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White Privilege and the 2012 Presidential Election

10/14/2012

 
A privilege is a special entitlement or right granted to certain people or groups, but not to others. The notion of privilege in regards to race was made famous in Peggy McIntosh's now classic "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack," where she identified list of everyday privileges she experienced from being white. This focus on privilege represents a way of understanding race by focusing not only on the disadvantages of racial minorities but also on the advantages systematically conferred upon whites. While a white person may not have done anything to get the privilege, and may not have asked for it, they still benefit from the (often invisible) privilege in everyday life.

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In addition to the privileges conferred on whites in the labor market, in shopping and financial transactions, in the housing market, and many other social situations, whites also receive privileges in politics. In borrowing from McIntosh, I have
developed a list of privileges given to Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential race. Feel free to comment and add more.

1.  Mitt Romney is able to talk to and over a moderator of his own race about his plan for the economy during the 2012 Presidential Debate. His reaction will not be interpreted as being from "the angry white guy." He is also able to appeal to both a live and broadcast audience largely of his own race.

2.  Mitt Romney’s citizenship and birth certificate have not yet been scrutinized in the media. He does not have to spend time and resources on his campaign to convince voters he is American.

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Donald Trump insisted Obama was not born in the US.
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Anti-Obama sentiment swelled at false allegations of being born in Kenya.

3.  Mitt Romney is not regularly portrayed in political cartoons as a monkey or native to another country.  

4.  Mitt Romney’s family does not have to constantly worry about how "white" or "normal" they appear to the public.

5.  When Mitt Romney seeks to appeal to low-income voters, he does not have to fear being associated with negative stereotypes of welfare. A recent study found that, compared to the broader population, people with "racial resentments" were much more responsive to negative ads linking Obama to welfare.

6.  Mitt Romney does not have to worry about whether or not the public disproves of his dog because of racial resentment. Researchers examined what would happen when they "showed respondents a picture of a Portuguese Water Dog and told half it was Ted Kennedy’s dog and the other half it was Obama’s dog." They found that "when respondents with higher levels of racial resentment heard it was Obama’s dog, they were more likely to disapprove of it.”

7.  Mitt Romney does not have to speak eloquently or intelligently at all times to be taken seriously.

8.  Mitt Romney does not have to constantly worry that every political move he makes will be attributed to his race.

9.  Mitt Romney is not setting the precedent for the image of his entire race in a position of political power while simultaneously taking the heat for and trying to fix the mistakes of his successive white oppressors.

10.   Mitt Romney can afford to speak about or avoid the topic of race if it is brought up in a debate without drawing attention to himself.
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Disapproval of Obama's dog increased among respondents with "racial resentment."
Elizabeth Dickson

Elizabeth Dickson is a student at Ohio Wesleyan University, where she is double-majoring in Psychology and Sociology.

Jim Kasprzak
10/14/2012 02:55:39 am

Some of these points are good, others seem a bit far-fetched.

2. Obama's citizenship is questioned because his father was not born in the U.S. - a white person in the same circumstances would receive equal scrutiny.

3. Have you forgotten the cartoons that portrayed George W. Bush as a monkey?

5. "seeks to appeal to low-income voters"? You must be thinking of some other person named Mitt Romney, not the one who is running for President.

6. Are you serious? Anyone who lets their opinion of a politician's dog influence their vote is completely off their rocker.

7. Acutally, any candidate for high political office should be held to this standard.

9. This is not simply because Barack Obama is a black President, it's because he is the *first* black president. This is a unique historical circumstance, not a racial one.

Jane Doe
10/16/2012 04:32:20 am

Dear Jim,

"it's because he is the *first* black president. This is a unique historical circumstance, not a racial one."

-- just so your aware when you state that he is the
"*first* BLACK president"
as evidence that it is a
"unique historical circumstance"
that makes this a prevalent issue for him
and not his being a man of color doesn't make any sense.
Because as you put it so eloquently its his status of "*first* (again)BLACK president" that makes it relevant.

Kate
10/16/2012 07:31:43 am

Jim: Romney's father was also not born in the U.S. and since he is white, he has not received any scrutiny.

persephone
10/16/2012 07:46:25 am

THANK YOU, KATE.

Might I also remind people of McCain being born on Panamanian soil...

Elizabeth Dickson
10/16/2012 08:06:47 am

Re: Jim's Response to # 3.

I have not forgotten the cartoons of George Bush portrayed as a monkey. They actually provide additional evidence to clarify my point. Those cartoons exaggerated George Bush's features as monkey or ape-like to portray him as stupid because of the way that he talks, not because he is white. His skin color is not a factor in this because of his white privilege. Barack Obama does not have the same speech impediment, errors in syntax, or heavy Southern accent that George Bush had. He is able to eloquently and charismatically articulate himself; however, he is bi-racial. The cartoons depicting Obama as tribal or ape-like are racist because they are portraying him as possessing stupidity because he is part African-American, as if Africa-Americans have an essential biological characteristic of being racially inferior, un-intelligent, ape-like, and tribal. Depicting a bi-racial man in native African clothing and also portraying him as ape-like and stupid is framing native Africans as less than human, and people with ancestry descending from this culture as inferior. This is able to be done because of white privilege. White privilege ensures that Mitt Romney will not be able to be attacked like Obama has been during the campaign for being stupid or inferior because of his race because Mitt Romney's race has not historically been ascribed sub-human characteristics like Obama's has. One could try to say George Bush and/or Mitt Romney are stupid or inferior because they are white, which would be an example of racial prejudice. But this could not carry the same power or threat to either man's value as a human being or in this society because being 'white' has not been historically racialized as a subcategory. Whiteness is the main hegemonic force, or the normative ideal, in which every other racial category is compared to as subpar. This legitimizes the allocation of and access to resources to only those 'deserving' of it because they belong to this dominant group. This legitimization is at the cost of those with different physical appearances who are categorized as an 'Other' . These racist depictions of Obama would not matter so much as to whether or not the election is giving both candidates a fair and equal chance to represent themselves to the people *if* Mitt Romney was not able to avoid the same racist depictions just because of white privilege. However, Mitt Romney is able to project himself, his political ideals and his plans for how he would resolve problems as President without a systemic and individual level racialization process transforming them into foreign, stupid, or inferior. This is white privilege at play.

Suzingale
10/16/2012 08:11:35 am

In that case, he would be referred to as "an American born abroad." Americans born abroad have US birth certificates.

Valerie
10/30/2014 12:32:11 pm

Most if not all prior Presidents birth certificates were made available prior or during the campaign. This also included college transcripts and marriage certificates if requested. Obama has not and will not release the long form of his birth certificate nor his college transcripts. In making this decision, he has thrust himself into a position of question and doubt.


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