General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Is the term "White Privilege" a racially divisive term [View all]kwassa
(23,340 posts)Guilt comes from doing something that one knows to be wrong and harmful, and to feel responsibility for that wrong and harm..
Privilege requires no knowledge at all, though one can have knowledge of privilege, something we are trying to drive at here. One can be privileged by doing absolutely nothing, as in the example of white privilege. It is not unlike being born into aristocracy, for instance, even though there might not be a family fortune to support that. Likewise, white privilege might be severely constrained by other factors.
To be born into white privilege doesn't require guilt from anyone, as it was not individual action that created this situation. We do, however, have a collective responsibility to eliminate privilege if we believe in true equity of opportunity.