White Privilege and the Grass

In Peggy McIntosh's essay "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack", she tries to persuade the fact that white people are privileged because of their color. She lists over forty ways she is more privileged than any other race. Then she argues that all other races are oppressed because they don’t share her privileges.

There are several things wrong with her assumptions, however there is one main problem with it that I'd like to dwell on today. It’s the idea that someone is oppressed when someone else has it better.The first thing that is wrong with this notion is that someone else always seems to have it better! The hill is just greener on the other side. This makes the problem impossible for us to solve; especially for massive groups of people. Differences are inherent in our nature; this is what makes an individual an individual!

Second, what makes oppression wrong is not the fact that there are others that are not oppressed! Oppression is wrong all on its own. If only women are oppressed it’s wrong. If all women and all men are oppressed it is still wrong. Saying that oppression is wrong because others aren’t being oppressed, is to sell the argument short of any real weight. Oppression is a real issue; it’s not the result of a comparison!

I think this idea is the main problem with most feminists today. They believe that men are privileged, and thus women are oppressed. But the first half of the sentence undermines the message! If we want any real feminist progress, if we want to help the woman that are actually oppressed let’s talk about those women and let’s talk about how to help them!

Only when we stop looking into our neighbor's yard will we be able to focus on our own; and only then, will we be able to grow the bright green grass that we envy.