Understanding privilege and how to use it for good

I was planning to write about different topic this week, but with the current social and political dialogue on racial equality, it felt far more apt to address the current context around us.

Racial equality in the UK

The government commission’s report on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the UK has caused division this week – digging below the headlines, I wanted to consider what has angered people so much (myself included as a D&I practitioner).

If we are going to take a balanced view – the report does reference the previous reviews that have gone before (e.g. Lammy, Parker and Ruby McGreggor-Smith Reviews) and it does make some good recommendations stopping the use of the term ‘BAME’ as well as a some other helpful recommendations to build trust and promote fairness in the workplace.

So where has the Commission gone wrong with this report? Firstly, I write this as a White ally so whilst I am not qualified to express the feelings and experiences of ethnic minority friends and colleagues, but I can play back my observations from the last few days (and indeed the last few months).

Since the Black Lives Matter movement re-emerged last year, the world has done some serious reflection on racial inequalities that still exist today. The dialogue has been what can we do to address it, to listen to the lived experiences of Black and other ethnic minority individuals and ensure we are putting tangible actions in to address the gaps; not to question whether institutional racism exists or not.

The report suggests that we are in an era of ‘participation’, in which the UK has fundamentally shifted more open society; suggesting that we are more open and accepting today than we ever before and suggests ‘For some groups historic experience of racism still haunts the present and there was a reluctance to acknowledge that the UK had become open and fairer’. Whilst this may be true, we still have so much further to go – the narrative is all wrong. Ethnic minority individuals have been left feeling like this report is gaslighting their experience.

By not listening to the lived experiences and using the data that we all know exists, the report has truly missed the mark with the reality of the situation today; in particular for Black people in the UK (John Amaechi summarised it well in his LBC interview).

What has struck me most about the narrative of the last few days is the lack of awareness around privilege and how White privilege is one of the most pervasive and covert privileges of all. Yes of course we are not ‘out and out’ racists in the UK, but we do not seem willing to engage with the notion of privilege in a meaningful way that allows us to appreciate that systemic racism still exists today. In fact, the report calls out White privilege as an unhelpful term and says it ‘fails to identify the real causes for disparities, and that it is counterproductive and divisive’.

I reject this recommendation – not only is it not helpful in continuing to ignite White allies, but it also flies in the face of the discourse we’ve been having to date in understanding privilege.

The Power of Privilege

I enjoyed reading June Sarpong’s book ‘The Power of Privilege’ which is a short read and gets to the heart of privilege quickly. Most importantly, it suggests ways we can all take action – one of the most important being to listen.

White privilege is something we all need to come to terms with and I would encourage everyone reading this to reflect on your privilege and do some soul searching on how you can be a better ally to ethnic minorities around you.

Put simply, privilege is an ‘unearned advantage’. If you’re White and you’ve had some tough experiences and you’ve had to struggle in life to get to where you are today, this doesn’t disregard any of your experiences, it simply means you haven’t had to struggle in life for reasons due to the colour of your skin or your ethnic background. We need to be humble and acknowledge our own privileges and then flip that privilege into a positive.

Here are my top tips of using your privilege as a positive force for good:

Consider your own privileges which form your identity (e.g. your gender, your ethnicity, your social-economic status, your sexual orientation, being able-bodied).

Get comfortable with being uncomfortable – be curious and ask about lived experiences of Black and other ethnic minorities.

Listen to those with less privileges – where you have power and influence, amplify their voices and provide opportunities to them, acknowledging that they are starting from a different starting line.

Speak up and call out injustices around you – remember it’s not enough to be a bystander to racism, sexism (or any other form of ‘ism), you must speak up and call out any injustices you witness.

Some other good top tips, specifically on being a White ally, are shared here.

Let’s keep focused on the continued work to improve racial equality in the UK and beyond. To quote a familiar phrase but one which is so poignant right now: ‘Be the change you want to see in the world’ Gandhi.