This blog is designed as a vector for interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary curricular design. We look forward to sharing lessons that incorporate a variety of disciplines, the arts, and social justice initiatives that we can all grow together!
Lissette Martinez Unpacking White Privilege and Becoming an Ally:
Both authors wish to “unpack” the myths and histories underlying class, privilege, and oppression.
In the “Unpacking White Privilege,” Peggy Mcintosh stresses for a self-reflected view on a person’s individual privilege. She took it upon herself to recognize her “white privilege” in order to uncover the hidden, or unhidden, biases in American culture. One theory Mcintosh provides for the taboos behind speaking about white privilege is in order to “maintain the myth of meritocracy, the myth that democratic choice is equally available to all” (p.126). In other words, she asserts that society wants to maintain the status quo in which the privileged remain privileged under a veil of democracy.
The publishing year for this article is very telling, because while I have most of the privileges she describes (to the best of my knowledge), I wonder whether I would have felt the same way in 1988. It is also very disconcerting to think that some of these privileges are still a struggle for some subordinate persons living today.
I believe our society has become a more tolerant and multicultural society, when compared to 1988. However, many biases continue to remain. How can we as educators help our students/visitors/patients overcome these biases as they navigate through the world? How can we do that for ourselves while being aware of our own privileges?
In “Becoming an Ally,” Anne Bishop calls for unification amongst social groups in order to combat oppression. Throughout the readings, she investigates the root causes of oppressive forces, such as, class, privilege, race, and sex. Bishop wants to uncover the history so that we as readers can undo the damage, possibly through the understanding of how some oppressors were bred into their empowerment. Bishop argues that the experiences as children have an immense influence on the transformation of the power structures (political, economic, and ideological) between the oppressors and the oppressed; from its creation, to its sustenance.
The purpose of this reading is to create awareness of the intricacies involved in power structure. By providing its histories, the reader understands the temporal and spatial context for the creation of these ideals, connoting the difficulties in deconstructing its system. Us as players, have to remain aware of the distinctions in each oppressed societies while conscious of our own influence within the structure. Bishop’s main argument is encompassed in her statement, “If we are going to be able to build the kind of solidarity that can change our society, we will have to be very clear on the different forms of oppression can take, and look through them to see our common interests” (p.92).
Thank you Lissette for your reflection and response.
I would agree that it is a little mind-blowing that these forms of privilege are as sacrosanct and dominant as they were almost twenty years ago. This is illustrative of how difficult it is alter hegemonic imbalances and power structures in society--no surprise, right?
I think Bishop is duly diligent in describing a lineage of socialization in schools, cultural circles, identity groupings, and family networks, as to how power is communicated and maintained. This webbing is so intricate and thorough--I think Bishop is a next step up on our identity charts to see how privilege is transferred and embedded in a slice of our personalities based on where we fit into societal hierarchies. For the arts educator and activist, this is also indicative of the myriad approaches that must be taken towards critical inquiry, creating conversations for challenging power and privilege (and thus marginalization and disenfranchisement). disenfranchisement) an ongoing representation in society.
I was just showing my students a Media That Matters video, "A Girl Like Me." In this film a teenage videographer interviews black female teenagers in New York about their self-concept and identity. All interviewees addressed how darker complexion is considered problematic, and lighter complexion is considered more beautiful. The young women in the film straighten their hair to look white, and bleach their skin, and it is learned from mothers and aunts. Then the film-maker reconstructs the experiment done to substantiate the Brown vs. Board of Ed. case. She found that just as in 1957, when black children were given a black doll and a white doll, and then asked which doll was 'good' or preferable to play with, the vast majority of the children chose the white doll.
My students took notes and their first response was silence. They all have felt and lived that reality of internalizing societal values on blackness and beauty, and they knew that they considered blackness in its 'natural' form to be 'bad' or 'ugly.' Most of my students did not know about the case or the psychological study...
September 30, 2014 at 10:31 AM
Lissette Martinez
Unpacking White Privilege and Becoming an Ally:
Both authors wish to “unpack” the myths and histories underlying class, privilege, and oppression.
In the “Unpacking White Privilege,” Peggy Mcintosh stresses for a self-reflected view on a person’s individual privilege. She took it upon herself to recognize her “white privilege” in order to uncover the hidden, or unhidden, biases in American culture. One theory Mcintosh provides for the taboos behind speaking about white privilege is in order to “maintain the myth of meritocracy, the myth that democratic choice is equally available to all” (p.126). In other words, she asserts that society wants to maintain the status quo in which the privileged remain privileged under a veil of democracy.
The publishing year for this article is very telling, because while I have most of the privileges she describes (to the best of my knowledge), I wonder whether I would have felt the same way in 1988. It is also very disconcerting to think that some of these privileges are still a struggle for some subordinate persons living today.
I believe our society has become a more tolerant and multicultural society, when compared to 1988. However, many biases continue to remain. How can we as educators help our students/visitors/patients overcome these biases as they navigate through the world? How can we do that for ourselves while being aware of our own privileges?
In “Becoming an Ally,” Anne Bishop calls for unification amongst social groups in order to combat oppression. Throughout the readings, she investigates the root causes of oppressive forces, such as, class, privilege, race, and sex. Bishop wants to uncover the history so that we as readers can undo the damage, possibly through the understanding of how some oppressors were bred into their empowerment. Bishop argues that the experiences as children have an immense influence on the transformation of the power structures (political, economic, and ideological) between the oppressors and the oppressed; from its creation, to its sustenance.
The purpose of this reading is to create awareness of the intricacies involved in power structure. By providing its histories, the reader understands the temporal and spatial context for the creation of these ideals, connoting the difficulties in deconstructing its system. Us as players, have to remain aware of the distinctions in each oppressed societies while conscious of our own influence within the structure. Bishop’s main argument is encompassed in her statement, “If we are going to be able to build the kind of solidarity that can change our society, we will have to be very clear on the different forms of oppression can take, and look through them to see our common interests” (p.92).
September 30, 2014 at 10:47 AM
Thank you Lissette for your reflection and response.
I would agree that it is a little mind-blowing that these forms of privilege are as sacrosanct and dominant as they were almost twenty years ago. This is illustrative of how difficult it is alter hegemonic imbalances and power structures in society--no surprise, right?
I think Bishop is duly diligent in describing a lineage of socialization in schools, cultural circles, identity groupings, and family networks, as to how power is communicated and maintained. This webbing is so intricate and thorough--I think Bishop is a next step up on our identity charts to see how privilege is transferred and embedded in a slice of our personalities based on where we fit into societal hierarchies. For the arts educator and activist, this is also indicative of the myriad approaches that must be taken towards critical inquiry, creating conversations for challenging power and privilege (and thus marginalization and disenfranchisement).
disenfranchisement) an ongoing representation in society.
I was just showing my students a Media That Matters video, "A Girl Like Me." In this film a teenage videographer interviews black female teenagers in New York about their self-concept and identity. All interviewees addressed how darker complexion is considered problematic, and lighter complexion is considered more beautiful. The young women in the film straighten their hair to look white, and bleach their skin, and it is learned from mothers and aunts. Then the film-maker reconstructs the experiment done to substantiate the Brown vs. Board of Ed. case. She found that just as in 1957, when black children were given a black doll and a white doll, and then asked which doll was 'good' or preferable to play with, the vast majority of the children chose the white doll.
My students took notes and their first response was silence. They all have felt and lived that reality of internalizing societal values on blackness and beauty, and they knew that they considered blackness in its 'natural' form to be 'bad' or 'ugly.' Most of my students did not know about the case or the psychological study...