Unpacking The Invisible Knapsack

By Deane Barker • • tags: social-justice • 1 min read •
AI Summary

This post explores the concept of privilege as an invisible advantage that individuals may not recognize. The author discusses its implications in various contexts, encouraging readers to examine their own privileges and promote awareness in themselves and others.

Unpacking The Invisible Knapsack (PDF): If you see left-wing conspiracies everywhere, then best to stay far away from this essay. it’s a discussion about the generally unacknowledged racial privilege given to whites, written by a professor Al Wellesley who has also examined the gender privileges given to me.

What she does here is explain a lot of the things that white people take for granted which people of other races cannot. I admit that some of it was eye-opening. Here’s a sample.

I can if I wish arrange to be in the company of people of my race most of the time. […]

I can swear, or dress in second hand clothes, or not answer letters, without having people attribute these choices to the bad morals, the poverty, or the illiteracy of my race. […]

I can speak in public to a powerful male group without putting my race on trial. […]

I can remain oblivious of the language and customs of persons of color who constitute the world’s majority without feeling in my culture any penalty for such oblivious. […]

I can take a job with an affirmative action employer without having coworkers on the job suspect that I got it because of race. […]

I can choose blemish cover or bandages in “flesh” color and have them more or less match my skin. […]

I was playing around with a New York Times interactive tool on unemployment rates once. It let you slice-and-dice the current unemployment rate by various criteria. I limited it to males and then removed all other races except “Caucasian.” I found that current unemployment for white males was actually really, really low – I remember it being far lower than the healthy unemployment rate for the nation during the boom times.

My first thought: “Well, at least I’m safe.”

I will admit that white males enjoy a vast number of small, unspoken privileges. But this essay has a tone of conspiracy, like we’re actively working to keep it this way. I also object to the use of the word “oppress” and “oppressor.” That implies active force, in my mind. I don’t passively “oppress” someone, and – speaking for myself – I don’t actively do it either.

So, this one is a mixed bag. it’s absolutely eye-opening, and worth reading for that reason alone. I hope it affects my behavior in some subconscious way to make the world a better, more welcoming place. But, at the same time, it stands a general indictment of my race (and, through inference) my gender which I’m not prepared to accept.

If this writer is implying that I’m an active part of a racial conspiracy, she needs to provide a little more evidence of that.