Does white privilege really exist?

I’m a legal naturalized citizen. An immigrant.
I know quite a few other immigrants, including from Africa.

All black Africans that I know of are in upper middle class - salaries above $70k, many bring home 6 digits.
Why is it that Africans can succeed and don’t whine about racism and discrimination, while American blacks keep claiming that racism keeps them down and claim that whites have some “white privilege”? If that were true, then one would think that African blacks immigrants would be in the same boat their American counterparts are in. Have you ever talked with African blacks about American blacks? I have, and I can tell you that they don’t like American black culture. In fact, they prefer the company of fellow Africans, whites, or other immigrants.
Why they never mention white privilege, while other blacks do? Maybe white privilege is a myth?

Another interesting thing - the most vocal “white privilege” claims tend to come from white liberals. Even though in recent looting it was mostly blacks stealing stuff, it was mostly white anarchists breaking doors and windows, which enabled looting.
In my opinion, most liberals who were protesting racism in recent years actually confused racism with something else. For example, many claim there is racism against Latinos. I have never witnessed such racism beyond harmless casual jokes (which I liked only when I was young and today I think they are dumb). But, what many Americans claim is racism, is actually realities of being an immigrant. I’m a European immigrant, and I’ve come across people who told me that my accent is borderline acceptable, and if it was a bit worse I probably would not work with them. Finding a job for non-native speakers will always be difficult. For non-native speakers it’s always more difficult to succeed in school. Ethnic groups tend to stick together, mostly because every immigrant knows that it’s pretty difficult to fit in with locals. As soon as you open your mouth, everyone knows you are a foreigner. You can’t hide it, just like you can’t hide your skin color. I’ve been told many nasty things because I’m an immigrant, but the most toxic comments tend to come from (believe it or not) white liberals. I remember a Mexican neighbor making derogatory remarks about “f@cking Poles” after my complaints about their barking dog, even though not from Poland, but am from Eastern Europe.
What Latinos experience is not unique to Latinos - it’s actually what ALL immigrants have to go through. It’s not racism, as immigrants come from Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, ME and everything in between. Difficulties of always being a foreigner is something that is experienced by all immigrants, not just immigrants of a specific region like Latin America’s.
What many call call racism against blacks is a combination of several things - fatherless families, lack of discipline, glorification of violent crime, belief that racism will always fail you despite the fact that people of same race that immigrated here tend to succeed. Lazy people tend to blame others for their failures.

Can anyone site any proof saying that white privilege exists and explain why it seems to not affect African immigrants? Can anyone site proof that discrimination against Latinos is discrimination against that targeted group and not just the difficulties of being a foreigner?

 

I live in a very white area now turning brown. So I do not come upon many blacks but do have a African black man that calls on my business and can confirm that he has very little good things to say about American blacks. He is doing a fantastic in his business, 3 kids all of them doctors fot someone immigrating to the US with no money and dreams could not have gone better. I think the biggest problem facing the American black community is the lack of fathers in young children's lives.

 

White privlege is a self fulfilling prophecy. Liberals can talk it into existence.

If you tell a kid that he's dumb, that his struggles is something he's born with, he'd grow up internalizing it and believing that doing better is something out of his control. Tell a whole population that their struggles is based on their skin color rather something they can individually control you'd create a group who becomes obssessed with skin color.

 

I grew up without a father myself.
The problem is young people’s mindset. I immigrated when I was 17 (I wanted it, I made this drastic, life altering decision that made me a permanent minority, a foreigner. It was my choice, and I made it when I was that young!) and my solid goal was to work hard and to “become rich”, at least by Ukrainian standards. I do not consider myself rich, but I do earn more than double of average American and live a pretty comfortable life. So, my point is - when I immigrated I did not believe someone owes me something. I saw that even people working fairly low-paying jobs could afford a car, an apartment, food and clothing. When I was growing up my mom was so poor, sometimes I lived on just potatoes and sour cream for weeks at a time. My motivation was that I do not want my kids to ever experience that, so I went to college and now I have a masters degree with a good and interesting job. I had no rich parents and still owe money for school.
White privilege is a BS myth. If someone can come to this country, be that someone from Africa, Europe or elsewhere, with next to nothing on them and grow to 6 digit salary in a time span of under 20 years then I just cannot see how white privilege can exist? Most immigrants I know who were here for a while and have advanced degree earn more than average native born American, be that white or black!

All immigrants that I know of, from every background, agrees with me.

 

Does white privilege really exist?

No, but democrats and other liberals have convinced their America black slaves that it does. When one finally realizes that the racial pot stirring is really nothing more than a power grab by the democrats and their allies the sooner we could come together.

 

I think white privilege exists in the minds of Democrats who feel that it creates a wedge issue for them that secures minority votes for them in elections. I think it is a simple and perverse as that. As a white person who has been actively discriminated against outside of this nation, I don't understand how anyone could ever find an example of that in this country that isn't either manufactured or contrived for an audience that even comes close to the kind of real racism that one endures as a white citizen of the united states outside of our borders.

What democrats hope is that folks won't ever challenge them to actually produce real examples, because most of them might actually be their minions using their wealth to game a system. That isn't a racial thing, it's a elitism thing. The rest of us can clearly see it, why do democrats believe that no one can? It's astounding how secure in their myopia they are.

 

I believe it does, however, I also agree that SOME people use it as an excuse.

I absolutely disagree with people that claim racism doesn't exist because a person cannot "prove" it. By plan, discrimination (of any type) is usually quiet and insidious.

 

Go looking for something to offend you and you will surely be offended.

