As a naturally born citizen of the United States of America,
I have rights identified in the Constitution and its amendments.
As a Caucasian, I also have many privileges. These privileges
have come through societal, racial, economic, and other institutionalized
increases in the probability of having grown up in a community with low levels
of violence and poverty, access to a better quality of education and healthcare,
and opportunities that have helped me to obtain goals that are all but
impossible for others without these privileges.
As a Heterosexual male, I am less likely to have been
exposed to discrimination, sexually assaulted or harassed, or discouraged from speaking
up for myself.
As a human, I have seen many who have not been so lucky as
to be born at a time and place that offered me benefits just for showing up. On the other hand, I have not always been able
to see how my life has benefitted from privilege and I have not always received
all the possible benefit that may have been accessible for others like me. The
fact of the matter remains that some people are more likely to succeed than
others due to reasons that are not equally distributed and out of an individual’s
control. This does not mean that other Caucasian heterosexual male US citizens
don’t face hardships, nor does it mean that individuals from marginalized groups
don’t succeed. But, it is easier for others like me to be successful in obtaining
our goals than for those who are less like me, due simply to the fact of privilege.
I have never been in a store where I was followed by
security staff because they thought I was suspicious. However, I have seen this
happen to close friends although we were dressed similarly and of the same age
and gender. I have never had a good idea dismissed in a meeting or group
discussion (although there are plenty of bad ideas that did not make much
impact), but I have seen it happen to wonderful people I have known just
because they were a female. To say things like this don’t happen is not just naïve,
it is a denial of the truth.
Sociological and psychological theories and research have
identified reasons why we treat people who don’t look like us or sounds like us
as different. The main gist of this issue has to do with fear and safety. When we
don’t understand something or are unsure about another’s behaviors, beliefs, or
intentions we become scarred and reactionary. This is a hardwired initial
response. The secondary response then reanalyzes the situation and can calm us
down so that we can respond to
the information. This process gets complicated and maladaptive when we begin to
associate arbitrary differences and stereotypical ideas with danger signs that
trigger our reactions. We are
humans! Why do we think the color of our skins give us accurate information
that some one is dangerous or safe? Seriously, serial killers are most often
single white men!!! Do large groups of people flinch when a white man walks by?
Most descriptions of serial killers taken from their neighbors are that they
were nice quiet guys. I do not see how I
would be described differently by most passers-by under most circumstances.
However, change my skin tone and people begin to worry about me as I walk by.
I personally think that ALL PEOPLE matter and that we should be treated as equals, but
I understand that this is not the reality of the current world we live in. If
you say you believe that all people matter than ask yourself, honestly, how
your life would be if you were someone that looked different. If I was a Black lesbian
female, I know my life would be different than it is now, and it would not have
been due to only those things in my control or things I did differently
regarding the choices I was presented during my life. It was not until I was
dating a person of another cultural and racial heritage that I was even able to
see the privileges that flooded into my life just because of genetic phenotypes.
I am certainly glad it has worked in my favor, but why do others not get the
same chance. How can I help the process become more “fair?” This is a dangerous question. The answer
would require that I lose some of that privilege and “why would I want that to
happen?”
The answer to the last question is rooted in another area of
my life that currently offers me additional societal privilege. I am a follower
of Jesus Christ and believe that the Bible is the infallible word of God. I
have come to dislike the term Christian over the past few years. On this topic, I could probably write for a
long time, but in summary, I am tired of people using Christianity to HATE
others. This goes against the true tenets of what God has called us to do as
believers; it cracks the foundations of Christianity. In the United States and the Christian community
at large, many people are excused from consequence because they say, “I am a
Christian.” As a community of believers, we have been far to silent when people
who claim to be “Christian” do very un-Christ-like things. This silence has
caused Christians in America to “lose their saltiness,” pardon the jargon. I have read every word in the Bible more than
once over my life and most many times over. I have yet to see where God calls me
degrade or discriminate against non-Christians. In all tense and purposes, the
Bible tells to love my neighbor as myself and share the good news that Jesus died
as a sacrifice to atone for all our disobedience (sin) to God. By accepting
this gift (grace) and placing Jesus and the Lord, master, and ruler of my
choices and life I can be reconnected with God on a spiritual level so that my
soul can have eternal peace in the presence of God.
As a Christian, God has called me to act, behave, and work
in such a way that nonbelievers can see Him through me and give glory to God.
In the New Testament, Jesus became mad when people who claimed to be godly and
religious were only faking it, to put it simply. God clearly states that we are not to judge
the world, that is his job. Nor should we judge the salvation of others, for only
he knows the true heart of each person. We are, however, called to judge the
actions of people who claim they are Christians. Additionally, when our
situation (world, country, state, county, city, neighborhood, family, or self)
is in a bad place or suffering, God does not call the non-believes to be
accountable like some have verbalized in the past (i.e., “gays are the cause for
9/11.”). God states in 2 Chronicles 7:14, “if my people, who are called by my name, shall humble
themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then
will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
So, how does this answer the previous question, “why would I
want that to happen?”, it is because that is what Jesus modeled for us. He was
kind to sinners and did not to beat them down verbally or tell them they were
evil or worthless. Instead Jesus shared how He, God, loved and cared for them
and wanted so much more for them. The Bible also shares that when we help each other,
especially those different from ourselves, that we are most like Christ and are
connecting with him, forming or building our relationship with God in do this.
I am
happy to call myself an American because I am allowed the choice to speak up,
protect myself, and practice my beliefs without the government telling me how
to do it. I might not agree with the beliefs of others, but I do not have the legal
right nor the God-given order to force people to believe my beliefs. God gave
us choice also called free will. It is not my role as a Christian to take that
away from others. The USA was founded because our forefathers were sick of
being ordered around by the monarch. It is not surprising that American’s still
dislike being told what to do. This does
not excuse us from being nice and supportive to each other. We the people need of
the United States of American need to stop hating each other just because we
disagree with each other. The only way we can improve this great country is to
figure out how the things we have in common can be used to support each other
better. If we think of the USA as a person, we can only grow and stay healthy
if we take care of all our parts. If we continue to hit ourselves and try
cutting off limbs we are only going to end up destroying ourselves. I am pretty
sure that a person of some importance in history said that a “house divided against
itself cannot stand.” THE USA IS NOT
AN EXCEPTION TO THIS RULE.
