Blog # 1 Privilege, Power, and Difference (Ch. 1-3) by Alan Johnson

Privilege, Power, and Difference - Alan Johnson

Johnson set out to discuss the issues surrounding differences, power, and privilege with this book. He starts out in the introduction by naming his own biases and privilege as a white male. He then says that "all of us are part of the problem" - no one is free from naming their own position/bias. No one is free from the work that goes along with unlearning and changing lenses. He uses the phrase "getting unstuck" to relate to part of the solution to the problem. He also says that "the purpose is to change how we think so that we can change how we act". He discusses that his focus will surround race, gender, social class, and sexual orientation. 

Chapter 1 : Rodney King's Question

Chapter 1 begins with a quote from Rodney King - "Can't we all just get along?" It is a simple question with powerful meaning. Unfortunately, even in 2024 the answer is still, no. In Chapter 1, Johnson discusses the need for all of us to ask the question, "why not?". Why can't we all just get along? Johnson discusses that many people would answer that question with something to do with human nature. People fear the "unfamiliar". People formulate societal rules to justify their answer to "why not". Johnson will discuss in the chapters that follow that people have the means to create change and break the societal rules that put us at war with each other. 

Chapter 2 : We're In Trouble

What is the "trouble"? 

Johnson states "The trouble we're in privileges some groups at the expense of others. It creates a yawning divide in levels of income, wealth, dignity, safety, health, and quality of life. It promotes fear, suspicion, discrimination, harassment, and violence. It sets people against one another. It builds walls topped with broken glass and barbed wire. It weaves the insidious and corroding effects of oppression into the daily lives of tens of millions of women, men, and children. It has the potential to ruin entire generations and, in the long run, to take just about everyone down with it." 

In this chapter, Johnson talks about the importance of naming the issues to challenge them and create change. He names the inherent nature human beings have to be "accepted, valued, supported, appreciated, respected, and belonging." Discussing the "elephant" in the room makes most people uncomfortable and contradicts the feelings listed above. 

Talking point 1: the work must be done by both the oppressed and the privileged. The oppressed often do not have the power, connections, and voice that the privileged possess.  

This "trouble" affects all of us. It will take the collective work of most of us to combat it. It will take the work of all people to create this change. No singular group can do this on their own. Johnson says that the fact that it is so easy to do nothing is the single most powerful barrier to change. 

The importance of using the words

Racism....Sexism...Privilege...

These words are often shied away from. They tend to cause tension, arguments, and "impolite" conversation. Johnson shares that the words must be used to get at the root of the problems. Through using the words, "I can understand what it names and what it has to do with me and, most important, what I can do about it". 

The link below is an article about the term "white fragility"- an interesting read relating to why it is so difficult for white people to talk about race. Why its so hard for white people to talk about racism

Chapter 3 - The Trouble We're In - Privilege, Power, and Difference

The Diversity Wheel (Loden & Rosener) - used as a tool for people to identify and familiarize themselves with their own abilities, positions, and categories. This wheel explains a person's "social reality" but not much about the unique individual we all are. 

Talking point 2: Think about the qualities described in the center of the wheel - the most difficult for a person to change - think about if one of these was different for yourself. How would your social reality be affected? 

Social construction of reality: race and all its categories have no significance outside of systems of privilege and oppression, and it is these systems that created them. 

Talking point 3: Peggy McIntosh - Privilege exists when one group has something of value that is denied to others simply because of the groups they belong to, rather than because of anything they've done or failed to do. 

The categories people fit in are privileged, not the individual person. In other words, you don't actually have to be white/male to receive the privilege of that category, you just have to convince people to belong to that category. "When it comes to privilege, what matters is what other people think we are."

Oppression: The flip side of privilege ~ "For every social category that is privileged, one or more other categories are oppressed in relation to it."

Johnson argues that unequal privilege, power, and societal issues are still prevalent in the 21st century. He brings light to the "trouble" that we all face if nothing is done to combat these issues. To start this process, he names the importance of knowing ourselves in terms of our own social realities, privilege categories, and experiences. He describes the importance of using difficult words. Educating ourselves about what they mean and what their power is. He describes the collective work that must be done by all to create positive change. All the while reminding readers that change is in the realm of possibility so long as we are open and willing to put the work in.