Progressive Privilege Harmful as White and Male Privilege

In 1988, women’s studies professor, Peggy MacIntosh wrote an article detailing ways that she, as a white person, was privileged compared to her African American peers.  From the content of textbooks, news and entertainment programming, to how her actions and statements would be perceived from authority figures, to the color of band-aids, she showed how being white afforded unearned benefits, and not being white meant unearned burdens.

Since then, our society has become more conscious of how our culture creates expectations for what is normal and good, and has historically favored whites, males, heterosexuals, and Christians, marginalizing Hispanics, African-Americans, women, the LGBT community, and members of other religions. Today, entertainment, news stories, commercials, and academic materials contain much greater diversity in terms of race, sexuality, and religion. This is progress in terms of inclusivity and fairness.