Whiteness Studies Find: Whiteness Shapes the Lives of White People

Whiteness studies demonstrate how the role of Whiteness and race plays a crucial role in the lives of White people. It shapes their experiences, class, status, attitudes, behaviours, and political agendas. Whiteness influences social movements such as feminism, shaping modern feminists’ goals, aims, and desires, prioritising White women. Furthermore, Whiteness plays a crucial role in White people’s lives as it grants them with White privilege, which can be utilised to provide White people with social and economic advantages. Lastly, this paper will speak on how Whiteness provides White people with power, which can be used to influence governance, policy, and politics. Through this, Whiteness fundamentally shapes the lives of White people. It impacts them on a social, economic, political and personal level, as it is ingrained within society, political institutions, and embedded in one’s identity. It is crucial to acknowledge Whiteness’ influence over White people’s lives, and how this impacts the lives of people of colour (POC). By drawing attention to the “invisibility of [W]hiteness” (Apple 2004: 80), humanity can effectively tackle the idea of critical race theory (CRT) and work towards mending the disparities that institutionalised Whiteness brings.

Before this paper continues, it must be known what Whiteness is, the scope in which Whiteness studies encapsulates, and what is meant by critical race theory (CRT). In this paper, Whiteness relates to the race of White people. However, it also extends beyond this, and “resembles [a] local phenomena complexly embedded in socioeconomic, sociocultural, and psychic interrelations. Whiteness emerges as a process, not a “thing” (Frankenberg 1997: 1). Whiteness studies explore the role Whiteness plays in the lives of White people, the lives of POC, society, political institutions, and in personal identity. Moreover, CRT examines how race intersects with culture, society, government and legal institutions. CRT “questions the very foundations of the liberal order, including equality theory, legal reasoning, Enlightenment rationalism, and neutral principles of constitutional law.”  (Delgado 2017: 3) Understanding CRT is crucial when evaluating the role of Whiteness and its impacts, as this fosters a greater understanding of Whiteness’ influence; reducing White fragility. This can promote greater inclusivity and positive discussion about Whiteness, race, and racial disparities.

Whiteness studies show that Whiteness provides White people with social hierarchical dominance, power, and therefore, White privilege. To define, White privilege describes the economic, social, and political advantages White people inherently have, due to their race. It provides White people “with access to power and resources.” (Kendall 2002: 1) White people experience White privilege on both a social and political level, where White people are advantaged within the social hierarchy (McIntosh 2020) and favoured within political institutions. 

Centralised Whiteness influences social movements such as the feminist movement. Indeed, Whiteness shapes the feminist movement, for feminism has historically, and currently, is White centred and stands to benefit White women. The wants of Indigenous feminists do not align with the wants of White feminists, and thus, they are not considered within the modern feminist movement. Moreton-Robinson explains that “Indigenous women are socially separate from White feminist.” (Moreton-Robinson 2021: 158) There are great discrepancies in health, education, socioeconomic status and power between Indigenous women and White women; creating different feminist agendas for both parties. For instance, while White women fight for the right to say, ‘yes’ to abortions and sexual freedom, the history of sexual oppression against Indigenous women has positioned them as sexually deviant, where they want the right to say ‘no’. (Moreton-Robinson 2021: 169) White and Indigenous feminists further differ, for “[W]hite women have not understood Indigenous society and values” (Moreton-Robinson 2021: 173), and therefore cannot adequately represent Indigenous women within the feminist movement. Henceforth, the wants and goals of Indigenous feminists, who strive “to improve the conditions of impoverished women in Australia … differs from the position of White feminists, who aspire to … have the same opportunities and rights as White men.” (Moreton-Robinson 2021: 159) Feminism does not stand for the injustices inflicted upon Indigenous people, it does not stand to improve the health and education outcomes of Indigenous women, it only stands to benefit “[W]hite middle-class feminists … within the epistemological framework of the dominant White culture.” (Moreton-Robinson 2021: 164) 

Modern feminism fails to consider the concept of intersectionality, and centres Whiteness as a result. However, intersectionality is crucial, as “it [is] difficult to separate race from class [and] from sex oppression because in our lives they are most often experienced simultaneously.” (Combahee River Collective 1977: 4) Failing to consider intersectionality means that such movements will continue to prioritise the interests and wants of White bodies. Overall, the feminist movement only operates to benefit White women. This is because feminism fails to consider intersectionality, as the wants and interests of women of colour differ to that of White women. Feminism does not stand to support all women as it is White dominated and centred.  

