Column: From Ferguson to Mount Pleasant: Why it Matters
ABC just aired a new show a couple of weeks ago. It’s called How to get Away with Murder, starring Viola Davis and one of the kids from the Harry Potter series and it’s great. I’ve been completely captivated with it since its very beginning, stunned at how much time and effort that Viola Davis’ character put into making incredibly true crimes look false.
I guess the Ferguson Police Department and I probably have the same taste in television shows because after more than 100 days, Officer Darren Wilson will not be indicted for the murder of Mike Brown, as determined by a grand jury of nine whites and three blacks.
I only mention numbers because, ironically, nine is the number of votes on the grand jury needed to reach a verdict. Funny how not a lot of people mentioned that fact when presenting the decision on social media sites or talking to their friends about it. It’s almost as if it’s a race issue. Imagine that.
People are always so quick to cry that it’s “not a matter of race” or that individuals are playing the “race card”.
And by people, I mean white people. I mean white people specifically.
I’m saying this because according to the 2010 census, Mount Pleasant is 87.6 percent White, 3.9 percent African American, 2 percent Native American, 3 percent Asian, 3.3 percent Hispanic or Latino, and 0.6 percent from other races. White people make up more than two-thirds of the population here in our little world.
It’s time for us to acknowledge that, and break out the dirty P word that most white folks fear: privilege.
It’s time for us to acknowledge the privileges and the perks that come with be a majority and being white. More importantly, it’s time to do something about it.
“Oh, but Jordyn,” you say, “I don’t have White Privilege! I have to pay student loan debts and work two jobs and live in a tiny apartment that I can barely afford. I just happen to be white on top of it all.”
Tough, kid.
Privilege doesn’t care if you’re able-bodied or poor or having a really bad day. Racial privilege is what follows you throughout your life, from the womb to the tomb, and benefits you in ways that you can’t even being to possibly imagine if you’re white.
Being white means that you don’t have to worry about stop-and-frisk policies as much as black folk, who make up 52% of New York’s “random searches,” while white people only make up 12%. Being white means that you are six times less likely than black individuals to end up in prison. Being white means that you aren’t subjected to the idea of being a “welfare queen” or “greedy” if you use food stamps or governmental financial aid, despite white people making up 43% of food stamp user base according to a 2013 SNAP update.
White privilege exists. Systematic oppression of people of color is real. So why are we so afraid to address this situation and, for once, say that something is about race?
Privilege isn’t a dirty word. No one is saying that your life is automatically perfect if you benefit from white privilege or male privilege or straight privilege. You can be in a bad situation and still have privilege. You can be disabled and still have privilege in another area. You can have the worst social standing and no friends, no money, or job and still benefit from privilege.
It’s when you deny that you have privilege and try to loft the blame onto the minority is when there becomes a problem.
So what’s the point? How does this relate back to Ferguson, and more importantly, why should we Michigan college students care?
Because change starts with us.
We, the American people, aren’t going to stand a chance of combating racism and hate crimes without starting small. It’s cities like ours, like Big Rapids or Kalamazoo, where the change can start. If we take responsibility for our actions, for our privileges, and sit back and listen to minority groups affected by hate crimes and racism, we can learn how to be better people. We’re already making steps in the right direction, as evident by CMU Athletics’ unwillingness to allow Western fans into last Saturday’s football game if they were wearing the racist t-shirts they designed.
It won’t take much more effort to open our minds and attempt to become better and more inclusive individuals. It won’t take that much effort to stop stereotyping individuals of color. It’s not going to be that hard to admit when you’ve offended someone by telling racist jokes.
It’s small steps that are going to make a change.
We’re going to be the generation that’s going to run this country someday. Let’s leave it in a better state than we found it in.
