Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Sarah Privilege.




Honestly there is so much to post about today that I don't even know where to start. And now that the rethuglicans and their leader, George Bush, has pretty much made it necessary for us to put our increasingly worthless dollars under our houses, (a trillion dollars in three days!) you could say that I am speechless. The Dow lost over 400 more points today, the feds are talking about printing money, and we, the taxpayers, are now the proud owners of a huge insurance company, [ AIG] thanks to another government bailout. Talk about corporate welfare.



So anyway, with all this going on; why is it that all I can think about is Sarah? Yes Sarah. (And I did not hack into her e-mail account. You can't pin that one on the black man)I don't even know why I let you mofos let me stop talking about her in the first place. Maybe it's because I heard another story about her being a *racialist (*that's a field word), in yet another Alaska restaurant (see my sidebar), and maybe it's this whole "Troopergate" thing, but Sarah just won't go away. Well, honestly, I won't let her.


So anyhoo, my girl Jody sent me this nice little article from "Honorary Field Negro", Tim Wise, and I just had to share, because it's so true.



~By Tim Wise ~ "For those who still can't grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are constantly looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help.


White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because 'every family has challenges,' even as black and Latino families with similar 'challenges' are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay.


White privilege is when you can call yourself a 'fuckin' redneck,' like Bristol Palin's boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll 'kick their fuckin' ass,' and talk about how you like to 'shoot shit' for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.


White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some coursework at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.


White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don't all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you're 'untested.'


White privilege is being able to say that you support the words 'under God' in the pledge of allegiance because 'if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it's good enough for me,' and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the 'under God' part wasn't added until the 1950s--while believing that reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because, ya know, the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), is a dangerous and silly idea only supported by mushy liberals.


White privilege is being able to be a gun enthusiast and not make people immediately scared of you.


White privilege is being able to have a husband who was a member of an extremist political party that wants your state to secede from the Union, and whose motto was 'Alaska first,' and no one questions your patriotism or that of your family, while if you're black and your spouse merely fails to come to a 9/11 memorial so she can be home with her kids on the first day of school, people immediately think she's being disrespectful.


White privilege is being able to make fun of community ogrganizers and the work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or > an end to child labor--and people think you're being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college--you're somehow being mean, or even sexist.

White privilege is being able to convince white women who don't even agree with you on any substantive issue to vote for you and your running mate anyway, because all of a sudden your presence on the ticket has inspired confidence in these same white women, and made them give your party a 'second look.'


White privilege is being able to fire people who didn't support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism, while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt.


White privilege is being able to attend churches over the years whose pastors say that people who voted for John Kerry or merely criticize George W. Bush are going to hell, and that the U.S. is an explicitly Christian nation and the job of Christians is to bring Christian theological principles into government, and who bring in speakers who say the conflict in the Middle East is God's punishment on Jews for rejecting Jesus, and everyone can still think you're just a good church-going Christian, but if you're black and friends with a black pastor who has noted (as have Colin Powell and the U.S. Department of Defense) that terrorist attacks are often the result of U.S. foreign policy and who talks about the history of racism and its effect on black people, you're an extremist who probably hates America.


White privilege is not knowing what the Bush Doctrine is when asked by a reporter, and then people get angry at the reporter for asking you such a 'trick question,' while being black and merely refusing to give one-word answers to the queries of Bill O'Reilly means you're dodging the question, or trying to seem overly intellectual and nuanced.


White privilege is being able to claim your experience as a POW has anything at all to do with your fitness for president, while being black and experiencing racism is, as Sarah Palin has referred to it, a 'light' burden. And finally, white privilege is the only thing that could possibly allow someone to become president when he has voted with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time, even as unemployment is skyrocketing, people are losing their homes, inflation is rising, and the U.S. is increasingly isolated from world opinion, just because white voters aren't sure about that whole 'change' thing. Ya know, it's just too vague and ill-defined, unlike, say, four more years of the same, which is very concrete and certain.


White privilege is, in short, the problem. "


Nope, Sarah getting the benefit of white privilege is.


BTW, thank you Mr. Morton for inventing the Blackberry, it is my favorite gadget and I could not live without it.....

93 comments:

Black Diaspora said...

In a predominantly white society, white privilege is nothing more than whites being able to get away with sh*t, that blacks can't.

Wise throws this hypocrisy, like so much dung, back into the faces of those whites that practice this kind of sh*t.

