“I’m more privileged being ‘white’ Mexican, but if I was white I wouldn’t be as privileged as I am within the hispanic community. Because of where I grew up and the people I grew up with – who are much more privileged than the typical Southwestern student – what’s normal for me and for my friends is not the norm for a lot of kids here. I was really privileged and I grew up with a lot of privileged kids and I feel like if I were born white I wouldn’t have been born with this much privilege. So, I don’t know, I think there’s so many ways that could go. But overall I just feel blessed for being born where I was.”
How would your life be different if you were white?
“I think there’s a lot of ways it could be different. For the most part, I already consider myself white because even though I’m Mexican racially, which is complicated in itself, when people look at me they consider me white to begin with. In a way I’m blessed. I’m privileged because even though I’m Mexican people don’t see me as Mexican that much. If I was white; well, first and foremost, a lot of guys have been interested in me because I am hispanic. Would those guys have still liked me if I was white? Who knows. If I was white I wouldn’t have even been inclined to learn about hispanic culture. Because I’m Mexican, I grew up learning a lot about Mexico and that made me want to learn more about the different cultures within Latin America. If I was white I don’t think I would have done that. But I may have had even more opportunities if I really was white. For example, when I submit applications for jobs they just see Mexican. They don’t see me as a person, so maybe it would affect me in that way. If I was white I wouldn’t have the support of my parents like I do now because the support they give is so cultural. So yes, there are pros, but I wouldn’t be as compassionate and caring, or love having at least 10 people at my house. I’m happy with who I am.”
Should people be aware of the ways in which they are privileged?
“Most definitely. One of the most dangerous parts of privilege, white or otherwise, is the privilege of not knowing that you have it. To live without being aware of, or worse, denying one’s own privilege is to discount and discredit the experiences of those who don’t live with that same privilege. I’m aware that while I do my best to be sensitive to and respectful towards issues of race, as a white person, I still benefit from existing racism.
All too often I hear white people claim that race is an issue of the past. White privilege is the privilege of only having to see the progress that has been made, and not the work that still needs to be done. “Not being racist” doesn’t mean you don’t benefit from racism.
I often see privileged people become furious at the mere suggestion that they have privilege because they assume it means they don’t deserve the things they worked for. I’ve worked extremely hard for all of the things I’ve achieved- and I am proud of that- but I try to remain aware of the huge advantages that helped me along the way. There’s a fine line to walk between recognizing that while we all deserve to celebrate reaching the finish line, we didn’t all start the race in the same place.
Still, no matter how aware of my privilege I may be, there’s a limit to what I can do about it. I can’t change the socioeconomic gap correlated to race, I can’t make police officers stop giving differential treatment based upon race- no matter how much I wish that I could. What I can control are my attitudes and my actions. As a white person, other white people are far more likely to listen to me if I challenge their notions about race- despite the unfairness of my bias. I believe it’s wrong to speak about experiences that I haven’t had because my privilege protected me from them. But, by being aware of my privilege, I can contribute to a greater platform for those who are less privileged can be heard. Being aware of one’s own privilege is merely the first step.”
“To me, white privilege describes the daily safety and security, the freedom from discrimination and micro-aggressions, that is so customary to my life that it is hard to even see. It is the fact that, from before I was even born, I had better prospects for my life than many people will ever have. Beyond living with less fear, with more advantages, and so on, white privilege is living without commentary on my race, without the worry of how I represent my race to the world. The greatest power lives in invisibility, in perceived solidarity. When a person of color commits a crime, it is construed as a representation of their entire race. When a white person commits a crime, the culpability is solely their own. We are so quick to accuse all Muslims of terrorism thanks to the actions of only a few, yet we do not think for a minute that the Westboro Bapstist Church represents all Christians by any means. It is a very dangerous lie to believe that white people do not have a race or a cultural identity, and there is so much dangerous power in this invisibility when it comes to race. The average white person’s actions and perspectives are perceived as unbiased, despite the fact that they are extremely biased because we live without ever having to see the discrimination that people of color live with. And because we are perceived as unbiased, it is far too easy to invalidate the lived experiences of non-white people as a “neutral party.” White privilege is the fact that, if I need a band-aid, I can find one that matches my skin. And because I have white privilege, I never even noticed this until someone else pointed it out to me. One of the most dangerous parts of white privilege is the privilege of not knowing that you have it.”
“I hope they see an individual that they don’t know yet, but that they will get to know instead of making assumptions and thinking they already know me. I hope that they understand that some of my qualities are due to my culture; but, also that I’m not a token. And while I do have social anxiety disorder that doesn’t mean that every Asian on the planet has social anxiety disorder.”
How does race affect the way people initially view you?
“I think race is such a huge issue for me. Everything I do right now, everything I’ve ever done, and everything that I plan to do is going to be related to race and to the way people judge me because of my race. My biggest issue, I think, is that my race and my ethnicity don’t match. I look like I’m Chinese, but I’m American. In that way I’m kind of an outsider among my own people and among foreign people.”
“I’ve always thought Spanglish was just a form of expression, a form of communication. I speak it at home, I speak it at school sometimes… but, other than that it’s a sense of identity. I come from the border and the mentality there is ‘speak Spanish at home; speak English at school.’ Spanglish was a good way of communicating in between your two worlds. A place in between Hispanic home and americanized school.”
Robert Hernandez: Physical Plant Department – Grounds/Laborer
Have you ever confronted racism or discrimination at work?
“To be honest, when I worked for Bryan ISD I noticed a lot of racism. Coming from there to over here things were totally different. The guys here call you by your name. We had guys [in Bryan] who wouldn’t use your name. They’d just say ‘these Mexicans this, these Mexicans that…’ Then, when I first started here…dang. Everybody sees you, knows your name, says good morning- whereas [in Bryan], if you told someone good morning they’d probably just walk right by you. And I worked there for 10 years. It’s just so much better here. I mean, I come here and have people actually use my name… it kinda makes you look forward to coming to work.”
Everyday Thoughts and College Life 