Moreover, White privilege enhances the lives of White people by providing them with social advantages. Certainly, Whiteness provides White people with privilege that enhances their status and ranking within the social hierarchy. White privilege advantages people within every sector in our society. This includes education, where black students are less likely to receive attention when needed, more likely to be seen as “less worthy” (Apple 2004: 78) and they are assumed to have “lesser ability” (Apple 2004: 79). Apple finds that “teachers and schools [are] being organi[s]ed in ways that privilege the already privileged in terms of class and race.” (Apple 2004: 78) Hence, within education, students who are a POC are treated differently to their White peers, as they lack Whiteness and White privilege. 

In addition, there are other social advantages Whiteness brings to White people which significantly influences their lives. Whiteness and the notion of White supremacy has historically resulted in racial disparities; creating the advantages White people reap today. As explained by Bhopal, White privilege is used to separate people who are allowed to belong (White people) from those who are not allowed to belong (POC), “racism is used as a vehicle to promote this.” (Bhopal 2018: 13) It is through this White privilege where White bodies are romanticised, idealised, and protected within society. Bhopal further reports how black individuals within the UK and the USA are more likely to be excluded from school, be unemployed, live in poverty, be physically restrained in police custody, and they are more likely to be sentenced and prosecuted. (Bhopal 2018: 9)

White people’s lives are therefore enhanced through their Whiteness, as it provides them with greater attention, care, and ‘worthiness’. This is because Whiteness is centralised within society. As discussed by Apple, “all our institutions centre… the politics of [W]hiteness” (Apple 2004: 81). It is at the centre of “our economic, political, legal, health, [and] educational” (Ibid) institutions, and hence, operates to benefit White people. The centralising of Whiteness within social institutions grants White people greater status and social advantages. It provides greater access to education, greater opportunities, less discrimination, less prosecution, etc. It is this degree of White supremacy and “[W]hite privilege [which] operates to … sustain institutional and cultural racism” (Jesus and Lykes 2004: 331); encouraging “racial subordination.” (Frankberg 1997: 2) This benefits White bodies whilst simultaneously disadvantaging minorities.

Furthermore, White privilege is utilised within the political arena, as it works to assist White political figures in attaining support and attention. For instance, Donald J Trump “used his White privilege and background as a force to mobilise his supporters and the demographic that he … represents.” (Bhopal 2018: 16) Bhopal explains this further and says that “Trump used his White privilege to … empathise with, white, working class, disenfranchised voters” (Ibid) who feared immigration. Through this, Trump used his status, privilege, power, and ultimately Whiteness, to earn the support of White republican voters. Similarly, Australian politician Pauline Hanson, also utilised her White privilege to draw attention to the ‘One Nation’ party. “Her political views were presented and represented at every … opportunity”. “The rise of the One Nation Party received more attention than the rise of the Democrats and the Greens ever received.” (Hage 1999: 22) This is because Hanson embodied the wants, desires, and political agendas of White Australians, who desire patriotism, nationalism, White dominance, power, and supremacy. Thus, Hanson’s White privilege provided her with greater media attention, as “[t]he White media is seduced by an infantile projection of itself.” (Ibid) Hage labels this support for Hanson as the “Hansonisatoin of White culture” (Hage 1999: 23), which includes of “dominant White multiculturalism and White national exclusionism” (Ibid). Hence, White privilege influences the lives of White political figures, as it can increase their favouritism amongst White voters and provide them with greater support and media attention. 

