Privilege Power and Difference

In the book Privilege, Power, and Difference, by Allan G Johnson, the author analyzes the social constructs of race in America. The author, among many other things, argues that race, gender, sexual orientation, social class, divide us and will continue to divide us unless people learn to understand their own privilege. Johnson begins the text by quoting Rodney King "can we all get along" sometime after the officer's who had brutally beaten him, were acquitted of any wrong doing. The sentiment that Rodney King echoes is a sentiment that is more complex than the simplicity of the language."in response to the Rodney King quote Johnson states "At the dawn of the twenty-first century, it is clear that however much people might wish it otherwise, the answer is still no."
The answer is still no because of everyday racism and oppression that occur daily. The answer is still no because the social construct of the US will not let us get along and keep the oppressors in power, as the author states"We are not prisoners to some natural order that makes us hopelessly and endlessly against one another we are prisoners to something, but its closer to our own making than we realize. And we therefore are far from helpless to change it ourselves" there are things that we can do to help us begin the process of "getting along" When the author mentions that "us being hopelessly against each other is something closer to our making that we realize", he is referring to the social construct that we (sometimes unknowingly) agree upon. I am reminded of the Letter from Mecca by Malcolm X when Malcolm X travels to Mecca and he begins praying with Muslims that looked just like white American men. These men also prayed with people that looked just like him, and he mentions, "We were truly all the same (brothers) because their belief in one god had removed the white from their mind, the white from their behavior and the white from their attitude." Malcolm X was implying that race was something that was learned and something of the social contract of American culture. The word white could almost be substituted for the word privilege and have very similar meaning. "Remove the privilege from the mind, the privilege from their behavior and the privilege from their attitude"  I believe is the sentiment that Johnson argues is what is preventing us from getting along.

The wheel exercise made me really think about how I also agree to the social contract of the US. I wonder if I were not born poor, Hispanic and male how my life would be affected, What if I was born a white middle class white female, how would my life be different than it would now. It brought me to a weird place. Would I have appreciated my education as much as I do know if I went I lived in a pocket of social economic status where it is the norm for student to attain a bachelor's degree, as opposed to people from my background, with college graduation rates that are abysmal. Would I feel comfortable if I was a non-heterosexual male, with my male colleagues? Would I get invited to lunch by my male colleagues as often as I do now? The wheel also made my think about my privilege as a male. Although as a person of color who was born to a poor immigrant family, I never though about the privilege I benefit from.

Lastly I am brought back to the Rodney King video. In watching the video and hearing him say those words, it almost moves me to tears. I think of the video of his beating and the rioting and I wonder how much emotional pain the man must have been in. I think of privilege and the way it envelops our world and makes us feel like it is normal to live oppressed or in privilege. I imagine Rodney King feeling lost, and not knowing how to describe how oppressed he was. I imagine him feeling like he had created this chaos. The chaos had nothing to do with him yet he, the oppressed, says those words almost like an apology. "Can we all get along, can we stop making it harder for older people and the kids"

Introduction, (Omar Reyes)

My name is Omar Reyes, I am currently an admissions officer at Rhode Island College. Currently I do not teach in a classroom setting however I am in constant contact with student through my employment as an admissions officer. I typically visit 30-35 high schools a year and speak to student(mostly potential first generation college students) on the benefits of a Rhode Island College education. When visiting these schools I am always so dumbfounded by the lack of opportunities in some urban districts compared to the more suburban school districts. I can visit a school that is in pristine condition, with robotics labs, and even a bank inside, not an atm a bank inside, and then drive 5 minutes down the road and find a school with leaky roofs and broken desks. I am currently not in any specific graduate program; I am taking non-degree courses for general interest and to become a much more well rounded individual. In my spare time I enjoy watching the NBA, I am a huge New York Knicks fan.  I am looking forward to meeting all of you in person and taking this class!