A PRIVILEGED WHITE MAN EXPLAINS PRIVILEGE TO PRIVILEGED WHITE MEN
A dialogue on the “It’s OK to Be White” posters, the message behind the posters, and ways to check your privilege.
“COPYRIGHT © 2018 by ISAAC NOVAK” THIS BRIEF OF EDUCATION IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY ISAAC NOVAK - CONCORDIA STUDENT AND DESIGNER Any questions, comments, or concerns that you may have can be sent to CPO 4269 or inovak@cord.edu. All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Printed in the United States of America First Printing, 2018
Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. - Nelson Mandela
PREFACE
Education is important. Education is what moves people to look at important issues from various perspectives and find ways to compromise. Education is one of the most influential factors in uniting a heavily divided society. This book comes after a second year of posters that state, “IT’S OK TO BE WHITE” being posted illegally around Concordia’s campus. These posters - as President Craft and the Student Government Association remarked in their emails - “are a form of social trolling designed to fuel discord and conflict in our campus community and threaten the dignity of all.” After these emails were sent out, a few individuals took to social media to try to defend the people who posted the statements - some even going as far as to call them “heroes.” Thus, I felt the need to write this short book so as to educate those who might be confused or not understand the significance of their comments. The following pages will highlight the recent poster incident as well as comments
and responses to the incident. I have redacted names so as to not infringe on people’s individual right to privacy, but to bring to life the true narratives that are being held at this moment in time. These pages will also take a brief look at “white privilege” so as NOT to shame or make white people hate themselves, but rather to start a constructive dialogue and understanding of the advantages garnered by white people because of the color of their skin. This book will highlight various racial inequalities that still exist because of systemic racism in today’s society. The intention of this effort is not to rub in the face of minorities a reality that seems ever-present to so many, but rather, to bring to light a truth and heightened sensitivity for those who may not be aware. My hope for this narrative is to educate white men on the deeper meaning behind the posters, to give white people a better understanding of white privilege, and to help create agents of positive change.
IT’S OK TO BE WHITE A SIMPLE STATEMENT.
WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL?
POSTER ORIGINS On October 31, 2018, a masked person went around Concordia hanging posters that contained the statement: “IT’S OK TO BE WHITE.” The next morning an email was sent out from the Student Government Association and the President of Concordia containing excerpts like “Student Government Association vehemently condemns posting the signs as well as the message behind the signs” and “An active investigation is underway.” How could such a simple statement cause such a response? Are they condemning white people for living? What’s the big deal? To understand the impact of the meaning of the poster, its important to understand the history and origins behind the statement, “IT’S OK TO BE WHITE.”
OCT 2017 4CHAN
The “IT’S OK TO BE WHITE” slogan was originally launched on 4chan (A website containing a series of wholly anonymous, uncensored forums) back in October 2017 with instructions for people to print the signs and post them up on college campuses and public places as a prank or “proof of concept.”1
“
NORMIES TUNE IN TO SEE WHAT’S GOING ON, SEE THE POSTERS SAYING IT’S OKAY TO BE WHITE AND THE MEDIA AND LEFTISTS FROTHING AT THE MOUTH [SIC]. CREDIBILITY OF FAR LEFT CAMPUSES AND MEDIA GETS NUKED, MASSIVE VICTORY FOR THE RIGHT IN THE CULTURE WAR. - ANONYMOUS 4CHAN USER
”
The prank was immediately promoted and supported by neo-Nazis, veteran white supremacists, and former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke among other politically organized racist groups. In the 4chan message boards other poster suggestions included statements like “IT’S OK TO HATE N***ERS” and comments such as “BLM are terrorist thug n***ers.” However, the organizers decided to stick with the slogan “IT’S OK TO BE WHITE” and planned for their followers to paper the posters around various campuses the night of October 31, 2017. From October 31, 2017 through November 5, 2017, over 220 campuses across the United Sates and Canada documented the aforementioned posted signs in public spaces.2; 3 Similarly, this year, there have been over 160+ universities that have cataloged a papering of these posters around campus.
