Good Example Of Essay On White Privilege And Colorism

White privilege is a notion that describes how White people are given the upper hand, when it comes to jobs, education, and social opportunities over those within the same society who are dark skinned. Colorism is a term that is used to describe how people with light skin are given preferential treatment to those within the same group who have darker skin tones within Western societies. Both are different forms of racism that occur within the same ethnic group, and outside of it.
White privilege is not something that is earned because of class, or education. It is something that is given because of one’s skin color. There are many examples of White privilege, one of them being in Chicago. White people are given preferential treatment when it comes to education by the government. African Americans who live in Chicago’s Southside are suffering because their schools are closing down for lack of funding. This means there are lower levels of education. This will affect their employment prospects in the future, and are more likely to turn to gangs as a source of income, and support. Thus, fueling the social problem of gang violence in the area.
Other forms of privilege exist within our society. For example, if there are two actresses in Hollywood, both as talented as one another, the more beautiful of the two is more likely to succeed because preferential treatment is given to those with narrow features, over those with wider noses, and plumper faces. Using the same notion of privilege, males are more likely to be promoted to higher paid, and leadership positions than their female counterparts. Women in the same role have to work harder to prove themselves than their male counterparts. It is the same with colorism. People of color have to work harder, to be a part of society just because of their skin color then their lighter counterparts of the same race. Even so, they will experience higher levels of discrimination than their lighter skin counterparts.
Privilege exists in every society where there is a majority ruling class. In a society of deaf people, resources, and facilities would be created around the majority. So a hearing enabled person in a deaf community, would find that it is harder to assimilate than a deaf individual would because society is geared towards the deaf individual. This is what happens in Western societies, when it comes to color, because society is geared towards the White ruling class.
Employment statistics in the U.S. show that in the workplace lighter skinned individuals have better education opportunities, are higher paid and enjoy a better quality of life than their darker skinned counterparts. The roots of colorism stem from the slave-trade era, and still exist within minority group today, because it has become a societal norm.
This means that the issue of colorism, and White privilege will still remain until society changes its norms and values to include people of all skin colors. In the same sense, the divide between males, and females in the workplace will only narrow when the glass ceiling is finally broken and the barriers that women face are removed.
Unfortunately, society has always preferred one type of person over the other. In some parts of Korea, women who look more “Western”, are given preferential treatment when it comes to education, marriage, and jobs. Because of this, many Korean parents give their daughters money to get plastic surgery upon their graduation. This is so they can look more Western, and advance within their society. Unless these favored features are dealt with, and societal norms and values change, there will always be some kind of privilege within society that excludes those who operate outside of those norms.