In discussing the ideas of privilege with activists, I've come to realize that the word itself is inaccurate and alienates people that might otherwise be willing to help oppressed demographics. First of all, let's look at a dictionary definition of what privilege means:
a special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group of people.
Now consider the connotation that 'privilege' has. Looking at examples of it being used in a sentence, most use the word somewhat like this:
In October 1763 the king granted Mendelssohn the privilege of Protected Jew (Schutz-Jude)- which assured his right to undisturbed residence in Berlin.
In a majority of cases, a privilege is granted by a person or group of people, or possibly by a higher power. Rather than being a mere consequence of happenstance or an environmental factor, the word "granted" in the definition implies that a privilege is given to you with a specific intent. When used in such a way, terms like "male privilege" and "white privilege" become much more sinister, because of an implication that there's some figure of authority in control of the social hierarchy.
Consider the provided synonym "advantage," which, compared to "privilege," does not imply that there is any giver or intent behind it:
a condition or circumstance that puts one in a favorable or superior position.
To compare the words, try swapping the two words wherever you see them and the difference becomes clear.
In October 1763 the king granted Mendelssohn the advantage of Protected Jew (Schutz-Jude)- which assured his right to undisturbed residence in Berlin.
Having set up camp at the top of the hill, the tribe won the skirmish due to having a height privilege.
To address the idea of a systematic hierarchy, let's consider the well-known advantage (or privilege) a white driver has when pulled over by a cop compared to that of a black driver. If a cop is the authority in this situation, it would be safe to assume that they are the ones granting this so-called privilege to white drivers. But where does this bias come from?
Many cops respond to a disproportionate amount of emergency calls where black people are committing crimes. Repeated exposure to these situations creates a bias toward thinking of black people as criminals. However, if the statistical bias influences the cop, then the cop is not the source of the bias. So who actually grants the privilege? Black crime has more to do with class than it has to do with race. The reason the two words are married has more to do with the connection between being black and being poor, and the connection between being poor and being a criminal. If you want to trace this back farther, you can consider that after the abolition of slavery, not enough steps have been taken to give black people the same opportunities as white people.
In a way you could say that the racial bias you experience as a driver is a privilege, but if you do, who granted it? A bunch of colonial British slave traders that are long dead. However, the etymology of the word doesn't encourage people to look this far; while using the term 'white privilege' encourages people to look for a culprit, it's easier to see white people as the problem rather than someone who is not alive to face the consequences of their actions. Taking the position that racial biases are a shared responsibility is a valid argument, except that these biases are not exclusive to white people. I do not like to use the word 'fault' in this scenario, because having these biases does not make you a bad person and the problem is more complicated than that. Hence, I disagree with the way that 'privilege' invites people to start pointing fingers, especially as it is not a word that makes people feel included or accepted when it is directed at you. Similar to what Nietzsche calls "slave morality," privilege is often used to make people feel guilty for having advantages, and sounds like an excellent way to incite class warfare and to alienate people that may otherwise want to help you. Having a feminist tell me that I have male privilege makes me a lot less enthusiastic to help them compared to if I were told that being a man gives me advantages.
TL;DR Social activists should replace the word "privilege" with "advantage."
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