Earlier this year author Reni Eddo-Lodge released her internationally successful and provocatively titled book Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race in which she unapologetically points out that 'racism is a white problem'.
'White privilege is a manipulative, suffocating blanket of power that envelops everything we know, like a snowy day,' she poignantly wrote about the marginalisation of black people.
And while many people continue to struggle with the meaning of white privilege, actor/writer Issa Rae has perfectly defined the term to clear up the confusion, pointing out the simple fact that white people are racial insiders, rather than racial outsiders.
In an interview with the Cut, moments before she took part in Marriott's EmpowerME speaker series with the National Black MBA Association, Rae explained:
They don't get that we're not all starting from the same starting point. Straight, cis, white men don't have the same obstacles — there's not much in their path. That's not to say they don't have any of their own problems, but the playing field is not level by any means. It's easy for people to dismiss your history, dismiss where you came from. Just because we graduated from the same college doesn't mean we have the same opportunities. There's bias, even in the hiring process, and that's something not enough people are aware of. It feels like a vicious Catch-22 when there aren't diverse people behind the scenes. That [lack of diversity] alters the company or organisation perspective, which means they're not going to have people who look like the people they are trying to recruit. Even when we do these diversity events, I find that we tend to include other diverse people who also know the struggle and who are already familiar with the burdens, where the audience should be mostly white men and women. People aren't aware, and they choose not to be.
The new face of CoverGirl added: 'For so many people, unfortunately, the issues with people of colour don't affect them, so why would they burden themselves with caring?'
It's important to remember that while every community in the world struggles, the quality of our struggles differ and it's ignorant to presume otherwise.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
