‘White Privilege’ in the US; ‘Black Privilege’ in Africa? ‘Han Privilege’ in China?

 

All the wailing and gnashing of teeth over “whiteness,” “white privilege,” and “white supremacy” in the United States, and the supposed problems “non-white” people has got me wondering – what happens in the parts of the world in which a particular group of “non-white” people dominate the culture and/or the power structures, such as sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Central and South America. This is probably best answered by someone who has lived in areas other than the United States or Europe.

I am a 65-year-old pale-skinned man of English and German ancestry with blue eyes and a little blond hair remaining on my head. I live in Texas.

As I understand current “woke” ideology in the United States, I have an irresolvable problem in that I don’t have to think about my “whiteness.” My race is a complete non-issue in my life. But, supposedly to anyone who is not “white,” race is a constant issue that they cannot avoid and stays front of mind.

What would happen if I were to move to someplace in which pale-skinned people with blue eyes and blond hair are unusual? Would my “whiteness” be a constant factor in my thinking and self-perception?

I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege?” Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese? Would it be for me as a white man in a Han Chinese dominant society?

What about sub-Saharan Africa? Is race irrelevant for black African natives? Do they have “black privilege?” Would I constantly be aware of my “whiteness” if I lived in a place like Congo or Zimbabwe? Would I have anything that could be called “white privilege?”

In other words, are complaints about “whiteness” and “white privilege” nothing more than complaints about not being part of the dominant racial or ethnic group, regardless of what that racial or ethnic group is?

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  1. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege”? Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese?

    I don’t know if @ roblong has spent time in China himself or just knows about this from other sources, but on many a podcast he has talked about how everyone but the Han Chinese are looked down upon in China.

     

    So can we expect at least some of the U.S. based social justice warriors to start a movement in China about the evils of Han Supremacy and to force the Han to give up their Han-ness? [He asks sarcastically]

    I doubt it.  They seem to believe that racism is not a problem of human nature, but something that is exclusively a white-people mentality.

    • #31
  2. Paul Stinchfield Member
    Paul Stinchfield
    @PaulStinchfield

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege”? Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese?

    I don’t know if @ roblong has spent time in China himself or just knows about this from other sources, but on many a podcast he has talked about how everyone but the Han Chinese are looked down upon in China.

    So can we expect at least some of the U.S. based social justice warriors to start a movement in China about the evils of Han Supremacy and to force the Han to give up their Han-ness? [He asks sarcastically]

    I doubt it. They seem to believe that racism is not a problem of human nature, but something that is exclusively a white-people mentality.

    On the contrary, I get the impression that they believe racist contempt for non-Han Chinese is real and justified and entirely laudable. And as a matter of fact, Thomas Sowell and a few others have observed that racial, ethnic, and religious bigotry exist all around the world and are largely exhibited without shame. We Westerners are somewhat unusual in that regard.

    • #32
  3. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege”? Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese?

    I don’t know if @ roblong has spent time in China himself or just knows about this from other sources, but on many a podcast he has talked about how everyone but the Han Chinese are looked down upon in China.

    So can we expect at least some of the U.S. based social justice warriors to start a movement in China about the evils of Han Supremacy and to force the Han to give up their Han-ness? [He asks sarcastically]

    I doubt it. They seem to believe that racism is not a problem of human nature, but something that is exclusively a white-people mentality.

    On the contrary, I get the impression that they believe racist contempt for non-Han Chinese is real and justified and entirely laudable. And as a matter of fact, Thomas Sowell and a few others have observed that racial, ethnic, and religious bigotry exist all around the world and are largely exhibited without shame. We Westerners are somewhat unusual in that regard.

    While I certainly don’t want to promote shameless racism, I also don’t want people mistreated or taken advantage of as they try to be decent – that is what this is about. 

    • #33
  4. GlennAmurgis Coolidge
    GlennAmurgis
    @GlennAmurgis

    In India, do they have a Brahman privilege

    • #34
  5. Misthiocracy got drunk and Member
    Misthiocracy got drunk and
    @Misthiocracy

    I haven’t been through the comments so apologies if I’m repeating what others have already written.

    Han privilege is totally a thing in China.  Genetic testing has (allegedly) revealed that the Chinese government greatly over-reports the percentage of the Chinese population that is ethnically Han, because it wants everyone to associate “Han Chinese” as “the best Chinese”. So the theory goes, if everybody thinks they’re Han then they won’t complain that all the leaders are Han.

    In Africa, there’s totally ethnic privilege, but it’s split along myriad tribal lines rather than “racial” lines.  I’ve read quite a few stories about African-Americans who visited Africa and were shocked how badly they were treated because “they have no tribe”.

    • #35
  6. Paul Stinchfield Member
    Paul Stinchfield
    @PaulStinchfield

    TBA (View Comment):

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege”? Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese?

    I don’t know if @ roblong has spent time in China himself or just knows about this from other sources, but on many a podcast he has talked about how everyone but the Han Chinese are looked down upon in China.

    So can we expect at least some of the U.S. based social justice warriors to start a movement in China about the evils of Han Supremacy and to force the Han to give up their Han-ness? [He asks sarcastically]

    I doubt it. They seem to believe that racism is not a problem of human nature, but something that is exclusively a white-people mentality.

