There are a lot of people who want to think that they are enlightened. In some cases, this leads to mindlessly embracing what they think the enlightened are supposed to believe. This mindset is shallow and frequently flawed. I have referred to this mindset as pseudo-enlightenment.
One of the more popular forms of pseudo-enlightenment comes in the form of white privilege. If white people can see how whiteness benefits them, they can feel enlightened. In reality, this is a very shallow and incomplete view on how race impacts society.
Most items associated with white privilege have more to do with socioeconomic status than race. People with money can live in better neighborhoods and pursue more in life than people with limited means. Although minorities are more likely to be disadvantaged in this sense, socioeconomic status is not the same as race.
Race is also not a one-way construct. White people aren't automatically anti-black. Black people are not automatically innocent in their views regarding race. Additionally, there are advantages to belonging to different races. For example, if someone shopped exclusively at white-owned businesses, they would justifiably be labeled as racist. By contrast, shopping at black-owned businesses is considered honorable.
The narrative behind white privilege has numerous white people embracing racism against other white people just so they can feel enlightened. They are also dependent on figures who are viewed as authorities on this issue. By definition, this is authoritarian.
I want to make it clear that I'm not saying black people have it easier than white people. There are advantages to being white. The issue is that race is far more complicated than insisting that white people are inherently advantaged with everything. Mindlessly accepting a flawed narrative is not a matter of being enlightened.
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