White privilege in practice:

Threaten a prominent black woman who owns a television program with bodily harm, blog and post all kind of vile crap about her, her weight, her color, and some really unimaginable, can't-be-repeated- here slime, and call for the boycott of her show and her magazine--all because she had the unmitigated gall, and black uppityness, to refuse to have a pretty, white, beauty-queen wannabe, ex-mayor of a small town in Alaska, and a few months into a stint as governor of same state, now Republican Veep hopeful, as a guest on her show, while most of the white mainstream media looked the other way and didn't even condemn.

Yeah, I'd call that white privilege, too.

Christopher said...

The Caribou Douchebag is starting to drag the Old Coot down in the polls and Barack Obama is returning to the lead position.

As it should be.

rob said...

Field, been reading you for a minute, my first comment. First off I dig your blog. It makes a brotha do some critical thinking. Appreciate you.

Brother Wise sheds the light on the true thug mentality that is in full effect for this election. The part that burns me probably more then anything is that damn near all of the news media will not come out and talk about it. They keep cosigning this crap and letting the public believe the lies.

Peace,
Rob

Ann Brock said...

Field let me add these to the list:
White Privilege is finishing fifth from the bottom of your graduating class and can still run for president.

White Privilege is being addicted to pain killers, but can acquired them illegally through your charitable organization and not be label a felon.

White Privilege is to have ties to "Keating 5" and can still run for the highest office in the land. White Privilege!HMMM

Anonymous said...

The real Bush Doctrine is that it's now ok to be a racist ass. Under the Clinton Administration, they had to whisper their racist jokes.

Anonymous said...

Sarah is nothing more than a distraction. She is the conjurer's misdirection. You look at the hand that is waving the magic wand in the air and miss the hand that pulling the rabbit, or moose, from the coat and into the other hand.

The real issue is McCain. The man is getting more feeble minded by the day and is totally out of touch with reality. He does not know what he thinks as you can see when someone asks him a question that he is not prepared to answer. His handlers know this and they are terrified of what they have on their hands.

Palin is completely in over her head. But she is quick and she can read her script, even if it means repeating the same lie about the bridge to nowhere time after time after time.

But she draws attention away from McCain.

I would love to hear what she would do to solve our current economic meltdown, wouldn't you? That is if her handlers trusted her enough to let her take some real questions.

Field, it's back to the gym to get in shape for your run. :-)

Ann Brock said...

Field I don't for one minute believe her Email was hack this is nothing more than another distraction. Any time McCain make a gaff during the day you notice they come up with something to cause a distraction. Even, a country girl like my self can see through this one.

field negro said...

jjbrock, nice rant there about WP, you gave some good examples.

rob,thanks fam. you are always welcome here in the fields.
BTW, is that you running in the pic? I am thinking I might need a trainer to get my packs tight for my possible upcoming Braod Street run. If Sarah and company keeps this up, and Mr. Morton keeps being clueless about the economy, I might lose my little bet :(

"The real Bush Doctrine is that it's now ok to be a racist ass."

winde dog, you are sooooo blunt.

Anonymous said...

Field, may I also add:

White Privilege is when the Government take’s 85 billion dollars of taxpayer money and call it a bailout for a corporation instead of what it really is Socialism.

The Federal Reserve is giving a two-year, $85 billion loan to AIG in exchange for a nearly 80 percent stake in the company.

Socialism: Any of various theories or systems of social organization in which the means of producing and distributing goods is owned collectively or by a centralized government that often plans and controls the economy.

SouthernGirl2 said...

Hi Field,

White privilege is when you can abandon your disabled wife for another woman and not be labeled an adulterer and still run for the highest office in the land.

The Christian Progressive Liberal said...

White Privilege is the Problem.

Until that's acknowledged, these conversations about race is just like a dog chasing his tail and determined to catch it at all costs. It's useless and frustrates the dog.

It is also based on the determination of one's "truth". If you have never been bothered by racism because you haven't been personally affected by it; it is not an issue. It is only an issue to those who have had experiences with it. Those with white privilege have not had that experience and probably never will, so they can pretend to be something they never really are.

PROGRESSIVE OR LIBERAL.

Anonymous said...

It's even WORSE than white priviledge...it's Republican white Priviledge.

That's white priviledge to the tenth power ON STEROIDS!

All-Mi-T [Thought Crime] Rawdawgbuffalo said...

wrote a paper once think jor of soc. psy my example is the band aid . it is called flesh tone, whoes flesh

any who fk this wp stuff, my loot more important than palin or obama or mccain. The the vultures are circling and the fat lady aint started singin' yet

Anonymous said...

Thanks for posting this, Field. Tim is always on point.

