In the chapter “Are all whites
refined Archie Bunkers?” of Eduardo Bonilla-Silva’s book, Racism Without
Racists, Bonilla-Silva discusses the relationship between white women and race
relations. He found young, white women, especially those of working-class
backgrounds, tended to be the most progressive and liberal of those surveyed.
The women interviewed were more likely to support programs like Affirmative
Action and lack any qualms regarding interracial marriage. These women also
tended to be the few whites to acknowledge that discrimination exists in
today’s society and that simply being White is an advantage.
Bonilla-Silva’s findings do not
surprise me at all. Previous studies have uncovered the fact that women as a
whole tend to be more liberal in their political and social viewpoints. I
believe White women can recognize the discrimination of others because they
themselves experience discrimination too. While White women do not experience
discrimination on the basis of their skin color, they are discriminated against
based on their gender by the same White men perpetrating discrimination to
those of other races. Bonilla-Silva asserts the idea that White women share a
“sense of commonality” with men and women of color due to the discrimination
they experience in their own lives. Of course, White women only experience a
fraction of the discrimination aimed at those who are not White, Straight and
Male but their experiences help them to empathize with the struggles of being a
minority in a White Man’s world.
Bonilla-Silva asserts these
working-class White women are the most progressive of their race because of
their high level of interaction with minorities throughout their lives. Most
grew up in working-class families, and therefore were more likely to interact
with minorities throughout their residential, occupational and romantic lives.
They as a result would naturally be more educated on what it is like to be a
minority and the struggles of which they face. Bonilla-Silva discusses the
“White male bond” (Bonilla-Silva, p.145), which cements white men into rigid
schools of thought regarding masculinity and dominance and prevents them from
partaking in racial movements in large groups. These White males, even of lower
socioeconomic background, tend to avoid interaction and a true understanding of
anything other than what it is to be a White male.
just wanted to throw this in there too…
No comments:
Post a Comment