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White Privilege Martin Luther King Jr

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White Privilege Martin Luther King Jr
Rajpal Kaur Dadoa

Mr. McFarland

15 June 2013

English 1A

White Privilege

“ I look to the day when people will not be judged by the color of the skin, but by the

content of their character ” - Martin Luther King Jr.

This is a phrase heard by more than two million Americans on August 28,1963, in the

speech ‘ I have a dream’ and since, then it has travelled through millions of heads and

thoughts in the world. Dr. king Jr. dreamed of America, a place where the colors of

black and white would become so interwined, that the people will not be judged by

the color of their skin , but by the content of their character. But still this this dream

has not been achieved as although overt form of racism did exit, but new covert
…show more content…
It is very horrific side of privilege. The

non privileged ones are suppressed due the fact that the privileged ones deny their

responsibilty when such crimes occur. They try to keep everything under the cover

to avoid media attention. This is one of the reason that such crimes continue to

occur and inequality still persists. Racism has taken more covert form of privilege.

The third privilege move is when the privileged one’s defend the action of

their race. For example in ‘The Laramie Project’, Mundock Cooper, one of the

residents of Centennial, a town nearby to Laramie defends the two accused. He

says, “ I am not excusing their actions, but it made me feel better because it was

partially Matthew’s fault and partially the guys who did it….its fifty fifty” (58). By his

this statement he blames the victim of the cause of his death. If his sexual

orientation was not straight than does it mean that he should have been brutally

killed the way he was. It was totally a privilege move. Couldn’t they just leave him

after robbing him, but no still they had that hate inside them, that prompted them
…show more content…
This is one of

the ways by which awareness can be created and which also influences other white

people to open their eyes to take responsibility. While it is also true that overt racism

is rare nowadays, but instead more covert forms have taken its place.

However, if equality is to become a reality in all areas of society, a genuine

desire for change and active participation on the part of both privileged and non

privileged is necessary. The whites need to participate in the movement of social

equality simply because these changes will also benefit them, it is not that their

privileges will be lost , but in fact that everybody will share their privileges. That will

be the actual walk on ‘live and let live’ when everybody is allowed to equally live

without any kind od differences and inequalities. Racism, white privilege and

sexuality are the terms that need to be open for discussions and where we are

encountered to question, to explore, reflect and criticize. Everyone needs to

understand that there are people who are oppressed in American society and it is

time to move away from the myths and prejudices that create this. This power

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