May I add white privilege is using your POW experience as a qualification facing down the nation's financial crises.

Yes...he actually said it.

Anonymous said...

It's msmoses (sorry for the typo)

Anonymous said...

tim wise, a white man making money off of black people. hail to tim wise. typical white man. yeahhhhhhhhhhhh....

Hugh O'Donnell said...

Just a heads-up. This is interesting...

http://www.theonion.com/content/video/portrayal_of_obama_as_elitist?utm_source=videomrss_86547

MartiniCocoa said...

the photo on this post is HYSTERICAL.

i wonder if any of the white women who don't benefit from affirmative action will recognize how mccain is playing them.

Bob said...

Maybe it's unfair to say it, but McCain was a Navy pilot, dining in the ship's officer's mess, & about as far from the jungle mud grunt experience as a combat guy could get until he was shot down & captured. He lived. Over 58,000 Americans died. McGovern, Ford, Dole, H.W. Bush & Kerry all performed heroic acts in wartime, & none of them ran for office on those acts, they were too modest, too aware that others who performed the same kinds of service never came home.

Soapbubble said...

Great article Field Negro. I'm so glad I have your blog saved as a favorite. Keep up the good work.

David Sullivan said...

I am patiently waiting for that "White Privilege" to kick in!

nyc/caribbean ragazza said...

Palin's numbers are dropping. I agree the email thing is just a distraction.

Maybe W & Rove know the Repubs are going down so they are going to fuck up the country even more in the next few months so Barack can be blamed for everything and then they can take back the WH in four years.

I wouldn't put it past Rove.

-=Topper=- said...

The thing that always strikes me funny about white privilege are the white people that try to deny its existence.

Black Diaspora said...

When you have had a thing for so long, it may become harder to see.

I have lost things for months that were right in plain sight.

NSangoma said...

~
Why don't you Negroes stop cryin-nin and make Obama get up off his azz, leave the faculty lounge and start swinging?

Or does whidte folk-e-ses (Hillary and Bill) have to save his toast?

Do you Negroes now understand why he (Obama) was not the best candidate?

The faltering economy and McCain's stupid comments (fundamentally strong) just may save this election for Obama.
`

Anonymous said...

More WP:

When Sarah can spend $50,000 in taxpayer monies illegally - without council's consent on redecorating her office as mayor:

http://campaignsilo.firedoglake.com/2008/09/17/palin-illegally-redid-mayors-office-like-a-bordello/

field negro said...

"I am patiently waiting for that "White Privilege" to kick in!"

David, not all WP is created equal.:)

bob, you are one cold dude.

"White privilege is when you can abandon your disabled wife for another woman and not be labeled an adulterer and still run for the highest office in the land."

Yep, that would be an example of it.


"tim wise, a white man making money off of black people. hail to tim wise. typical white man. yeahhhhhhhhhhhh...."

Anon. isn't that the A-merry-can way?

"It's even WORSE than white priviledge...it's Republican white Priviledge.
That's white priviledge to the tenth power ON STEROIDS!"

Ernesto, that was classic!

Anonymous said...

You should send this to Cafferty, I hope you did.

Very powerful and very sad.

Dirty Red said...

Field,
I don't really have a comment to leave. This post says it all.

Hawa Bond said...

I first read this Wisdom of (Tim) Wise *hehe* at AverageBro. Gotta love him.

It's even WORSE than white priviledge...it's Republican white Priviledge.

That's white priviledge to the tenth power ON STEROIDS!


I like that assessment. I found myself shaking my head in agreement. Because Democrats who qualify for White Privilege are secretly labeled "nigger lovers" and not invited to the best parties.

The Caribou Douchebag is starting to drag the Old Coot down in the polls and Barack Obama is returning to the lead position.

I couldn't agree more. I was also pleased to see how one of the biggest political gatherings in Alaska featured residents who don't want Palin anywhere near the white house.

Hawa Bond said...

OT Footnotes:

#1: I got another co-worker hooked on this blog. He stopped by my cubicle yesterday to admit to his obsession.

#2: My fiance and I have a running bet this football season. I'm backing the Steelers and he's backing the Eagles. Of course, this Sunday night (Pitts vs Phils) will feature a Superbowl-like party at my house.

I predict a late-screw-up performance for the Eagles ala the Cowboys game. hehe

Hawa, author of
Fackin Truth Blog (Personal Blog)
and
Cleanse Master Remix (Health Blog)

La♥audiobooks said...

David Sullivan said...
"I am patiently waiting for that "White Privilege" to kick in!"

