and display their support for human rights and full equality as promised by the Constitution.

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Finally, all prejudice is the result of ignorance. If all people are judged by their actions and beliefs, racism and bigotry will cease to exist. Until all people are truly free, no one is free.

Op-ed by James Turnage, Novelist

Sources:

The Guardian: Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race; by Reni Eddo-Lodge
Brookings: Why I’m no longer talking to white people about race; by Rashwan Ray and Alexandra Gibbons
Inc: 17 Inspirational Quotes From Martin Luther King Jr. About Speaking Up When It Matters; by Bill Murphy Jr.

Featured and Top Image by OPPO Find X5 Pro Courtesy of Unsplash – Creative Common License
Inset Image by Alex Motoc Courtesy of Unsplash – Creative Commons License