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Main Forums => Politics => Topic started by: Perd Hapley on June 23, 2012, 06:48:14 PM

Title: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Perd Hapley on June 23, 2012, 06:48:14 PM
 :facepalm:

The University of Minnesota is trying to do...something, by calling attention to so-called white privilege. What is so forehead-smacking about this, is that they define "privilege (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/privilege?r=75&src=ref&ch=dic)" as not being mistreated.  :facepalm: :facepalm:


http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/06/22/duluth-residents-say-anti-racism-ad-campaign-is-racist/

The play a clip of the video ad at about 3 minutes:
http://video.foxnews.com/v/1702827430001/university-financing-an-anti-white-ad/


All of which leads to a question. Is the academic establishment simply stupid, or are they intentionally deceitful?
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Ned Hamford on June 23, 2012, 07:21:38 PM
Inclusive or
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: seeker_two on June 23, 2012, 07:40:22 PM
Does "white privilege" also include having the "privilege" to pay for other people's welfare?....  ;/
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: HankB on June 24, 2012, 07:34:24 AM
Does "white privilege" also include having the "privilege" to pay for other people's welfare?....  ;/
It includes the "privilege" of having to score higher - in some cases much higher - on everything from college admission exams to firefighter's tests in order to have the same chance of qualifying as a . . .  person of color.

. . . Is the academic establishment simply stupid, or are they intentionally deceitful? 
I say "both."
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Ben on June 24, 2012, 10:50:00 AM
I say "both."

Agreed.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: MicroBalrog on June 24, 2012, 11:14:37 AM
I think they keep forgetting people outside the campus fence aren't them.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Ben on June 24, 2012, 11:18:31 AM
I think they keep forgetting people outside the campus fence aren't them.

This too. For a group that preaches inclusion, academics are far too often isolated and isolationist.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: RevDisk on June 24, 2012, 11:49:34 AM

The term "white privilege" is both racist and blatantly idiotic.  Making a blanket statement about a race is gee, racist because it is condemning folks solely based on skin color.  Great idea, promoting racism to help diversity.  Plus it is categorically false.  It may be true in certain circumstances.  But universally?  As others have mentioned, too many counter examples to be held up as accurate.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Waitone on June 24, 2012, 10:24:36 PM
"White Privilege" is a term born out of the 70's.  IIRC it was coined by predominantly while radical anti-war groups and picked up from there by the so-called civil rights movement.  Another example of how the more things change the more they remain the same.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: agricola on June 25, 2012, 08:47:38 AM
The term "white privilege" is both racist and blatantly idiotic.  Making a blanket statement about a race is gee, racist because it is condemning folks solely based on skin color.  Great idea, promoting racism to help diversity.  Plus it is categorically false.  It may be true in certain circumstances.  But universally?  As others have mentioned, too many counter examples to be held up as accurate.

The thing is it isnt true, at all - rich white folks are not priviledged because they are white, they are priviledged because they are rich. 
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: roo_ster on June 25, 2012, 11:09:54 AM
The thing is it isnt true, at all - rich white folks are not priviledged because they are white, they are priviledged because they are rich. 

Reminds me of OJ Simpson's murder trial.  Being black helped with the jury, but it was being green that got him off Scot free.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Boomhauer on June 25, 2012, 11:17:34 AM
Where's my white priv card?

Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Tallpine on June 25, 2012, 11:20:06 AM
Where's my white priv card?



I think mine is buried somewhere way back under my Redneck card  =D
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: RevDisk on June 25, 2012, 11:57:51 AM
The thing is it isnt true, at all - rich white folks are not priviledged because they are white, they are priviledged because they are rich.  

Bingo. Who has more privileges? Me or Oprah Winfrey?
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: MicroBalrog on June 25, 2012, 12:23:16 PM
The major problem with these people is that having discussed (and condemned) most normal sorts of oppression -racism, segregation, etc. - they are forever on the lookout for subtler and subtler forms of oppression. Their ideology forbids them to criticize the existence of the modern state - and so instead they do crazy things like attack the fashion industry, or indeed invent this.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: seeker_two on June 25, 2012, 12:33:26 PM
Where's my white priv card?