ADDING FUEL When this poster went up October 31, 2018, the response around campus was varied. Some classes spent time discussing what had just happened while others talked about the issue among friends and acquaintances. However, one of the most widely discussed actions came after a Concordia student took to Facebook to post his opinion on the posters and Concordia’s response to them:
TO FIRE
“
ORIGINAL POSTER (OP): I cannot believe that I go to a college where I can be any race, and belief system, or any gender identity, and can be proud to be that, UNLESS I am indeed white. Concordia, I am embarrassed and infuriated by your ridiculous agenda. Whoever posted these statements around campus are honestly my heroes, because they are bold enough to call out Concordia’s BS and say “hey! Somethings not right here. We are apart of the Concordia family and community as well.” I am white. Christian. straight. And conservative. And I should be DAMN proud of that fact.” Why? Because I’m human just like the rest of you and I should be proud to stand up for what I believe in and for who I am. It IS INDEED okay to be white. Don’t let any person ever tell you that just because you’re not a “minority” group that you aren’t important and shouldn’t feel proud to be who you are. Being proud to be white is NOT racist in any way shape or form, it is proud to be who GOD created me to be. 4
”
QUERIES FROM This Concordia student publicly stated a thought that many other students of his status were thinking. Over the course of the next few days, the ignorant claim that Concordia’s message was that “It was NOT OK to be white” or that the college favored people of color over white students was shared among many in the student body. Other comments in support of the OP’s post included:
“
“I’m white and I have never been told I’m important.. or even more important than anyone from any other race.. but I have been shamed for being white.. but minoritys have treated me like I have personally owned a slave or something.. I’ve never felt that I’m better than anyone so I don’t think it’s fair for them to hate me because I’m white the way it would be unfair for me to hate them for being anything but white.. it’s okay to be white.. it didn’t say whites are the most superior race, it was just saying we don’t need to feel shame for being white..” “I think there is a lot of white shaming. It’s bad to be straight, white, and Christian. And don’t even get me started on the fact that you are a man! How dare you be a man, you are disgusting for existing.”
”
THOSE IN DEFENSE
“IS IT BAD TO BE STRAIGHT, WHITE, AND CHRISTIAN?”
“I FEEL LIKE CHRISTIANS ARE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST IN TODAY’S CULTURE.”
In order for large societal changes to occur, one must understand the viewpoints from those with whom you may not agree. Therefore, the following quotes are arguments and questions from those in defense of the poster:
“I THINK THAT THERE IS SOME DISCRIMINATION WHEN APPLYING TO COLLEGES, AS COLLEGES WILL GENERALLY FAVOR SOMEONE OF COLOR.”
“WHITE PRIVILEGE? I PREFER TO CALL IT ‘BEING BLESSED.’”
55% OF WHITE AMERICANS BELIEVE THAT THEY HAVE BEEN DISCRIMINATED AGAINST BASED ON THE COLOR OF THEIR SKIN
In a November 2017 study conducted by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the study found that 55% of white Americans believe that they have been discriminated against. Further, in the same study, 19% of whites said they have been personally discriminated against when applying for jobs, 13% when being paid equally or considered for promotions, or 11% when applying to or while attending college.5
THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER “IT IS OK TO BE WHITE, BUT IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN OK TO BE WHITE.”
“MINORITIES DESERVE TO FEEL PROUD OF BEING NON-WHITE WITHOUT WHITE PEOPLE FEELING LIKE THEIR OWN IDENTITY IS BEING ATTACKED.”
From America’s founding until today, the history, rules and governance of our country has largely been the province of white men. In fact, today 72% of Fortune 500 CEOs are white men and in the US Congress,6 97% and 79% of Republicans and Democrats respectively are white.7 And just to add, 87% of voters for the Academy Awards are white.8 So the people in charge of the government,
economy, and entertainment award decisions are predominately white. So yes, it is OK to be white, but it has always been OK and is currently is OK to be white. White race still accounts for the substantive lens by which our country makes policy, directs business, and engages the arts. The following quotes are responses to the OP’s facebook post:
“THESE POSTERS ARE EQUATING THE STRUGGLES OF WHITE PEOPLE TO THOSE OF MINORITIES.”
“WHEN YOU’RE ACCUSTOMED TO PRIVILEGE, EQUALITY FEELS LIKE OPPRESSION.”
WHITE PEOPLE IN EDUCATION WHITE PEOPLE STATISTICALLY GET A BETTER EDUCATION. 1. A study conducted by the Center for American Progress found that mostly white schools (90 percent or more white) spent $733 more per student compared to a majority nonwhite school (defined as 90% or more non-white).9 2. In the same study, it was reported that, on average, an increase of 10% in students of color was associated with a decrease in spending of $75 per student.
