White privilege and what to do

The discussion Emily, Aastha and I led on race during our Bonner class was basically a synthesis of my previous blog post and Emily's blog post. We began the discussion watching a Tim Wise youtube video about white privilege. We read the passage from White Like Me discussing the issue of service trips to New Orleans after Katrina. We compared service trips like those to New Orleans to the service sites we attend on a regular basis, because our service sites are predominantly in Norristown and Philadelphia, we were trying to point out how we are entering a world very different from that of our Ursinus bubble. The question of whether we truly learn about the places we are serving before we go there came up, what do we really know about Norristown and the issues there? Sure the Bonners go there and tutor or help at an art center, but what do we really know about the way the children we were work with live, or what social justice issues are the greatest there. Surrounding the first quote, we also brought up the idea of white privilege, and whether or not our lives as UC Bonners is itself a white privilege. This got people very annoyed and was undoubtedly the most heated time in class we have had yet this year. Here are some quotes surrounding the issues Bonners had with their service being connected to privilege:

"I would love to have the opportunity to more clearly define white privilege. I still don’t see local service as an “exercise” in privilege. An exercise means that something is being used and the implication is that without the privilege I cannot possibly perform the action. I certainly concede the point that our privilege becomes evident when we get out of a school-provided van with Hollister clothing and an institute of higher education to return to, but to be an exercise would mean that I am required to use my privilege to perform the task."

"In a way, I feel that talking about race in that way is a lose lose situation. Also, i agree with others on the statement as service trips to Norristown not being considered a service trip. I do agree that our white privilege is made known in these areas, but i do not believe it is a direct result of our white privilege."

"Often I don't even realize how many privileges I have just because I am white. I think it is important to acknowledge this privilege, but I do not necessarily think we should be ashamed of it. It is unproductive to be ashamed of the white privilege, instead I feel as though we should take advantage of the privilege we have and help those who are not privileged. This sounds idealistic, but it is possible, and that is evident in the work we do as Bonners. While we are all privileged is some way or another to be able to go to college and to have to time to devote to volunteer work, we are at least using this to help others."

"Does calling individuals privileged perpetuate a problem? And second, if it does perpetuate a problem, is this problem necessary in order to achieve social justice? Despite the fact that individuals may be privileged in a certain extent regarding access to certain things, is having access to things really what life is all about?"

While everyone in Bonner comes from socioeconomic statuses and not everyone is white- all but four of us are. This seems to me that white privilege is manifested enough within the Bonner organization on a whole that it is a topic that should be further understood and discussed.

Another quote from Tim Wise about most nonprofits working in a "colorblind vacuum" instead of referring to issues of class, or income, or urban, rather than being addressed as racial issues. I quickly discovered that quite a few Bonners didn't even really understand what being colorblind truly was, and the discussion turned more into a broad question/awareness of how can institutional racism be fought if we refuse to actually talk about race. People clearly seemed uncomfortable referring to issues such as food deserts or lack of education funding as racist issues. In light of taking Philosophy of Race, I had lost track of how these issues aren't addressed essentially anywhere else.

Finally, we tried to end the class on a more constructive way by breaking up into small groups and discussing what we think people should do and what we should do as Bonners. Each group came up with different responses, but an overarching issue that we agreed needs to be addressed was education.

Here are some quotes that I was impressed with regarding educations roll in addressing these systemic issues:

"One of the most powerful things that struck me was our ignorance. Like when in the video he talked about the thumbs up, which doesn't always mean great work. You need to take into account the culture of those around you and remember that not everyone is the same.

It is upsetting to me that so many people do not see the racism and privilege which exist in our society (myself included before coming to Ursinus). I think that even when we are young, we need to be educated about the history of racism and how it still exists today. If we grow up with these skewed views, we are less likely to be open minded on the subject when we grow older and learn more."

". It was upsetting to realize that, growing up the way I did, even though I never thought of myself as racist, there are these really small ways--like locking the car doors in a black neighborhood-- that I express and continue those stereotypes. In our small groups, I definitely agreed that education is a systematic thing that needs to be addressed; both in the way that it needs to be bettered in poorer areas and that we need to change how racial issues are taught in schools."

"We have so much that we believe we know what is right, and we believe that our way of life is the correct way to live your life. We impose our beliefs because white privilege has told us that we are right. Most importantly, it has told us that the concept of white privilege often resides exclusively in our subconscious, which is dangerous considering it takes awareness to realize what is in our subconscious.

I think that was probably the most powerful and upsetting piece of the discussion. The influence the subconscious has over us. It's upsetting because in a way, we cannot affect what is in our subconscious. There is also no way to know what is in our subconscious until we are made aware of it. Therefore, it's terrifying to think that we may never be made aware of everything that has influenced our subconscious thinking. It is distressing to think that your actions are influenced so heavily by something out of your control. However, in the opposite perspective it is also powerful to know that by being more aware, you can affect how your subconscious influences you. You can affect your awareness, so by ensuring that you maintain conscientiousness, you can start to overcome the societal influences that affect your subconscious. "

While the conversation may have been controversial at time, and Bonners (myself included) still have a lot to learn about racial issues and the best way to address and combat them, I believe the discussion was an effective way to begin to at least raise awareness and encourage questioning of the status quo.

