What Is I White Privilege Essay

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Culture is a huge part of our lives and our identity. It shapes and influences who we become and who we are. We all grew up differently, as to why we all have different stories and experiences. There are various factors that influence our upbringing that shapes what we think of others and how we treat them. This is why it is important to examine not only others’ culture, but also most importantly we have to start with ourselves and reflect, as this will benefit us especially in the field of social work.

Growing up, I always had this idea in my head that light-skinned people live a very fun and privileged life. Everyone wanted and desired to be like them. This way of thinking was influenced by my peers, friends, television and the media. I …show more content…

White privilege was also caused by the American colonization period in the Philippines and it affected our way of thinking and doing. Light-skinned people are always immediately associated as being rich and dark-skinned people as poor. This is the dominant culture and the dominant way of thinking about rich and light-skinned people and is embedded in us. Reality talk shows and television shows I saw growing up such as Gandang Gabi Vice and Pinoy Big Brother also portray this view, as they are more likely to give opportunities to light-skinned people to be on the show than dark-skinned. This is because they are more likely to get higher ratings, as people want to see foreigners and light-skinned people more. Some of the people I knew of were even getting forced to be with a light-skinned person, as they perceived them to be rich so if they marry them, they will have a better future (Lam, 2013). This racial bias is huge in the Philippines and also in New Zealand, as Pakeha is seen as more privileged than Maori and Indigenous people (Balanovic, 2013). Due to my socialization, I was lead to inaccurate judgments about this certain group with having no interactions with them due to the massive influence of the media and the people around me. The media has become the normative and dominant view. This socialization has impacted on broader …show more content…

It is also very evident that this has caused institutional racism, such as how Maori are overrepresented in crime statistics and are more likely to get arrested and punished than Pakeha for the same crime. Maori youth only represent twenty percent of the overall youth population in New Zealand, yet fifty-three percent are arrested and convicted (Tangata Whenua, 2015). 11,033 Maori to just 9,917 of non-Maori were arrested, but Maori youth are not offending and committing thirty-three percent of the crimes (Tangata Whenua, 2015). There are also more data about Maori offending than other ethnic groups and these statistics show institutional racism and the impact of our socialization to tangata whenua. An example of this was when I was walking down the road near my house with friends and a group of Maori youth went by, which my friend then immediately slowly moved away from them and I followed her. She reacted this way because she perceived them as ‘trouble makers’. This experience shows how other people can impact our perception of certain groups and we also influence them, just like a domino effect. People’s actions in the past seem to distinguish the future generation’s actions as well. This socialization has impacted on the privilege and disadvantage status of tangata whenua, as it reinforces disadvantage to them and reinforces privilege to

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