CAPS Blog - Whiteness

            Before getting into the true definition of whiteness it is important to look at how far our country has come over the past few decades. For instance, everyone from any race and ethnicity can eat at the same places, use the same restrooms, etc. wherever they please, every citizen is allowed to vote, and almost four years ago we elected our first African American president.  It is truly remarkable that the transition from hate to acceptance has come from such a dark past.  Yet the issue of whiteness is still daunting.  Characteristics of whiteness can be described through three dimensions: normative race privilege, a standpoint from which white people look at themselves, others and society, and a set of cultural practices that are often unnoticed and unnamed.  Ruth Frankenburg described all of these dimensions back in 1993 (Martin & Nakayama, 2012, p. 194). Though many years have passed, this issue still exists and can still be identified by these dimensions that state that white people have the upper hand the majority of the time.

            On the first day of my freshman year I stepped into Omaha Central High School as a white, blonde, blue eyed, female from West Omaha. Central is the most diverse high school in Nebraska and it is filled with a myriad of different cultures such as, Whites, African Americans, Asians, Latin Americans, etc.  Overall, there was an equal amount of white students in comparison to students of different backgrounds walking the halls everyday.  In this setting you would think there would be equal opportunities for every student, but this didn’t always seem to be the case.  It always seemed like white students were the presidents of Student Council and Academic Decathlon and honors courses were usually white.  I really began to feel whiteness when it came to after school activities and weekends with friends.  Although I gained a large amount of African American friends I never took the next step to hang out with them outside of school.  Why is this? Is it because some of them lived in a different neighborhood than me? Is it because they didn’t share similar home lives to me? Were we too different?  I grew up in an extremely welcoming and excepting home where my parents taught me to be an advocate against discrimination and racism at an early age, therefore, I kick myself for not creating lasting relationships with great friends at school because of what I now realize was “whiteness.”  As I type this blog I have a heavy heart and feel much regret to these choices. 

            Although whiteness isn’t as big of an issue as it was ten years ago, it does still exists.  White people are usually seen as the people with the upper hand.  I think this stereotype is actually holding minorities back and limiting their self esteem and self-concept.  I’m not sure what needs to be done to completely abolish the idea of whiteness, but I wish I did.  The fact that we have an African American president shows that our community is making advances.  In my opinion, the majority of people don’t choose to see whiteness it just plays that role.  Personally, I see a future where “whiteness” is no longer an issue.  For instance, I have a little brother who is fourteen years old.  Like me he has gone to culturally diverse schools his entire life.  When speaking to him I am able to see that he sees no whiteness.  He has a ton of African American friends and sees no problem bringing them our house for sleepovers, movies, to play basketball, etc.  This is incredible to me and gives me hope for the future. 

            I have posted a video below titled; “Dear White People…” this video describes how African American people feel when it comes to they way other people see their culture.  Although this video is dealt with in a humorous way it is very interesting to see things from the other side.  As a white female I don’t know what it is like to be someone of a different culture than mine. This video provided me with some good insight. Enjoy!

Dear White People (2012, June 13). Dear White People… Retrieved September 5, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=watjO62NrVg

Martin, J.N., & Nakayama, T.K. (2012). Intercultural Communication in Contexts (6th edition). Boston, MA: McGraw Hill.