McIntosh- Knapsack (Argument)

Peggy McIntosh

White Privilege- Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack

(Argument)

First off I would like to state how much I enjoyed reading this article. It was an easy article to understand, for the most part and I feel she was very relatable with what she was saying. In this article Peggy McIntosh is arguing in the beginning that white males have all the power in the world, and then goes on to state how white people in general have the power when it comes to anything. She then list what it is like to be a white person, and how we can go about our daily lives not being judged on our color, but anyone who is not white will be questioned and harassed for anything they do just because of the color of their skin. She then goes on to state how we take these things for granted because it is part of the way our society was made. She also looks at the fact that whiteness is not the only thing that sets people apart. There are the other advantages that give people an advantage. Some of these include: Age, ethnic, physical ability, nationality, religion, or sexual orientation. In her own words I feel her argument is best stated in this quotation, “As a white person, I realized I had been taught about racism as something that puts others at a disadvantage, but had been taught not to see one of its corollary aspects, white privilege, which puts me at an advantage”. This quote sums up her whole article. It I feel also puts a positive spin on the article which may have been why I was so pleased with this article. It says how no one is really in a disadvantage, but we are all equal, it is those, a.k.a the white people, who are at an advantage because they know the rules of society. It does not help as well that the rules of society of those of the white people world. When Peggy McIntosh is stating the way in which person of non white color could be affected in our society, here is a link to how a person who is white but homosexual can get the same kind of treatment

http://www.bibble.org/gay/stories/phobia/lesbian_cantbe_college_pres.html . This link just further supports McIntosh in saying that if one is not at an advantage in society then they will be mistreated. It is like she said about the knapsack; “White privilege is like an invisible weightless knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports, code books, visas, clothes, tools and blank checks.” This knapsack can apply to anything where someone has an advantage over someone else because of an unchangeable thing. This is what I hope to bring up in the class discussion. That is that I agree with McIntosh when she talks about the knapsack, but this knapsack is only worn by the members of S.C.W.A.A.M.P. They have the advantage over everyone. I feel it is a good point to address.