 

People that face discrimination do NOT have to "look for it". It's pervasive.

 

I'm open to evidence of it existing, but I've yet to come across an example that's not otherwise explainable.

 

I am not a spokesperson for discrimination, but would be happy to have a civil discussion with you about it, if you'd like.

 

Well state your thesis.

 

I would be easier if you started with a or some questions you may have. ;-0

 

There are negative people everywhere. They will always find "pervasive" that which they do not like.

 

What would you define to be discrimination? If it’s discrimination in regards to work or education then it does not exist, as no employer out there would want to be accused of discrimination and face lawsuits.
If you define discrimination as prejudice that spills into everyday life, like insults, or someone’s personal behavior on their personal time - then that’s not discrimination, that is more of something like meeting a jackass and avoiding that person.

 

The Irish immigrants faced serious discrimination- and did many other nationalities. They were rejected because of nationality other than color, but discriminated against in the same ways. They overcame that by performing as well, and merging- rather than being determine to punish the nation for not giving them everything. Wasn't very quiet, it was quite open, as in help wanted ads saying "No Irish need apply".

While slavery was abominable, there is a point that I heard a black man make to another black man many years ago, asking him where he would be now if his ancestors had not been slaves.
That is an interesting question- would such a person be better or worse off today?

Most slaves came from Angola, captured by blacks to sell to the Portuguese slave traders. Less than 4% of all slaves taken from Africa came to North America. But, if you compare the life of a descendant of slaves in America today with the descendants of those who escaped capture, it is interesting. You have to ask, what kind of nation did the descendants of Angolans that escaped slavery build? What would life be like for that person living there? It would be different, to say the least.

Lifespan expectancy would be only 60 years.
Average family income the equivalent of $259 a month.
There is a lot of oil and diamonds in Angola, generally controlled by government, and the traders in these things make living in Luanda outrageously expensive for anyone else. So, it is unlikely the average descendants of slaves would live in the capitol city. So- what about the country in general?

• Type of housing: 80.2% homes, apartments 1.7%, 5.3 annexes, 12.5% of shacks, 0.2% non-defined.
  
  
• The quality of construction: Common are adobe, bamboo, wattle earth and dirt floor. At the national level, 88% of homes are considered inadequate and nearly 61% are self-built. The high cost of building materials, the low purchasing power of the population and limited access to housing credit may explain this situation.
  
  
• Capacity: The number of persons per housing unit and an approximate indicator of poverty. A unit is considered overcrowded when more than 3 people sleeping in one room. Thus, 42.5% of households experiencing a situation of overcrowding.
  
  
• Access to housing: population growth, housing costs and rents, inflation, monthly income, credit availability and the cost of housing construction are important factors influencing access to housing. Level of income, the national minimum wage is set at 9381 kwanzas (figure updated in May 2010) corresponding to 75.60 euros. The figures show significant regional disparities and a large number of provinces whose inhabitants have no minimum wage.
  
  
• Access and Water Treatment: In Angola, the main causes of death are diseases caused by the use of unsuitable water sources. In fact, less than half of the population (42%) using a source of water suitable for drinking. Each year, 19,700 cases of child deaths caused by diarrhea due to the use of non-potable water are identified.
  
  
• Sanitation: Sanitation of the environment includes wastewater treatment, public cleanliness, urban drainage and control of important indicators of health. Health facilities as well as the sewer system is inadequate.
  
  
• Energy sources: 36% of the population has access to electricity. 61% of the population uses wood and coal as an energy source for cooking, 33% gas.
  

58% of the adult population is illiterate. A substantial number of children have no access to education at all. Only 27% of those that start first grade will finish fourth grade.

It was the Portuguese that came to Angola and developed the slave exporting system, not Americans. Within Angola, mass forced labor arrangements replaced formal slavery by the end of the 19thcentury and continued to operate until 1961, when they were prohibited. They had a massive civil war there too, costing the lives of over 500,000. That war lasted 30 years. But today, the wars are over; a black American can visit what would have been his ancestral homeland, and see what his life might have been like today- if it hadn't been for slavery. Angola is accepting immigrants.

Now some will think this is praising slavery, and it most certainly it is not. It's saying that if slavery had never happened to anyone- a black person can see what their life might be like today.
Often the changes brought about by the worst events wind up bringing about some good; changes that might never have been known otherwise.

 

At this time all I see is black privilege.

 

No, it doesn't exist. The idea of white privilege was invented by the left to make excuses for the failure of the black community.

 

Given the economic evidence shows that it does exist, are you suggesting that blacks are somehow inferior? If so, you really should think about not typing anymore.

 

I asked for the white person price discount everywhere I go, I’ve yet to receive it.

 

Don't put words in my mouth or suggest what I should do in the future. The black community has problems within itself like family unity, crime, education, etc. Trying to tear others down to make excuses for themselves isn't going to make it any better for them.

 

See my post #5

 

Correlation does not prove causation.
Is there a study about African immigrants? It would be very interesting to compare their unemployment and income levels to American blacks.
I bet African blacks would blow American blacks right out of the water on these metrics. I have a sense that instead of sitting around and complaining about some privileges they work their butts off and succeed.

 

Why do you need to refer to problems within the "black community", given you refer to problems that impact on us all? Are you perhaps trying to dance away from your real nature?

The nature of orthodox discrimination theory is based on the acceptance of white privilege. The Chicago School involved call it nepotism. Are you suggesting that the likes of Gary Becker are left wing?

 

The approach is based on regression analysis and therefore isolating race effects. Go and read it. Isn't it appalling how ignorant right wingers are when it comes to the evidence into discrimination?