That's what most of you like to say. That's called white denial. Look closer and you'll see the very "privilege" in that.

Field and Jody, thanks for sharing this.

Anony, you made a good point about Tim. I hope he sees his own privileges. You know, a white man declaring these things gets the benefit of giving other non-black people a "wow" moment, but a black person saying the same things would be considered "angry" "militant" and "pulling the race card". I still like Tim though...

Missy said...

I see now that the novelty of Sarah is wearing off people are wising up. I'm so glad somebody s see the hypocrisy of what's going on. I thought I was going crazy!

David Sullivan said...

la~incognita: "That's what most of you like to say."

Who are you calling "you"? It slays me when black folk use the term "you people" because they don't want to be lumped in with the crack heads, gang bangers, misogynstic mc's, (and the list of steroetypical black people goes on and on)...but have no problem lumping together white people as all having the same views, experiences and values.

Look closer and you'll see the hypocrisy of your statement.

Anonymous said...

White privilege is thinking you can lecture black folk about "their" experiences and then do so under the guise of "being liberal." (e.g., the post above mine)

Anonymous said...

david sullivan

Nobody said you lived like Donald Trump but I'd like to see you and all the other white folks who are baying at the moon about Wise's piece give a point by point rebuttal.

You won't because it's the truth that you just don't want to face.

If Barack Obama had a knocked up teenage daughter and the baby daddy said "I'm f_ckin gangsta and I like to shoot sh_t" or if Michelle Obama was a member of the NOI, they wouldn't be running for President, they'd be under FBI survellience..

David Sullivan said...

Uptown: You are missing my point.

Field did not miss it if you read his comment.

My point is not there is no such thing as white privilege. I agree wholeheartedly that Palin's son-in-law to be, if black would be demonized more than the devil himself. I agree with most of the observations in Wise's piece.

I don't agree with lumping together groups of people and infering that every person who has a certain skin tone automatically causes them to behave in a certain way or think in a certain way.

My experiance as a white man living in Massachusetts is completely different as a white man growing up in Texas. My experiance growing up as a white boy poorer than fuck is much different than a white boy growing up middle class or affluent. My experiance growing up as a white boy raised by a single mom is much different than a white boy raised by two parents in a stable household.

Everyone is an individual first. You are by yourself floating in the womb and you are by yourself when they put you in the ground.

I love it here in the Field!!!

La♥audiobooks said...

David, You got so excited to use that feeble opportunity to lash out "crack heads" and "gang bangers"... that your basic comprehension skills failed you. The word "most" does not mean all. I would have assumed you had RIF in your elementary school growing up.

Why do you always seem so "defensive" and "angry"?

SouthernGirl2 said...

Uptownsteve,

Say it!

David Sullivan said...

la~incognita: Your basic comprehension skills are obviously lacking.

Its not the fact you used "most" or "all"...its the fact you used "you" to lump together white people, as if we are all the same group.

I didn't realize that I'm always defensive and angry, but you are right...I have been waiting forever for someone to give me the opportunity to lash out at crackheads and gangbangers...thank you for affording me that opportunity as if you you didn't give me that opening I would have missed my shot. Thank you!

Oh...yeah...hypocrisy pisses me off!

Anonymous said...

"I don't agree with lumping together groups of people and infering that every person who has a certain skin tone automatically causes them to behave in a certain way or think in a certain way."

You're still not getting it.

Race still matters in America.

As a white person, you are not presumed to be dumb, criminal, unpatriotic, or lazy.

If you fail or break the law, you do so as an individual.

When a black person f^cks up, it becomes representative of a race (or culture, the new codeword).

Whites get away with stuff that blacks can't.

Can you imagine if Michelle Obama was addicted to drugs as was Cindy McCain?

The media would have went nuts with references to "substance abuse" "destructive culture" "low morals" etc.

But McCain's case she was treated with kid gloves as a rich white woman who got hooked on painkillers and went to Betty Ford.

DOUBLE STANDARD.

gsutiger2 said...

Well Stated!

Anonymous said...

Justice58

Thank you.

I'm so happy I found this blog.

I had been posting on "Booker Rising", a black conservative website for about a year but arguing with those confused antebellum minstrels can drive a brother to drink heavily.

Anonymous said...

That...was glorious.

boukman70 said...

Field, My Jamaican brudda,

I absolutely love your blog, read it every day. But I gotta say, I think you're becoming a little obsessed with this particular white woman, and that never ends well for the negro--whether field or house. :)

Besides, Palin's sinking of her own weight(lessness).

