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What We Know About White People
Haiku
Not all white people
They cry time and time again
They have white privilege
Many white people hate hearing the phrase “all white people.” They seem to think that labeling all of them as anything is fundamentally wrong, and worse off — racist. However, when we unpack their invisible knapsack we see that their lived experiences are shaped by whiteness. Not every white person holds overtly racist beliefs. Nevertheless, all white people benefit from white privilege. The benefits they receive derive from their ancestors’ oppressive system.
Some white people think that they had to own slaves or have their forefathers own American slaves to have white privilege. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth. We can see their privilege in numerous ways. For example, Black and Indigenous babies have the highest infant mortality rate. A Black baby girl endures racism and has to beat the odds from the second she’s born. In contrast, white babies have a significantly higher chance of surviving infancy. In the United States, Black babies are three times more likely to die while under white doctors’ care. If an increased chance of survival isn’t a privilege, then I think that the word has lost all meaning.
