Whiteness studies pertain to a controversial sector of studies that focus on the cultural, historical, and sociological aspects of white people and the white society. Since records have been maintained, the degree of whiteness of the person has been attributed as the symbol of social status through social construction. The field explores the various public and private privileges that are enjoyed by the people of the white race especially pertaining to the United States of America and Europe.
The race is considered a social construct, with white people being the ones with the power structure. Most of the research, as stated, has already been conducted I the USA and UK pertaining to white studios. This research has been able to provide us with evidence of three main races in history, the white, the native Indians, and the blacks. Off these, the whites have been significant in holding positions of power and higher social status, while the Native Americans were forced into genocide by the whites. The blacks, however, have been synonymous with slavery also at the hands of the whites who brought them in from Africa to the world as slave labor on plantations in the United States. The black enslavement was characteristic of the colonial times when both the United States as well as the United Kingdom had colonies around the world. ON the same note, the indigenous Australians have also been marginalized at the hands of the British colony of Australia.
As a result of the establishment of the racial differences in the society, conflicts and debate arose on the fairness and the long-term feasibility of the white people’s domination. Concluding the issue, many civil rights movements broke out, which focused on abolishing racism and making way for a harmonious and racism-free society. This contributed largely to the decolonization of the colonies of the United States and the United Kingdom in Asia and Africa. The civil rights movement specific to the blacks was initiated in the 1950s, while the one for American Indians and Chicanos was started around the 1970s. However, the concept of white power and racism has somehow become embedded in the minds of the people. In areas all around the world, people of different races are automatically prejudiced against blacks. The black population still gets the send rate status despite the fact that they are considered the equal status and position holders by law. This is seen in the cultural and societal depiction of the black population in movies and the TV media, as well as in literature, where the black man is usually shown as the bad guy or someone who is dangerous.
In the Asian region as well the whiteness factor of the skin is indirectly associated with the wealth and the status of the person, despite the fact that all people in the society are provided equal status. This has to lead to biases and prejudices in terms of employee selection as well as representation etc.
Culture is composed of social interactions and the beliefs of the people of a region as a whole. It is the way in which people live their life. Most historical cultures have shown that the culture of white supremacy was dominant in almost all of them. The deep-rooted sentiment of the whiteness factor, as well as the person, believes of the society regarding whiteness, have enabled the culture of whiteness to be transcended into future generations. “White supremacy is a historically based, institutionally perpetuated system of exploitation and oppression of continents, nations, and peoples of color by white peoples and nations of the European continent; for the purpose of establishing, maintaining, and defending a system of wealth, power and privilege.” (Martinas, 1994) Despite the fact that racism has been abolished, we do have to agree that it still exists in many forms all around the world.
Woody Doane provided in her book ‘Whiting Out’ mentioned that whiteness studies now tend to reserve the traditional focus of the research n race relations. This is done by concentrating on the social constructs present in society and the impact the white social groups have had on others. The whiteness studies are essentially the critique of the race, ethnicity, and sociological relations prevalent in society. The author identified that the different ethnicities of the world were regarded as minorities while the white population has been depicted as the dominant group.
The author also raised the topic pertaining to modern society and whiteness as a social construct. She investigated s t why whiteness has been ignored in the sociological study of race and ethnicity. Doan was able to identify that in the current society, racism and white dominance still remain. In order to analyze the existence of these factors even after the declaration of equal human rights, socialists, as well as theorists, have now focused research on racial stratification.
The methodology for the analysis and the presentation of whiteness as a social construct of society has been conducted in a literature review format by the author. Doane has used different authors and has cited their words relevant to the topic,. She has supported her theory pertaining to whiteness as a social construct even in modern society through this evidence.
Charles Mills provided in ‘White Supremacy as Sociopolitical System’ that most of the writers for whiteness studies have not been able to provide or cite philosophical text for the discipline. He stated that, especially in terms of analysis of the topic, writers have been reluctant to indulge in analyzing the social and historical aspects of whiteness in detail. As a result, the work of the author focused on this point of view. He was able to provide philosophical evidence for the issue. He mentioned that the best possible method of analyzing the issue is to use social and systematic terms and employ the contribution of philosophy I order to identify the historical ability of the issue to transgress boundaries.
Wills provides support for his work by stating that philosophy has the capability to highlight and ‘challenge the everyday assumptions of normalcy, undermine the taken for granted and upend the conventional wisdom’ (Doane & Bonilla, 2003).
Undeniably due to the results of history and past events, the white population in the world enjoys a certain privilege and power of status and control. However, in order to harmonize the society leading towards modern culture and establishment, the whites should use their privilege to fight against racism.
References
Doane, A.W., Bonilla-Silva, E., “White Out: The Continuing Significance of Racism”, Publisher: Routledge, 2003, ISBN 0415935830
Martinas, S., “The Culture of White Supremacy”, White Supremacy Workshop, 1994.