Anthropology 104 Reading Response 2 White Privilege Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack Name Jenna Schiffman Semester and Year Fall 2020 TA Name Shahana Discussion Section Number 307 Getting Started Welcome to your second Reading Response assignment for Anthropology 104 Please add your information to this template above and save it in Microsoft Word docx or doc format Make sure the filename includes your name and the name of the assignment RR2 Example RR2 Wendy Liu docx This assignment template contains the instructions and questions you need to complete for this assignment The reading itself White Privilege Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack by Peggy McIntosh is available on Canvas Background Despite consistent efforts over the last century by scholars to counter the inaccurate belief that races are biologically real race has remained a powerful framework through which many people see human diversity Imagined categories of race shape cultural institutions schools places of worship media political parties economic practices etc in the U S and elsewhere Anthropologists study the ways racism is embedded in the structures of society In other words they look at the norms patterns and policies that create and reproduce access to power resources and opportunities in ways that systematically disadvantage people of color Related to racism is a system that equally contributes to racial inequities That system is white privilege White privilege is not something that white people always do create or enjoy on purpose Rather white privilege is a preference for whiteness that saturates U S society In this exercise we ll consider some of the ways that white privilege works Peggy McIntosh a women s studies scholar wrote a now famous article in 1989 in which she considered her own white privilege To do so she created a list of some of the ways that she saw white privilege operating in her life For this assignment you will her article and reflect on it Reading Response 1 Peggy McIntosh s White Privilege Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack Instructions Expectations Before you begin this writing assignment read White Privilege Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack available as a PDF on Canvas Each answer should be written using full sentences and should be 100 200 words DUE DATE Read the instructions about Grading and Submission for this assignment on Canvas This assignment needs to be completed by July 17 by 11 59PM 1 Anthropology 104 Reading Response 2 Task 1 Begin by choosing six points on McIntosh s list If you struggle to understand how a particular point is a form of privilege reformulate it as its opposite How would that be experienced as a form of oppression Write the number and a brief summary of each point in the table below Reflect and respond to each point by answering these questions Each answer should be 100 200 words Prior to reading this article were you aware that this point exemplified a form of white privilege o If yes explain when and why you became aware of it o If no explain why you may have been unaware of this form of privilege before now Does this privilege benefit you or others Explain your answer To the best of your knowledge what are the structural forces that have produced this form of privilege Be as specific as you can Example Point Chosen 4 going shopping alone Example Response This one surprised me because it seems 1st Point Chosen 3 I can be pretty sure that my neighbors in such a location will be neutral or pleasant to me I grew up in a neighborhood and always had friendly neighbors When I think of neighbors I do not really think of them not being friendly because that s how I grew up All my neighbors have been white I like to think if there was someone with another color of skin I would still look at them the same because they would still be my neighbor I feel as though I was kind of aware this was an example of white privilege It is just a stereotypical thing that white neighborhoods are high class and more friendly It benefits me in they way that I have grown up with nice neighbors Stereotypes have definitely formed this type of privilege 2nd Point Chosen 9 I can go into a music shop and count on finding the music of my race represented into a supermarket and find the staple foods that fit with my cultural traditions into a hairdresser s shop and find someone who can cut my hair I did not really see this as a form of privilege because to me music is just music no matter who is singing it If I hear a song I like I just listen to that song often without even knowing who the artist is I do listen to music preformed by both black people and white people I can kind of see where it would be considered privilege because I do see a lot more white singers than any other race I do not really see it has a benefit or not because I listen to all kinds of music sung by all kinds of people I feel like the stereotype of whites having more money has caused this privilege 3rd Point Chosen 19 If a traffic cop pulls me over or if the IRS audits my tax return I can be sure I haven t been signaled out because of my race With everything that has gone on with race and the police force I have kind of seen this as an example of white privilege Even though I believe nine times out of ten police officers are good people trying to protect us there are always going to be people who believe they are better than others This form of privilege benefits me because being white I probably have a less likely chance of getting pulled over unless I am doing something wrong The stereotype that black people are more violent which is completely false I believe is the reason for this privilege 4th Point Chosen 21 I can go home from most meetings of organizations I belong to feeling somewhat tied in rather than isolated out of place outnumbered unheard held at a distance or feared I kind of thought this as privilege but I feel as though I haven t really paid much attention to it The clubs I am involved in have many different races but the most dominant race there is white I feel like this privilege benefits me in the way that I always feel in place because my race makes up most of the people there However I would like to be involved with more people outside of my race because I want to know more people and not care about what they look like I think this privilege comes from there being more white people and people having friends in their same race instead of 2 Anthropology 104 Reading Response 2 branching out more 5th