3. The 2015-16 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study found that black students were 130% more likely to accumulate $100,000 or more in student debt than white students even when controlling for characteristics such as gender, age, marital status, master’s vs. doctoral program, institutional type, and field of study.10; 11 4. A Student Aid Policy Analysis found that Caucasian students receive more than 76% of all institutional, merit-based scholarship and grant funding, even though they represent less than 62% of the student population. Caucasian students are also 40% more likely to win private scholarships than minority students.12
“WHITE PEOPLE ARE NOT DISCRIMINATED AGAINST WHEN APPLYING FOR OR GETTING INTO COLLEGES.” You may have also heard that race-conscious admission is an attempt to make up for past discrimination and race-based admission policies mean unqualified minority students get accepted to college to fill a quota. These statements are all inherently wrong. The Supreme Court has specifically outlawed the use of racial quotas in 1978.13
When affirmative action was introduced by JFK in 1961, organizations that received federal funding were required to take tangible steps “to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.” In 1967, Lyndon Johnson added sex to that list.14 In a study published by the Department of Labor, researchers found that white women have been the biggest beneficiaries of affirmative action with nonHispanic white women seeing the biggest leaps in pay, employment and college acceptance.15
“WHITE WOMEN HAVE BEEN THE BIGGEST BENEFICIARIES OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION.”
“RACIAL QUOTAS FOR MINORITY STUDENTS WERE OUTLAWED BY THE SUPREME COURT IN 1978”
In the case Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, the Supreme Court ruled that colleges could not use affirmative action to compensate for prior discrimination.13 Further, while universities might allow students with lower test scores or grades to gain entrance, colleges do not accept students who fail to meet the college’s minimum qualification standards.
“CAUCASIAN STUDENTS ARE 40% MORE LIKELY TO WIN PRIVATE SCHOLARSHIPS THAN MINORITY STUDENTS”
YOUNG WHITE AMERICANS, “RATHER THAN SEEING RACISM AS A PERSISTENT PROBLEM STILL IN NEED OF REMEDY... ARE INCLINED TO BELIEVE AMERICA IS A COLORBLIND SOCIETY AND THAT LITTLE REMAINS TO BE DONE TO REMEDY PAST RACIAL INJUSTICES.” - Jesse Rhodes, Assistant Professor of Political Science University of Massachusetts at Amherst
SO WAIT. WHAT’S WRONG WITH THE POSTER? If you’re asking the question “so what?” or are still confused as to what the big deal behind the signs are - you obviously haven’t read anything in this book. So here’s a nice summary of the issues associated with the poster.
TO SUMMARIZE: “It is OK to be white, but it has always been OK to be white.” “The poster originated as a recruitment tool for neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and various other racist hate groups.” “Minorities deserve to feel proud of being non-white without white people feeling like their own identity is being attacked.” “White privilege exists, and the idea that removing the posters means that it is NOT OK to be white is a MYTH.”
WHITE PRIVILEGE?
