Johnson - Privilege, Power, and Difference (assignment A)

 Privilege, Power, and Difference -Allan G. Johnson

            

Three Talking Points

1. The defensive reaction that people in groups of privilege have to terms such as racism, sexism, privilege, prejudice, etc. prevent them from acknowledging the existence of their privilege and therefore prevent them from using this privilege to enact change towards true equality. "We can't talk about it if we can't use the words" 
2. One quote that stuck out to me was, "People don't want to look because they don't want to know what it has to do with them and how doing something about it might change not only the world, but themselves." To me this quote shines light on how privileged groups, and individuals, whether consciously or not, fear "losing" their privilege and therefore do not actually want to change our current systems. Also, some have so much privilege that they do not even see a need to look at privilege vs. disadvantage. 
3.  "We don't have to be special or even feel special in order to have privilege, because privilege doesn't derive from who we are or what we've done." One argument I have heard many times, when a person from a privileged group is arguing that they do not have privilege, is that they, as an individual, have not ever benefitted from being in their privilege group. This quote explains how privilege is a social arrangement which depends on which categories you have been sorted into by other people and therefore how those people treat you. Privilege does not put one individuals actions and morals into question, but rather allows for that person to have less obstacles than people from other groups.

Argument Statement

Johnson argues that in order to change the world for the better, we must, as a collective, acknowledge that privilege exists by understanding how privilege and oppression are two sides of a coin.