David Sullivan said...

Uptown: When...in all of this..did I say that race doesn't matter? Don't put words in my mouth.

You are as bad as the republicans trying to push your agenda without answering the question. Why use the word "they"?

And by the way, some of the most lazy, unpatriotic, lazy people I know are of light complexion.

La♥audiobooks said...

"Its not the fact you used "most" or "all"...its the fact you used "you" to lump together white people, as if we are all the same group."


David, the idea of being linked in the same category with "most" other white people didn't really piss you off. I doubt it bothered you that much. You got pissed off because I called you out on your white denial. Save your word games.

Francis said...

I disagree that about half of that is white privilege. (The other half definitely is) To take one example that stands out:

White privilege is being able to fire people who didn't support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism, while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt.


My immediate reaction to that is Whitewater - a deal on which the Clintons lost money. If a Democratic presidential candidate, black or white, knows some corrupt folks then he must be corrupt. Yet McCain is a 'straight shooter' despite the Keating Five scandal. Clearly Democratic presidential candidates, black or white, get this bullshit - whereas Republican ones don't.

I could produce other examples (such as Rove's comments on how Kaine is untested despite having a much bigger town and a much bigger state for much longer). But the majority of it looks more like IOKIYAR than white privilege to me.

Anonymous said...

you're from MA and don't understand white privilege? I grew up in Boston, stop feigning ignorance. did you forget Oh what's his name who killed his pregnant wife in Mission Hill and blamed a black man and every negro in Boston was subject to unlawful searches. Mandatory busing in the 70's? where do you live I know it's a suburb, you must have grown up in a segregated city. we don't like "you people" (this point shows your complete lack of understanding and have the audacity to preach)because it sets us aside as being something other than regular people not because we feel we do not want to be lumped together with the crackheads, damn crackheads might be apart of our family. so stop trying to preach and listen, then you will have some insight and understanding as to black people's sentiments. the audacity of you trying to ignore reality of white privilege and preach.

BTW excellent post- david sullivan's comments shows that when faced with the facts of black life whites will change the subject and get defensive instead of listening.

SouthernGirl2 said...

uptownsteve,

"But McCain's case she was treated with kid gloves as a rich white woman who got hooked on painkillers and went to Betty Ford.
-----------------------------------
Hell yeah! Just think what would have been said if Michelle had stolen those drugs to support her addiction. The Obama's wouldn't have made it out of the starting gate.

If the Obama's unwed daughter was pregnant, it would have been called a disgrace and setting a bad example for America's youth! And that means you don't get to run for the President of the United States!



"Oh...yeah...hypocrisy pisses me off"!


Hypocrisy? My Ass!

Anonymous said...

anonymous,

Great example.

To this very day anyone, black or white can tell you who Tawana Brawley or the Duke University stripper were.

Racial hoaxes perpetrated by blacks.

But quick, who was Charles Stuart or Susan Smith?

Two white folks who murdered family members and blamed it on phantom black predators.

When Tawana and Crystal lied, nobody died.

Jody said...

David,
White privilege doesn't mean you get all the perks of the rich white folks... but it does mean when you were growing up poor that, while you had to worry about struggling with all the poverty brings, you did NOT have to worry that your teachers, the police, the store clerk, etc... all looking at you as though you were a suspect and prone to failure. It meant when your single mom went to the schools to advocate on your behalf, they probably treated her with respect instead of dismissively and as a complainer. It meant that if you had to face the criminal system for some dumb action of a teen, that you were far more likely to get some kind of legal treatment where your record would be expunged and no guilty finding if you kept your nose clean for the next year (they call it ARD here in Philly)...
I know that as a white woman that I experience privilege in the way I am treated... automatically with courtesy and respect by strangers in all settings where I am a consumer..... stores, banks, restaurants, by cabbies picking me up quickly, etc. I did not ASK for this.... and EVERYONE deserves to be treated the same way I am. But, what should be the norm for everyone is treated like a privilege.... Too many white folks live in a vacuum where they do not have friends or family or neighbors that are racially diverse. So, they do not witness this and when folks of color tell them this is their experience, they don't want to believe it.
My suggestion is to please take some time to conciously notice how people are treated. Stop and observe a police encounter and see how it plays out. Notice who is in the room with you and who is not when you are at places...... Ask yourself, how are you living? (I do not know the answer to this and maybe you have a richly diversified life) But if you don't, why not?
Hope this helps you in understanding what folks are saying.