“HAVING GREATER ACCESS TO POWER AND RESOURCES THAN PEOPLE OF COLOR [IN THE SAME SITUATION] DO.” Francis E. Kendall, author of Diversity in the Classroom and Understanding White Privilege: Creating Pathways to Authentic Relationships Across Race
Look Different, a campaign created to help contextualize current threats to equality, empower individuals to rebel against injustice, work to help people unlearn biases, and open up conversations with family and friends, gives the following definitions for white privilege, how it works, and why it matters.16
WHAT IT IS White privilege is not something that people necessarily do, create or take advantage of on purpose. Centuries of being the dominant group has led to certain advantages for white people that most aren’t even aware of.16; 17
WHY IT MATTERS “White privilege can mean that white people get certain advantages that other groups don’t secure. For example, given the exact same financial history, white people in the United States are up to ten times more likely to get a housing loan than people of color.” 16; 18
HOW IT WORKS Some ways that white privilege works include the following: being able to turn on the television or open the paper and see people that look like you; no one questioning why you got that really great job or how you got into that prestigious university; and never being asked to speak for all the people who are the same race as you. According to James Baldwin, “being white means never having to think about it.” 16; 18
TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THE STATISTICS
White people are 40% more likely to receive a private scholarship than people of color.12 On average, Asian-American homebuyers are shown 18.8% less homes than non-Hispanic white buyers.19 When stopped by police, black drivers are more than 2 times as likely to be subject to a police search in comparison to white drivers.20 Black drivers are 31% more likely to be pulled over than white drivers.20 Black kids are more likely to be tried as adults in court and sentenced to life in prison compared to white kids.21 In the first year of rental, white people are likely to pay less in fees, deposits, and rents than black people might pay.22 If charged with identical crimes, a black male is likely to receive a 60% longer sentence than a white male.23 African Americans and whites use drugs at similar rates, but the imprisonment rate of African Americans for drug charges is almost 6 times that of whites.24
Résumés that had a stereotypical white name, in comparison to a stereotypical African-American name, on them were roughly 50 percent more likely to result in callback for an interview.25; 26 A study in the American Sociological Review found that African-American applicants with no criminal record were offered low-wage jobs at a rate as low as white applicants who had criminal records even when their résumés and interview training were identical.25; 27 White state legislators were found to be less likely to respond to constituents with African-American names. This was true of legislators in both political parties. 25; 28 Emails sent to faculty members at universities, asking to talk about research opportunities, were more likely to get a reply if a stereotypically white name was used.25; 29
WHAT THIS DOES NOT MEAN “Teaching Tolerance,� a magazine dedicated to helping educators teach children and youth to be active participants in a diverse democracy, offer numerous articles and materials to better understand white privilege. The following quoted examples on the right are are explanations to what white privilege does not mean.16
WHITE PRIVILEGE IS NOT THE SUGGESTION THAT WHITE PEOPLE HAVE NEVER STRUGGLED. “Many white people do not enjoy the privileges that come with relative affluence, such as food security. Many do not experience the privileges that come with access, such as nearby hospitals.”
WHITE PRIVILEGE IS NOT THE ASSUMPTION THAT EVERYTHING A WHITE PERSON HAS ACCOMPLISHED IS UNEARNED. “Most white people who have reached a high level of success worked extremely hard to get there. Instead, white privilege should be viewed as a built-in advantage, separate from one’s level of income or effort.”
WHITE PRIVILEGE DOES NOT MEAN THAT WHITE PEOPLE SHOULD HATE THEMSELVES FOR BEING WHITE. “As white people, we can be proud of our cultural heritage, but we need to acknowledge our privilege, and perhaps try to use it to help others that are not as fortunate.”
WHITE PRIVILEGE ≠ BLESSED The statement that “another word for white privilege is being blessed” is just pure ignorance. It would be like saying “people of color aren’t blessed.”
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
“Teaching Tolerance,” also offers examples – shown to the right – on how you, as an ally, can use your privilege to reach people who may be more likely to listen to you or relate to your journey in understanding your own relationship to race and white privilege.16
EDUCATE YOURSELF TALK TO OTHER WHITE PEOPLE ABOUT RACE AMPLIFY THE VOICES OF PEOPLE OF COLOR CHALLENGE RACISM WHEN YOU SEE IT GET INVOLVED IN ORGANIZATIONS DOING ANTI-RACIST WORK
Learning about what white privilege is – and what it isn’t – is the first step.
Educating your own family and community is one of the most important things you can do.
Turn up the volume on people of color sharing their own lived experiences. Organizations like Narrative 4, help to capture the powerful stories of race and equip young adults to lead with empathy in order to improve their lives, communities, and world. It’s often safer or easier for a white person to speak up in these situations.
At Concordia you can join the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commission which is committed to honor the uniqueness of each individual, to embrace diverse backgrounds, to advocate for equitable and inclusive communities, and to creating opportunities for students to develop inter-cultural competencies.
THREE MAIN TAKEAWAYS
THE “IT’S OK TO BE WHITE” POSTERS CARRY A DEEPER MESSAGE FILLED WITH HATE AND A RACIST AGENDA. UNDERSTANDING YOUR WHITE PRIVILEGE CAN HELP YOU RECOGNIZE PROBLEMS WITHIN SOCIETY AND BE AN AGENT FOR POSITIVE CHANGE.
