What is Privilege? What is My Privilege?
Privilege is often invisible to the people that are benefiting from it and can be a part of your everyday life. Privilege is an unearned benefit that people receive based on the components of their life. When thinking about privilege I often think only towards a racial factor of life, however as I look deeper in, I realize that privilege can come from many factors, such as race, class, education, religion, gender, sexual orientation, etc. Privilege can affect every single person in life through at least one dimension of their life rather it is in a positive or negative way.
When I think about the question “Who am I?”, the answer that comes to mind is Struggles, however I am so much more. First and for most I am a female in a man’s world. The difference between my life and a man is that I am less privileged through professional opportunities, social perception, violence, and harassment, as well as media representation. According to the U.S Department of Labor, Erin George (2024) “Overall, women are paid less than men. On average, women working full-time, year-round are paid 84% of what men are paid.” Woman working full-time would need work an additional 3 months to make the same amount that a full-time male can make in one year. I would also be less likely to be considered as the leader in my workplace compared to a male. I am expected to have the “correct appearance” as well as the “correct behavior” in society to not receive social judgment, while men are given the freedom and excuse that men are just being men. Through some people’s eyes my role in this world was given to me before I could even say the word role and was told that I shouldn’t of wore this or done that to not receive the harassment that I did not ask for. As a woman the privilege that I receive is the constant worry that our freedom could be taken away at any time even if we fight for it, just like the loss of choice we recently loss.
Although I am a female, I am also a gay female in Oklahoma which provides me a bigger opportunity for discrimination, lack of acceptance, and social and/or professional prejudice. Due to my sexual orientation I had to “come out” while slander and judgement followed my path. However, my personal privilege would be my appearance. I am considered what they would call a “lipstick lesbian”, if I was out in the world a blind eye would never guess that I would fall into this category. My privilege is that I don’t get looks walking in the public bathrooms, I don’t get picked on from unknown observers, and I am able to slide by through life while others must deal with many more struggles. Thankfully we have gained the same privilege of our legal right to marry someone of the same sex. However, the LGBT community is still looked at as invisible beings that are less than a heterosexual person.
I also identify my privilege through my education and class throughout life. Growing up I would have been considered middle class. I was able to have the privilege to go on family trips, have food in my house, new clothes, and a roof over my head on the west side of town. I have been able to have my education without a second thought, and I was also able to graduate from college with two degrees.
As I continue to think of my privilege, I honestly didn’t think that I had privilege through my race, because I thought privilege was money, opportunities, knowing the right people, like an easy life with no worries. However, I know racial privilege is so much more then that. I walked through life unknowingly experiencing a side of privilege due to my race. My white privilege gives me the sense of security when getting pulled over by a cop. My white privilege allows me to walk into a store and not be watched from the time I entered because of falling into some stereotype. My white privilege gives me a free pass to be looked over or looked at in different situations, as well as the chance to see people like me everywhere I look.
When I think of the question “Who am I” I know the answer more in detail now. Yes, I am Struggles, but I am also a white, gay female, with a wide knowledge base and a safe environment to raise my child and take care of my family. My privilege and the knowledge of privilege that I lack and/or struggle with will help me within my professional career by allowing me the opportunity to advocate for those in need as well as create a safe and judgement free environment when in my office/classroom.
Privilege is a wild thing that we have or don’t have. To those that have it never second guess it, but to those that don’t are reminded every day. It was hard for me to view my privilege in life through the upbringing and my struggles, but I have learned that privilege doesn’t mean a person’s life hasn’t been hard; it means that their factor (i.e., race, religion, gender, etc.) isn’t one of the things making it harder.