The Difference Between Knowing You Have Privelege and Understanding You Have Privelege

I am a white female college student.  I have privelege.  I know I have privelege.  But, until a couple of days ago I didn’t understand that I have white privelege.  I intellectually knew many of the aspects of privelege, but until I heard an African-American woman talk about her daughter’s infant/toddler classroom and how her daughter, as less than half African-American with very light skin was treated differently than another little boy in that class who has darker skin, by adults who should know better, and probably do, and don’t even realize they are doing so.  Until I heard out loud, in person, how much it was hurting her, I didn’t get it in my heart, rather than just in my brain.  It was the first time I had a truly serious political discussion with an African-American person who identified as such. The areas I have lived in have a demographic that doesn’t even make that surprising.

I have white privelege.  I understand that better than before.  I especially understand better what that entails.  I was practically in tears as that woman in my class talked, at the injustice of our society, at the pain that little girl and little boy are already being set up for.  I was nearly in tears for the young 4th grade girl at the childcare where I work, the second grade twins, in a way I have never been before, because I didn’t realize, truly, what they will go through in the future.

Sometimes, that in-person experience is what is needed to make privelege be realized.  I wonder if the lesson from this is an idea for a method to explain privelege.  Get a group of eloquent people, ones lacking in certain kids of privelege, as many as possible… male, white, cis, straight, religious (and not just religious vs. non, but majority vs. minority), age (which goes in several directions), weight privelege… there’s lots out there, and lots of people lacking in certain kinds.  I know hearing one woman talk about her experiences brought things home to me, maybe others can learn the same way.