SouthernGirl2 said...

uptownsteve,

"To this very day anyone, black or white can tell you who Tawana Brawley or the Duke University stripper were".
-----------------------------------

Uh oh! You better preach!

Mike Searches said...

Excellent post. I am going to repost it to my blog if that's ok, and I'm going to email to my black studies prof from Portland State U...thanks again. Excellent...

Anonymous said...

OJ, R.Kelly, Kwame, Jackson (both if the idots), Vick.....

do i need to keep going?????

your all about race "it's our turn to run things"....

hasn't worked out too well for you yet!!!!!

Anonymous said...

I'll raise your OJ and R Kelly (celebrities BTW) and give you Phil Spector, Robert Blake, Larry Craig, Mark Foley, Bob Ney, Duke Cunningham, Jack Abramoff, Scooter Libby, Elliot Spitzer and David Vitter.

Shall I go on?

Anonymous said...

but their no black stevie

K said...

Thanks for this post, FN. I've been getting increasingly fatigued from all the "neutral" Sarah Palin coverage in the media. She's scary and corrupt, so why do we all have such a problem saying she's scary and corrupt?
And Jody - well put.

SouthernGirl2 said...

uptownsteve,

Work it! lol

Precious Palette said...

Outstanding post!!

Anonymous said...

"but their no black stevie."

I know that..

Give giving some examples of your best and brightest who've been running things from day 1.

There goes the Bell Curve theory.

Anonymous said...

"You know, a white man declaring these things gets the benefit of giving other non-black people a "wow" moment, but a black person saying the same things would be considered "angry" "militant" and "pulling the race card".

I understand your point but go to msnbc.com or alternet and read the responses to Wise's piece from white rightwingers.

They are calling dude everything but a child of God.

"Guilt ridden white" is one of the favorites.

David Sullivan said...

Anon: My mother grew up in Mission Hill, one block from the Charles Stuart trhing so don't try to school me on Boston. I grew up there and went to school there during forced busing, so I had a front row seat to race relations before most of you commenting here were born.

"BTW excellent post- david sullivan's comments shows that when faced with the facts of black life whites will change the subject and get defensive instead of listening."

When did I get defensive or change the subject? If you all read my original comment it was a sarcastic response to Wise's piece about privilege. My point was...since I have to spell it out to some...that his examples of white privilge were mostly about rich, powerful, republican, evangelical hypocrites who get a free ride, not the everyday examples of white privilge that we see everyday.

Mr. Field got it, thats all that counts with me.

and BTW la~incognita I'll save the word games, sorry for trying to trick you.

Why would I be here in the Field if I didn't get it? Oh yeah...my liberal, white guilt

EzMun said...

David Sullivan,

I'm not going to jump on you, because I understand your comments. I just don't think you understand what White privilege is about. White privilege is only a phenomenon when White people are caught in a compromising position. It's a response from other White people.

WP is about the rationalizations that many White people make to excuse or ignore the bad behavior that other White people commit.

I'm sure in some other part of the world, the privilege is practiced by other groups. But that don't mean a thing, because as you damn well know, White people run America.

David Sullivan said...

Jody: You don't know me at all, so how do you know I don't live in a racially diverse neighborhood (look up Northampton MA) or have friends that are of different races? I've been in the car with my friend Marcus, who is black, and seen first hand harrassment by the police (he thanked me for being there and being white as it probably saved him a night in jail, at the very least). I was with my friend Tim, who happens to be black, and watched as a bouncer ingnored him for admittance in a club for ten minutes until I came over,then heard comments inside as to "why he was even there". I have been called a "wigger" and "spic lover" more times than I can count.

I am not "the great white hope" and have never expressed so, but words are important and use of "they" and "you people" to describe anyone is insulting to me.

and I'll state for the record one more time: I NEVER SAID THERE WAS NO SUCH THING AS WHITE PRIVILEGE!!!!

David Sullivan said...

Ezmun: You are right 100%, white people run America, but it doesn't mean that all white people agree on everything and even like each other. Where I grew up in Boston (not where I live now) it was a homogenious atmosphere, Irish Catholic. Many of the adults I knew had no love for the black man, but who did they truly hate? What many black people would consider white: Italians. Us whites are not all living together in harmony, lined up against the black man. Read my post here to get my flavor:

http://sullsblog.blogspot.com/2007/03/i-was-born-poor-black-child.html

EzMun said...

David,
I read some of the posts from your blog before I posted my earlier response. You clearly get it. Your Sept. 3rd post about the pregnant 17 year old daughter of 'Cuda clearly shows that you understand "white privilege" because in that same post you discussed how things would have been different if Barack Obama would have had a pregnant teen while running for high office.

