Sunday, October 5, 2014

"White Privilege" Talk Pushes Tarek Fatah's Buttons--and Not In a Good Way

I don't know if you caught Tarek Fatah's meltdown on Jerry Agar's TV show the other day. The topic under discussion was "white privilege," and Fatah fumed that not only did such a beast exist, but that he himself and every taxi driver and corner store owner around was a victim of it (while everyone else on the show's panel, including the pert Sun TV chick, were privileged beneficiaries). At one point, Fatah became so incensed that he almost walked off the set.

Anyhow, if you're so inclined, you can watch the lively proceedings here. There's a related twitter feed here.

Also, you may be interested to learn that the concept of "white privilege" is not solely the domain of teachers' unions and fringe leftists. Indeed, it is so mainstream that it's been given a place of pride (its own box, no less) in our province's "human rights" edicts. To wit:
Consider this: 
In discussing racism, it is necessary to consider the unearned privileges, i.e. benefits, advantages, access and/or opportunities that exist for members of the dominant group in society or in a given context. This notion is often termed “White privilege.” While this notion may be controversial to some, consider the following statements that are helpful in understanding how experiences differ based on privilege.
  1. If I want or need to move, I can be pretty sure that I will not be told that an apartment has already been rented when the landlord sees me.
  2. If I talk to “the person in charge,” it is likely it will be a person of my “race.”
  3. I can go shopping alone and do not expect to be followed. I do not have to think about how well I am dressed before I go to a high-end store.
  4. When I use cheques or credit cards, I can count on my skin colour not to work against the appearance of financial reliability.
  5. If I choose to openly discuss or display my religious beliefs, I do not worry that people will think I should “go back to where I came from.”
(Adapted from P. McIntosh, “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack: online: www.case.edu/president/aaction/UnpackingTheKnapsack.pdf)
Don't know about you, but I feel a song coming on:

Pack up your priv'lege in an old sackcloth,
Feel shame, shame, shame.
You were born white,
A slight that sparks their blame.
Shame, folks, that's the game.
What's the use of arguing?
"You're guilty," they declaim.
So--pack up your priv'lege in an old sackcloth,
Feel shame, shame, shame.

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