Bonners and Race

For the open medium project I am teaming up with Emily and Aastha to run Bonner class discussion on race. My ideas for the class thus far involve sending a pdf of excerpts from White Like Me, that discuss volunteer work and volunteer organizations (mostly from chapter six). I do not know if this is how the class will actually run but these are the ideas that I am presenting to my group. Some questions that I would like to address are:
What is white privilege?
How is privilege manifested in your life? As a Bonner?
What institutional racism do we witness in our service sites?
          Share my thoughts on UTC (see blog post UC vs. Philly)
Are these issues addressed as racist?
Should they be, why or why not?
If they should be addressed, how can we spark that?
What is our responsibility in everyday life in regards to racism?
What is that you already do
Is there something we can do as Bonners to promote racial justice in the UC community and community partners?
After the discussion I hope to take about ten minutes to have everyone right up a small reflection on what they learned/what was powerful/needs to be addressed further.
We will then compile the responses and find common themes or issues that stick out and create a document including what was actually addressed in the class and the reactions of the other Bonners and ourselves.

Feedback? These are only my ideas and once again may change when Aastha, Emily and I meet up and discuss. The class is happening this Wednesday.

11/10 no blog

I would like to apply my free blog post for attending the lunch discussion on “Dragging the Black Church: Tyler Perry, Steve Harvey, and Rickey Smiley Perform Black Women.” Thanks!

Ursinus vs. Philly

Nearly every Saturday from 9:00-2:00 I volunteer at Urban Tree Connection, a non-profit organization that works in West Philadelphia "to assist urban, low-income communities and revitalize their neighborhoods by transforming abandoned open spaces into safe and functional places that inspire and promote positive human interaction". The full mission statement can be viewed on their website: http://urbantreeconnection.org/about.html. Some brief history that I am aware of is that the organization started to beautify vacant lots and improve neighborhoods since the lots would no longer be available for crime related activities. However, the organization shifted to planting mostly community supported agriculture (CSA) gardens due to the greatly limited access to fresh produce. There may have been a misguided agenda coming in, but I find the easy shift to the communities' agenda, a powerful way for UTC to make a meaningful impact in the communities.

Non-profits are never perfect and while I am in favor of UTCs' work, the racial issues creating the need for such a program are unidentified. The fact that these communities are almost entirely black/racial minorities is overlooked and on the website and in practice "urban" and "low-income" communities are the identifying factor. Even though UTC is a commendable organization, it does seem to be existing in a "colorblind vacuum". When you are in West Philly walking around with our group of almost entirely white UC Bonners it is impossible to ignore that no such vacuum addresses the systemic racial oppression.

Once again, UTC isn't perfect as it is merely treating a symptom of long upheld racial oppression/white supremacy. Still, at least personally, the first hand accounts of such poverty are much more impactful than reading about them alone could ever be. This past Saturday a group of volunteers were starting up a new site, clearing weeds and seemingly ever-growing mounds of garbage. People dump their garbage in these lots because there are no garbage men going around every Tuesday evening, and no dumpsters to be seen or accessed. The side street was also lined with trash. We were also bundling up the trash and debris from the lot and putting it on this side street. Sue, the volunteer coordinator (and one of the sweetest woman on earth) had instructed us to put the waste there as she had spoken with a garbage man the previous week about her predicament of nowhere to put this trash. The garbage man agreed to go that way and clear the bundles on Monday.

On this side street was a small cinderblock house that legitimately appeared to be the size of the double room that I have here at UC to myself. I saw at least three people come out of this house. I got to talking to a  resident of the house named Simon as he stood outside having his morning coffee and cigarette. Simon had recently painted his house and was happy to see projects to restore his neighborhood. We were also planning to clean and weedwhack the area right across from his house, he offered to do the weed whacking if we provided the tool, I inquired but was instructed to decline due to liability limitations. Quite possibly a manifestation of subconscious racial profiling. Simon and I talked about the produce and ways for him to get involved come Spring, he asked what we were going to do with the garbage that we were placing next to his home. I casually replied that someone would come and pick it up on Monday. I got back to work and he thanked me for helping the area. Immediately after it struck me how absurd it is that a white woman was able to get the garbage to be picked up but these residents aren't given the same consideration, when it is where they live. Then I thought of it in terms of my privilege of being at Ursinus and the fact that people come clean and take our garbage on a daily basis. We take for granted so many things that are an unexamined manifestation of white privilege. I think the UC student body should constantly remind themselves of starc differences that occur due to our privilege here and the racial oppression occurring a mere 30 miles away (or closer when thinking of Norristown). Education through this class coupled with real life experiences have a far deeper impact than either alone could fully achieve.