I really think you've got issues with some earlier posters who make statements that include all white people. But it's clear to me, whether you talk about it in the same way the rest of us talk about it, that you do understand "white privilege."

EzMun said...

and, it is very real in the El Sid/'Cuda camp. Live and in color.

Anonymous said...

I like this post on the subject.

http://drsanity.blogspot.com/2008/09/white-privelige-and-victimhood-pimps.html

Anonymous said...

Any recognition of white racism or privilege will be dismissed as "victimhood" by the right.

Uncle Shelby Steele says "the real problem is black irresponsibility".

Of course that's music to massa's ears and Shelby laughs all the way to the bank.

But what irresponsibility and affirmative action have to do with the blatant racial double standards that Wise details, I'll never know.

It's what they call in football a "misdirection play."

vanishing point said...

Field, Excellent post.
Just wanted to add another white privilege: Carl Rove, refusing to
heed the subpoena to testify.

Just wanted to add my two cents to the conversation on white privilege.
White privilege doesn't negate the struggles of poor white people, in fact, poor white people can still go to a white school and not be the only white person there, they can save money to buy a house and expect to be shown all available houses, poor white people don't have to teach their children how to act around the police, poor white people don't have to prepare their children for the times when they might not get invited to a birthday party, or how to respond when other classmates say horrible things to them.
White privilege is a double standard, where the consequences for the same actions and behaviors are viewed and treated differently to the advantage of white people and to the disadvantage of people of color. It has nothing to do with being poor or having to struggle.

Anonymous said...

Like a moth to a flame, the Field could not resist coming back.

I was wondering how long it would take you before you came back to this.

You have got Palin fever, man.

Adam

Anonymous said...

Uptownsteve, I was actually trying to be fair by referring to the average white thinking individual. Despite what David might think, I'm aware not all white people think alike or suffer with white denial. Some are actually open to different perspectives, even if it's to a certain extent.

Ezmun, I read your last response to David, and I'm not disagreeing or anything, but I couldn’t help but notice how it seemed so... pacifying and obliging in a way.

I also notice your ethnicity seems ambiguous on your blog. Even if you're black, that too I find interesting.

Just one of my small usual observations....

Swiff said...

Field, these 2 pics will warm your heart -

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a81/kos102/2008/Obama/Colorado/Cover%20Art/Fist-Jab.jpg

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a81/kos102/2008/Obama/Colorado/Cover%20Art/Obama-young-man.jpg

Buh-bye convention bounce! McCain lies while Wall Street dies equals an Obama rise!

NSangoma said...

~
Obama is now speaking in Northern New Mexico; he still sucks on the stump. Where is Billary, when we need them?
`

mouse (aka kimy) said...

tim's piece is brilliant - glad to see you putting it up in it's entirety - I sent it off to most people in my address book - I just hope the wingnuts will read it and maybe start thinking about things a bit differently....

thanks. great accompanying graphic

Torkwase Dyson said...

funny, i'm teaching whiteness, i showed this article to my class. it was a great day.

Admiral Komack said...

uptownsteve said...
"I'll raise your OJ and R Kelly (celebrities BTW) and give you Phil Spector, Robert Blake, Larry Craig, Mark Foley, Bob Ney, Duke Cunningham, Jack Abramoff, Scooter Libby, Elliot Spitzer and David Vitter."

"Shall I go on?"

-Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.

Admiral Komack said...

"Like a moth to a flame, the Field could not resist coming back."

"I was wondering how long it would take you before you came back to this."

"You have got Palin fever, man."

Adam

-Hey now!

The brother wants a mooseburger!

And nothing says lovin' like Sarah Palin blasting Bullwinkle with a rifle!

Anonymous said...

Admiral Komack

I got one more

Robert Pickett and Amadou Diallo.

Don't know who Pickett was?

He was a 47 year old white man from Illinois who fired an automatic weapon at the White House in 2001 and was talked into custody.

Diallo was a 22 year old unarmed black man standing in the vestibule of his home when he was shot 19 times by 4 cops.

White privilege anyone?

EzMun said...

La ~ Incognita, I was born on the Spice Island... that would be Grenada... as in the caribbean... Black like (I presume) you, Field, and many others on here.

Pacifying? Not sure what to say. What's the point in beating a man over the head convincing him of something he clearly understands by his own words, his own admission, in his own blog, but articulates in words different than we use? How is 'that' pacifying?

