
The term "whiteness" has many different connotations depending on the eye of the viewer. In America, I think many people see being white as not only a skin color, but also a certain attitude, style, and status that goes along with it. Reading the article "The Concept of Whiteness and American Film" shows how in movies, we subconsciously expect the leading roles to be played by white people, like the author suggested because that is who most Americans feel they can "relate" to. While if there is a leading role that is played by a person who is not white, the whole movie immediately changes, and many Americans whether they realize it or not, do not gravitate towards those movies as much as they would if it was played by a white actor. In the movie American History X, racism is shown towards any one who is not white, as well as not Protestant. This definition of white refers back to the WASP criteria which is, White Anglo-Saxon Protestant.
In America, there are many generalizations that pertain to people just because they are not white, which is not accurate at all. Being white does not mean you immediately are rich or hardworking or deserve something that no one else should be entitled to, which is how many Americans view being white as. In my opinion to be white means to be pale, to be of a light skin color.
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