The myth of ‘white privilege’

Whether it’s racial, economic, gender or sexual orientation, there will always be prejudice and discrimination. But the idea that this discrimination is institutionalized is ludicrous and downright harmful

The myth of ‘white privilege’

To listen to the juvenile whack-jobs ranting about ‘white privilege’ one would think that black slavery was still pretty much alive and well in America. The latest pabulum maintains that white people merely have to show up, blow their white folks’ dog whistle and wealth and power just falls into their laps.

Except that it doesn’t. My own personal experience as a white guy who came from a dirt-poor family is just one example. I won’t bore you with my various tales of working full-time while earning my college degree or with all the social opportunities today’s young take for granted that I chose to forego in order to sleep and/or study, but suffice it to say my efforts, not my whiteness, are largely to be credited.

Any black person achieving any degree of success without affirmative action is impossible. Just ask the social justice crew

And yes, I had siblings, both of whom like me were white males born to the same household. Yet they chose to pursue a different course in life and their circumstances are thus different from mine.

There are oodles of very successful white people whose life is largely the result of hard work dedicated to the pursuit of a goal, not the colour of their skin. (Albeit there are many individuals of all ethnicities who were born with a silver spoon)

There are also large numbers of very successful Asian, black and other races whose formative experiences mirror those of whites. With the common denominator being hard work and dedication.

Dr. Ben Carson is an example that comes to mind. He was reared in a poor single parent household in Detroit. He did not perform particularly well in school until his mother insisted that both he and his older brother, Curtis read two books a week and submit book reports. Both brothers gained success and acclaim in their respective fields, with Curtis becoming an aeronautical engineer and Ben a paediatric neurosurgeon.

Yet to follow the current narrative any black person achieving any degree of success without affirmative action is impossible. Just ask the social justice crew.

One of the reasons Bernie Sanders did so well in last year’s election is that he gave people an excuse for failing

If there were real interest in bettering the lot of minorities it would be helpful to stop treating them like losers and recognize that they are perfectly capable of achieving anything they want in life, so long as they are prepared to pay the price. And the price isn’t so much monetary as it is the commitment of time and effort. Telling people that they are doomed to fail because the system is stacked against them is not particularly helpful; quite the opposite, actually, in that they are now being offered ready excuses for not even showing up. If you offer excuses for failure, you are guilty of the prejudice of low expectations and depriving members of these so-called aggrieved groups of the gratification that comes with achieving success through one’s own efforts. Did they succeed because they worked hard and struggled to do their best, or did they succeed because they served to fill a quota as a member of a race from which little is expected? In that sense I think slavery is alive and well in America and blacks are kept down on the Plantation by well-intentioned progressives.

One of the reasons Bernie Sanders did so well in last year’s election is that he gave people an excuse for failing. His pitch, simple as it was, was also extremely effective. Bernie told young voters that banks and big corporations had screwed them and the reason they couldn’t find a job was the direct result of greedy Wall Street types. This is yet another variation of the ‘white privilege’ myth, except in this case it’s about economic privilege. Somehow he failed to mention that there are very few jobs for people with PhDs in gender studies or Social Justice.

Whether it’s racial, economic, gender or sexual orientation, there will always be prejudice and discrimination. But the idea that this discrimination is institutionalized is ludicrous and downright harmful.


Klaus Rohrich is senior columnist for Canada Free Press. Klaus also writes topical articles for numerous magazines. He has a regular column on RetirementHomes and is currently working on his first book dealing with the toxicity of liberalism.  His work has been featured on the Drudge Report, Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, among others.  He lives and works in a small town outside of Toronto.

Klaus can be reached at klausro@gmail.com