I don't know you or David. So what is it that I have to pacify him about? Can I have my Black card back yet? Haven't I said exactly what you said above to Uptownsteve in my own words? Sounds to me like your doing the kind of snooping many Black folk were doing of the O man pre-South Carolina. :)

As with you, I also find your small, usual observation ... curiously curious. But, I'm sure we'll grow to understand each other's perspective over time. We still do have that right in America don't we?

Connecticut Man1 said...

"But McCain's case she was treated with kid gloves as a rich white woman who got hooked on painkillers and went to Betty Ford."

Actually, there is question as to whether or not she ever even went to rehab. I forget where I read it when I was researching on her "charity work"? If I find it again I'll dump the link here.

Swiff said...

"Obama is now speaking in Northern New Mexico; he still sucks on the stump. Where is Billary, when we need them?"

What the fuck were you watching? He was smacking McCain around nicely in the part I watched. If you thought that sucked, you need to pull up some video of Kerry in 04.

Woozie said...

The negroes at 4chan hacked her account. Her email address was gov.palin@yahoo.com. I mean, come on. That was begging to be hacked.

field negro said...

"I predict a late-screw-up performance for the Eagles ala the Cowboys game. hehe"

Now see Hawa, I actually like you, but that could change if you keep messing with my birds :)

boukman70, big up yawdie! I think I figured it out: this is for Adam too. See, I feel guilty for not speaking out when the frat boy came on the scene; because, like Palin, I thought he was a light weight who couldn't do much damage. Well, I think we all know how wrong I was about that. I won't make the same mistake with the beauty queen. Because she WILL be the VP, and I don't think Mr. Morton will finish his term.

Besides, there is so much there, there, with her.

"I just hope the wingnuts will read it and maybe start thinking about things a bit differently.... "

MOUSE, YOU WOULD NEED A "P" COAT IN HELL FIRST.

"funny, i'm teaching whiteness, i showed this article to my class...."

Flygon, how do you teach whiteness?

swiff, you are right, Mr. Morton might have me heading back to the gym.

EzMun said...

White Privilege is when you, a rich white woman, a millionaire in your own right and married to a billionaire member of a well-known blue blood family, calls poor white people "rednecks" on CNN and the best political team on television uses as the heading that said white woman "calls Obama "elitist."

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/politics/2008/09/17/ec.lady.obama.cnn?iref=videosearch


"Clinton supporter joins McCain Former Clinton supporter Lynn Forester de Rothschild explains her switch to McCain and why she calls Obama "elitist."

boukman70 said...

Half-yawdie, Field. I was actually born Jamerican. Though today, I gave my daughter her first plaintain for her 11-month birthday.

I totally understand. I think W. caught us all sleepin' back in the 2G. It's just that I promised in my own blog that I wasn't going to write about Palin for a week, and you keep pulling me back in, silent-screaming like Pacino. Thank God EzMun just shared that de Rothschild video. Now I've got something new to write about. Obama's elitist and she's middle class. I'd love to be middle class in her and McCain's world. Hell, I'd settle for poverty class. That must net a good $500k a year.

EzMun said...

brudda boukman70,
$500k a year. That Rothschild woman was worth $100 mill. all by herself. She married a billionaire when she became the third Lady de Rothschild.

On that scale, Poverty is something like net worth of $20 mill. with $5 mill. a year.

La♥audiobooks said...

Hey Field, I wanted to share this link. A white fem. wrote this up on Palin, hooray!

http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2008/09/10/palin_feminism/

boukman70 said...

Well, at those rates, Ezmun, I can't afford NOT to be poor. Government cheese fondue on me!

CashMiguel said...

Read what Joe Biden told two black newspapers in Charlotte, NC last Sunday about the lie-ridden campaign of his "old friend' john McCain:

http://www.wilmingtonjournal.com/news/Article/Article.asp?NewsID=91300&sID=4

“I’d say, ‘John, remember 2000 in South Carolina?’” Sen. Biden told The Carolinian and Wilmington Journal newspapers exclusively Sunday night after a rally in the Queen City, when asked what he would say to McCain if he saw him personally. “Remember what Bush did to you? Remember how untoward it was? John, remember 2000 in South Carolina.”

“I wouldn’t ask him,” Biden replied when asked what he would say to McCain if given the chance.

“I’d remind him.”

tuhmeesuh said...

*daps* mr. field...this one almost made me scream "amen!"

Linda-Sama said...

I'm a left of center white woman and the Palinator sure as hell doesn't represent me (I volunteer for Obama.)

great blog, love your posts.

peace.