A Particularly Cheap White Whine

For this post, I chose to read "A Particularly Cheap White Whine: Racism, Scholarships, and The Manufacturing of White Victimhood" by Tim Wise. Which I think is a very clever and funny name. The reading basically debunks the statement by the President of The College of Republicans at Boston University, who stated that "race-based scholarships for people of color are the worst form of bigotry confronting America today." 

What the students who agree with this statement don't understand is that "The reason is simple: namely, ongoing economic disparities between whites and folks of color, have left the latter in for worse shape, in terms of the ability to pay for college, than the former." Wise then fires off a series of statistics that prove why students of color have a harder time paying for college than white students, and also states that there is not enough race-based scholarships to help those who have been affected by the institutionalized racism that is embedded in our society. 

I agree whole-heartedly with Tim Wise. What I think needs to happen to stop these ignorant statements from coming out of anybody else's mouth is we need to educate privileged people on what it is like to be underprivileged. Since, statistically, in today's world, privileged people are the ones who have the most power, will also have the most power to change things. In dominantly white and middle class public schools, like the one I attended, we learned nothing about institutionalized racism or prejudice and how it affects people of color, and benefits the privileged. 

This isn't to say that their ignorant comments are not their fault. It is up to you as a decent human being to recognize other human beings regardless of race, gender, class, or sexual preference as equal to you. If these ignorant racists had any experience being marginalized, they would keep their mouths shut. Their ignorance disproves their point in itself. 

Here is a link to a creative and hilarious buzzfeed post: http://www.buzzfeed.com/hnigatu/the-conditions-upon-which-one-may-claim-reverse-racism

Here is a very clever comic on the idea of "reverse racism":