Providing White political figures with power ensures that politics continues to operate with White people in mind. During his time as president, Trump worked towards benefiting White people by appealing to their political agendas. This included sustaining Whiteness within the United States by minimising immigration through the Mexico-United States barrier; reducing “the threat of outsiders” (Bhopal 2018: 16). This eased White people’s distress, fear of losing their power, and lessened the ‘threat’ of changing the “racial make-up of the country.” (Stefaniak 2022: 1) White people do not want to lose their power, and thus, political institutions, which are White centred, will continue to “privilege the elite” (Jesus and Lykes 2004: 340) by marginalising POC. This sustains White privilege, power, and supremacy, inevitably enhancing the lives of White people. This is further supported through Hanson’s call for less immigration; a call to sustain White dominance within Australia. As discussed previously, Hanson represents the wants of White Australians who want to maintain a White Australia. They endorse Hanson and vote for her political party as they have “a self-interest… [in the] politics of domination” (Ibid), they too want to sustain White dominance through exclusion, racism, and minimal to no immigration. Overall, White politicians will position themselves “in the role of masters of the earth’s population [and only consider] what would be just right for them.” (Hage 1999: 20) White political figures subsequently implement and advocate for exclusionist initiatives to sustain Whiteness in politics, out of fear of a loss in power, privilege, and supremacy.  

This fear of being overthrown and losing the advantages in which Whiteness brings, creates White fragility within White people. White fragility works to warp White people’s attitudes, sustaining the notion of White supremacy. White fragility arises when White people grow comfortable within their White dominated environments, and in turn, grow intolerant of racial stresses. White expectations and normalities lower the ability to tolerate racial stress and provokes White people to display emotions of “anger, fear, and guilt” (DiAngelo 2011: 54). This inertia to discussions on race and multiculturalism, fosters a culture where White people are “centred as the human norm” (Apple 2004: 81), and POC are merely an ‘other’ (Dyer 1997: 1). This keeps White people ignorant and opposed to a change in views,

encouraging behaviours which “reinstate White racial equilibrium.” (DiAngelo 2011: 54)

Trump and Hanson’s actions against immigration provides a clear and prime example of White fragility. Consequently, White fragility encourages negative attitudes and racist actions within white people, urging them to reduce racial stress through greater white dominance. This needs to change, “if [White people] can’t listen to or comprehend the perspectives of [POC], we cannot bridge-racial divides.” (DiAngelo 2011: 66) White fragility prevents White people from discussing and thinking about racial issues, and the disparities between White people and POC. This means that little can be done to mend the gaps and discrepancies POC face, preserving a White culture which only focuses on White issues.  

As a result, Whiteness studies effectively outline how race shapes the lives of White people. Whiteness shapes White people’s experiences, class, status, attitudes, behaviours, and political agendas. Whiteness influences social movements such as feminism, prioritising White wants and agendas. Further to this, Whiteness shapes the lives of White people by granting them privilege, status, and power, all of which stems from societal mores and White centred institutions. These normalities result in White fragility, which keeps White people ignorant, opposed to new views, and sustains the notion of White supremacy and dominance. Given Whiteness’ profound influence, White people must take the steps to recognise the role Whiteness plays within their lives, and how their Whiteness affects the lives of POC. They must acknowledge their power and privilege. Through this, White people can work towards reducing their White fragility and have a deeper understanding of CRT, fostering greater inclusivity and positive discussions around Whiteness, race, and racial disparities.

Words:  2089

References:

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Moreton-Robinson, A. (2021). Tiddas Speakin’ Strong: Indigenous Women’s Self-Presentation within White Australian Feminism. In ProQuest (Firm), ed. Talkin’ up to the white woman: Indigenous women and feminism (First University of Minnesota Press ed.). University of Minnesota Press. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/monash/detail.action?pq-origsite=primo&docID=6767931.

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