Where's my executive priv card?.....






....irony realization in 5....4....3....2....1....
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: AJ Dual on June 25, 2012, 12:55:19 PM
I think they keep forgetting people outside the campus fence aren't them.

This.

All it's doing is pissing off folks in post-post-racial America.

And it was that same dynamic on display in Wisconsin's time in the national spotlight of the Gubernatorial Recall election. The hard-Left/Union alliance had no idea, until it was much too late, that protesting... demanding that their pay, job security, and benefits which are extremely generous as compared to the private sector continue, might actually offend a majority of the state. Including enough Democrats, that they'd fail.

The entire campaign took a sudden shift away from .gov unionization to nebulous claims of "we don't like him", and "he hasn't delivered enough job growth yet", ignoring the elephant in the room that the private sector was obviously waiting for the recall process they started to end before investing in Wisconsin.

Sometimes the BEST (worst) thing you can do to the Left is just let them have an open microphone.
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: longeyes on June 25, 2012, 01:05:11 PM
I think what they really meant is ACADEMIC PRIVILEGE. 
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: Boomhauer on June 25, 2012, 01:46:06 PM
I think they keep forgetting people outside the campus fence aren't them.

*waves hand, dismissively*unwashed inbred peasants...
Title: Re: U of Minnesota "White Privilege" ad campaign
Post by: RevDisk on June 25, 2012, 02:45:54 PM
The major problem with these people is that having discussed (and condemned) most normal sorts of oppression -racism, segregation, etc. - they are forever on the lookout for subtler and subtler forms of oppression. Their ideology forbids them to criticize the existence of the modern state - and so instead they do crazy things like attack the fashion industry, or indeed invent this.
*waves hand, dismissively*unwashed inbred peasants...

Both of these statements are correct. I observed them back at the university to learn them. For academics, they do not realize they exist solely (currently) as a parasitic entity. Previously, being a professor was a job. You had to work a reasonable number of hours, I believe it was 16 hours of classroom time and the rest doing related activities. Plus research projects, papers, etc.

It is significantly less and the attitude has changed. Learning is less important. Ideology, proven with facts and often lacking truth, is often more important than teaching how to learn. The cost of college has dramatically inflated due to government loans and manipulation of bankruptcy law. There is near zero interest in proving education that is useful in the real world. Even hard sciences (STEM) are all too often disinterested in providing useful information. As a computer geek and now an IT Director, I can clearly state that a CS degree is not quite worthless but I certainly would not consider it a significant plus if I was hiring a new geek to work for me.

There is a very sharp limitation to the word view of academics because they live in a bubble that is largely (and expensively) keeping them from any real world interaction. Economics do not apply. Market determination barely applies. There is little to no ideological diversity. So... Bubble boys and bubble girls go looking for ways of making a name for themselves. Often, they are looking for purpose to help them define their lives. They often choose it as a brand. Plenty of animal rights, gender, etc activists are no different than HK or Apple fanboys or fangirls. They choose their brand, and defend it regardless of right/wrong. HK, animal rights, etc all have their good and bad points. None are 100% evil or good. I suppose the difference between a product fanboy/fangirl and a cause fanboy/fangirl is that cause fanboys/fangirls keep trumping each other in how far they can take positions into the realm of insanity. Hence one feminist fangirl alleging that Firefly was sexist because Wash was oppressing Zoe. A google search can easily find the rant, and it shows the mental gymnastics involved of attempting to stretch reality (of a TV show) into something that fits the reality they wish to exist. 

I intentionally am using the term "boy" or "girl" as a way of expressing my assessment of their independent thought process. It's undeveloped. Folks need to realize that not all white people are good, bad, privileged, unprivileged, etc. The inability to recognize that humanity is solely shades of grey is defining of the cause fanboys and fangirls. 

Most real oppression in the US is limited to very narrow groups. Fat people, smokers, very poor, etc. Even so, not many smokers are being lynched. Racial issues still exist, at a small fraction of previous oppression. It will take generations for things to even out. Folks need to relax, mind their own business and try to be good people. That will do more to promote a peaceful, diverse United States than a thousand racist and insulting ad campaigns.