Whiteness in America

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.

Whiteness in Film

Ever since the advent of film, the screen has largely been dominated by Caucasian actors. Perhaps this is because early and even modern day film makers cater to the fact that the majority of the nation's population is white, which in turn will hopefully lead to more ticket sales. This has caused other films with actors of other ethnicities to be labled as "black" or whichever race the actors happen to be. Of course it is easier for a viewer to identify himself with the protaganist if he is of the same race, but the standard of whiteness in film, although it is on the decline since the early 20th century, has such a strong hold in the film industry that film makers almost expect every viewer to be able to relate to a caucasian actor as the standard. The trend over the last few decades in response to this is to include a token character of a different race in order to avoid the film being labeled racist, but this just confirms the notion that even film makers are aware of the white standard that is prevalent in film. Films have also created stereotypes for certain races that carried on until the end of the century. The essay listed examples such as Italian Americans who were labeled with the mobster or "Guido" stigma, and Irish Americans, who were often portrayed as unintelligent drunks. However, I believe that instead of race, economic status plays more of a role in determining what the standard for film is. Film companies target who they believe will be willing to spend the most moeney on film, and because Caucasians hold a lot of the wealth in the nation, film makers believe that they will be the most likely to buy tickets.

What It Means To Be White

Being white means being more privileged. Throughout history, fair skin has been believed to be somehow superior and preferred to darker skin. I realize that it is only a color and a skin tone, but prejudices and stereotyped are so ingrained into our systems that we can hardly choose to ignore them. They are there whether we like them or not, and there is truth to them. When I say that being white means being more privileged, I am not necessarily referring to the idea that white people have nicer cars or bigger houses in suburbia, although that could very easily be the case. I am talking specifically about being of Caucasian decent. There are tangible inequalities between the daily life of a white person and that of any other race. For example, if taking a standardized test and asked to list ethnicity, a white person can simply choose to fill in the "Caucasian" bubble. They don't really truly have to specify what race they are, they have an option of hiding it. Anyone else, however, has to fill in the correct bubble, whether that be "Asian", "African-American", or "Hispanic". Those choices are far more specific, and therefore slightly less equal, since it is not the first, most prominent choice. If this were a dominantly black community, the choices would say "African-American" and then proceed to list something along the lines of "Irish", "English", "Italian", "Swedish", or "German" and so on and so forth. If the world weren't racist at all, all of the choices would be there and everyone would have the option of listing what ethnicity they are. This was just one example, however. These same subtle inequalities occur all the time, and very often subconsciously. As far as appearance, people can be from a wide variety of countries, but white people can hide that. They can just be white. Black people always have to be black, Asian people always have to be Asian. It all goes back to the idea of the "other" and how any variation from a White, Protestant male is automatically one of them. Perhaps I am being too harsh, but a lot of my opinion on this was realized when I read Watching The Canary in a Sociology class. It is about the subconscious expectations between races and the apparent pre-determined destiny that is self-fulfilled by each of these races.

Whitness in America

There in a very clear divide in society between blackness and whiteness. White people subconsciously divide themselves from black people. White people see black people in many cases as outsiders. They see them as inferior to white people. Coming from a white family, I see how white people often separate themselves from blacks. Older members of my family have a fear of black people. This fear of black people is the same thing that caused white flight. Americans subconsciously divides everyone. People are given the designation of “black” or “white” and assigned the stereotypes of each. Because white people make up most of our society, the view of the “average successful American” is of a white middle-class male.

whiteness

Whiteness is simply the color of one's skin. Certain connotations come with every race but I feel they should be disregarded [though they never are. Stereotypical representations cannot be ignored but this does not mean they should be considered true. This only encourages the continuation of prejudices and racist behavior. These prejudices are both conscious and unconscious in peoples minds and people overlook them as if its no big deal. People and their character should not be regarded simply by the color of their skin or even their income. Problems among races stem from feelings of inequality and fear of others gaining power. Whiteness in America goes along with the ideas of being more powerful, making more money, and generally living better off than everyone else though the white majority isseen in a negative light. People like Derek fall into racist tendencies striving to reinforce and assert the "power" the white man supposedly holds. Though racism is still an issue, I feel like the superiority and idea that whiteness is better is disintegrating in these modern times.