DIVERSITY IS BEAUTIFUL. ALL ARE VALUED AND WELCOME AT CONCORDIA.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. “Not OK.” Rutland Herald. October 31, 2018. 2. Hayden, Michael Edison. “The ‘It’s Okay to Be White’ Meme Was Backed by Neo-Nazis and David Duke.” Newsweek. November 19, 2017. 3. Squire, Megan. “Google Map of Campus Hate Fliers.” Google Map of Campus Hate Fliers. 4. Original Poster’s Facebook page. Accessed November 2, 2018. 5. “Discrimination in America: Experiences and Views of White Americans.” November 2017. National Public Radio, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. 6. Jones, Stacy. “White Men Account for 72% of Corporate Leadership at 16 of the Fortune 500 Companies.” Fortune. June 9, 2017. Accessed November 08, 2018. 7. Lardieri, Alexa. “Despite Diverse Demographics, Most Politicians Are Still White Men.” U.S. News & World Report. October 24, 2017. 8. Romano, Aja. “The Academy Is Expanding in Record Numbers, but Meaningful Diversity Is Still a Long Way off.” Vox Media. June 29, 2017. 9. “Students of Color Still Receiving Unequal Education.” Center for American Progress. August 27, 2012. 10. “2015-2016 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study.” National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. 11. “New Analysis Reinforces the Racial Disparities of Student Debt.” Higher Education Today. May 21, 2018.
12. Kantrowitz, Mark. “The Distribution of Grants and Scholarships by Race.” Student Aid Policy Analysis. September 2, 2011. 13. “Regents of University of California v. Bakke (1978).” Thirteen/WNET New York; Educational Broadcasting Corporation. 2007. 14. Renée Beville Flower and Brent M. Haddad, “Reawakening the Public Research University.” 2014. 15. Massie, Victoria M. “White Women Benefit Most from Affirmative Action - and Are among Its Fiercest Opponents.” Vox.com. June 23, 2016. 16. Collins, Cory. “What is White Privilege, Really?” Teaching Tolerance. Fall 2018. 17. “More On: White Privilege.” Look Different. 18. Swalwell, Katy. “Confronting White Privilege” Teaching Tolerance. Fall 2012, Issue 42. 19. “Housing Discrimination Against Racial and Ethnic Minorities 2012.” U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Office of Policy Development and Research. 2012. 20. Ingraham, Christopher. “You Really Can Be Pulled Over for Driving While Black, Federal Statistics Show.” The Washington Post. September 9, 2014. 21. Kerby, Sophia. “The Top 10 Most Startling Facts About People of Color and Criminal Justice in the United States.” Center for American Progress. March 13, 2012. 22. Dewan, Shaila. “Discrimination in Housing Against Nonwhites Persists Quietly, U.S. Study Finds.” The New York Times. June 11, 2013.
23. Sonja B. Starr, M. Marit Rehavi. “Racial Disparity in Federal Criminal Sentences.” University of Michigan Law School. 2014. 24. “Criminal Justice Fact Sheet.” National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. 2018. 25. Bertrand, Marianne, and Sendhil Mullainathan. “Are Emily and Greg More Employable Than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment on Labor Market Discrimination.” American Economic Review. 2004. 26. Mullainathan, Sendhil. “Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions.” The New York Times. 2015. 27. Devah Pager, Bruce Western, Bart Bonikowski. “Discrimination in a Low-Wage Labor Market: A Field Experiment.” American Sociological Review. 2009. 28. Daniel M. Butler, David E. Broockman. “Do Politicians Racially Discriminate Against Constituents? A Field Experiment on State Legislators.” American Journal of Political Science. April 27, 2011. 29. Milkman, K.L., M. Akinola, and D. Chugh. “What Happens Before? A Field Experiment Exploring How Pay and Representation Differentially Shape Bias on the Pathway into Organizations.” Journal of Applied Psychology. May 4, 2015.
COLOPHON This publication accompanies the current discussion on the “IT’S OK TO BE WHITE” poster incident that occured on Concordia’s campus. Font: Helvetic Neue Printed with help from Concordia College’s Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion Committee (D.E.I.C) You may use the following blank pages to write any comments, questions, or concerns to send to me at CPO 4269
DIALOGUE BETWEEN PEOPLE OF DIFFERING VIEWS IS CRITICAL FOR FOSTERING UNDERSTANDING IN A – Alex Gibney DEMOCRACY.