The Transparency of Whiteness and Tokenism

To be white in America means that you are a majority. Whiteness is seen everywhere. It specifically means that you are of the Caucasian race but in America it means more than that.

Certain cultures and ways of life are often associated with being white. These cultures are then accepted as the norm. As the article discusses, Hollywood spends "more money on white stars in white movies, and far less money on non-white actors in overtly racial or ethnic properties." This is due to the transparency of whiteness. In order for the idea of whiteness to even be considered it must be acknowledged or emphasized. Whiteness is therefore accepted without recognition. By putting a lack of emphasis on whiteness it becomes the norm. This causes a problem because it puts more stress on one’s “non-whiteness.” I believe that this emphasis caused by not acknowledging race in terms of whiteness indirectly encourages more racism. For example the practice of tokenism emphasizes the fact that the character is not white. Token characters are placed in a film in order to dispute any charge of racism when in fact the very existence of token character suggests racism. They are often given small supporting roles that are less important than the white lead role. Token characters simply replace real diversity with fake, token, diversity. This, in turn, increases the idea of white transparency by increasing acknowledgment of non-whiteness in film.

White.

I did not read the article, please don’t judge me.



I think whiteness is more than just the color of a person's skin. To some people, it's who you associate with, who you hate, and what defines the way you live your life. As with Derek Vinyard, it consumed his life. I like to think of myself as nothing like Derek Vinyard. To me, being white is just the way someone sees me. The way someone sees me is not who I am. One’s personality goes way deeper than that, and I think most people can agree with me. Skin color does not define what kind of person I am, and it shouldn’t for anyone. According to some, I’m not even a true white person, or a WASP (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant.) My family is Catholic, so I wouldn’t even know how it would feel to be truly “white.” Whiteness has also somewhat turned into this mentality of superiority that some people adopt to make themselves feel more elite. One of my friends seems to have adopted this mentality, calling non-whites by every racial slur possible. That is not what it means to be white, but rather a twisted way of making yourself feel superior to minorities.

This link was pretty interesting. It basically lists out a lot of questions that people with this white mentality would ask themselves to prove their superiority.

White America and the Divide

I personally believe that in America there are many different standards to being “white.” In America, if you are white, you are considered to be the prominent race. (This may not stand in later years though.) To be white, means that a person is from the Caucasian race. Although this may not stand in other countries, what you do in America can also define you as being white. Many people see and would probably agree that white people hold higher class jobs and make more money while other races hold the poorer, lower class jobs. The white race today has been associated for years with racism and prejudice. I think that this may also define whiteness in America. I am not saying that all white people are racist, but there are a good number of them. According to the article, “racism exists in America.” Many people think that African Americans are associated with breaking the law many people think that whites are associated with racism. People do not see the other side to this though. Racism is a two way street. Black hate white, and whites hate black. In America today to be white means to have power. A white male is America today has a greater power over the rest of the people here. This is how people think. To be white, to me almost means to be American. A country founded by white people to me is a white country.

Whiteness is...

For me if one refers to "whiteness" it just means someone's skin is light. I suppose a textbook example of "whiteness" is the WASP, white Anglo-Saxon Protestant. In "The Concept of Whiteness and American Film," I think the author has a much different view of what "whiteness" truely is. For example, the author uses the example of Irish immigrants in America in the early 20th century. Irish were refered to as "white niggers" because like the blacks they were impoverished and discriminated against. In response to this, the Irish tried to disassociate themselves from the blacks and asert thier "whiteness," in other words, asert thier superiority. This is exaclty what Derek does in American History X. He is a working class white male, angry about his social status. So he tries to elevate himself with his hatred of not just blacks, but all non-whites. There is a scene where Danny says he hates everyone who is not white Protestant. In other words, "whiteness" for Derek, Danny, and the author of "In Concept of Whiteness" is not just a racial issue. "Whiteness" is not just the color of one's skin or even one's economic class because Derek and Danny are working class, and the Irish were able to assert thier whiteness despite thier poverty.

What is Whiteness

this week, we will be discussing whiteness as an American standard. Please read the posted article and comment on what you think it means to be white. Please think carefully about this question and answer it with about 250 words.