    On the contrary, I get the impression that they believe racist contempt for non-Han Chinese is real and justified and entirely laudable. And as a matter of fact, Thomas Sowell and a few others have observed that racial, ethnic, and religious bigotry exist all around the world and are largely exhibited without shame. We Westerners are somewhat unusual in that regard.

    While I certainly don’t want to promote shameless racism, I also don’t want people mistreated or taken advantage of as they try to be decent – that is what this is about.

    ? Do you believe we are in disagreement?

    • #36
  7. Basil Fawlty Member
    Basil Fawlty
    @BasilFawlty

    Full Size Tabby: I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege?” Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese? Would it be for me as a white man in a Han Chinese dominant society?

    You might have trouble getting a Han job.

    • #37
  8. Percival Thatcher
    Percival
    @Percival

    Basil Fawlty (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby: I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege?” Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese? Would it be for me as a white man in a Han Chinese dominant society?

    You might have trouble getting a Han job.

    Go to your room.

    • #38
  9. Henry Castaigne Member
    Henry Castaigne
    @HenryCastaigne

    Basil Fawlty (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby: I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege?” Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese? Would it be for me as a white man in a Han Chinese dominant society?

    You might have trouble getting a Han job.

    Han jobs are safe and fairly regular too. 

    • #39
  10. Full Size Tabby Member
    Full Size Tabby
    @FullSizeTabby

    Misthiocracy got drunk and (View Comment):

    I haven’t been through the comments so apologies if I’m repeating what others have already written.

    Han privilege is totally a thing in China. Genetic testing has (allegedly) revealed that the Chinese government greatly over-reports the percentage of the Chinese population that is ethnically Han, because it wants everyone to associate “Han Chinese” as “the best Chinese”.

    In Africa, there’s totally ethnic privilege, but it’s split along myriad tribal lines rather than “racial” lines. I’ve read quite a few stories about African-Americans who visited Africa and were shocked how badly they were treated because “they have no tribe”.

    So why are “my people” the only people group being ordered to debase and devalue ourselves?

    • #40
  11. Henry Castaigne Member
    Henry Castaigne
    @HenryCastaigne

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Misthiocracy got drunk and (View Comment):

    I haven’t been through the comments so apologies if I’m repeating what others have already written.

    Han privilege is totally a thing in China. Genetic testing has (allegedly) revealed that the Chinese government greatly over-reports the percentage of the Chinese population that is ethnically Han, because it wants everyone to associate “Han Chinese” as “the best Chinese”.

    In Africa, there’s totally ethnic privilege, but it’s split along myriad tribal lines rather than “racial” lines. I’ve read quite a few stories about African-Americans who visited Africa and were shocked how badly they were treated because “they have no tribe”.

    So why are “my people” the only people group being ordered to debase and devalue ourselves?

    Because left-wingers are racial narcissists. They view whites as being the only ones capable of real moral reasoning. Other races are like children or people who have not tasted of the fruit of knowledge. Innocent and dumb. I wrote a post on it

    • #41
  12. Flicker Coolidge
    Flicker
    @Flicker

    Percival (View Comment):

    Basil Fawlty (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby: I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege?” Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese? Would it be for me as a white man in a Han Chinese dominant society?

    You might have trouble getting a Han job.

    Go to your room.

    Han Solo.  One is the loneliest number.

    • #42
  13. Zafar Member
    Zafar
    @Zafar

    GlennAmurgis (View Comment):

    In India, do they have a Brahman privilege

    Brahmin, but yes, absolutely – or more broadly caste privilege.

    Which has resulted in, and continues to generate, a lot of social and political conflict.  Despite efforts at reform over the past 100 years, and significant political and legal changes.

    White and Black people in America are not alone or singular when it comes to this.  

    • #43
  14. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Misthiocracy got drunk and (View Comment):

    I haven’t been through the comments so apologies if I’m repeating what others have already written.

    Han privilege is totally a thing in China. Genetic testing has (allegedly) revealed that the Chinese government greatly over-reports the percentage of the Chinese population that is ethnically Han, because it wants everyone to associate “Han Chinese” as “the best Chinese”.

    In Africa, there’s totally ethnic privilege, but it’s split along myriad tribal lines rather than “racial” lines. I’ve read quite a few stories about African-Americans who visited Africa and were shocked how badly they were treated because “they have no tribe”.

    So why are “my people” the only people group being ordered to debase and devalue ourselves?

    I presume you mean cat people?  Yeah, dog people are always putting us down.

    • #44
  15. I Walton Member
    I Walton
    @IWalton

    I served in every continent except Africa.  There is rampant Japanese privilege in Japan, Chinese in China,  Kiwi privilege in New Zealand, Singapore Chinese privilege in Singapore etc.  In the Philippines it was mixed power as it is in Malaysia, with Chinese having more economic power and indigenous mixtures exercising political power.  That was probably from British and American influence.  The most open place and the only place  in which anyone black, yellow brown,white compete well and share in power is the United States.  Maybe I should say was the United States because that’s changing.   We’re joining the rest of the world where it’s political power that matters, which is why the others had privileged dominant races in the first place.   By the way in Africa it isn’t blacks with privilege, it depends on the country and while they are all pretty black, the variety of racial differences exceeds the rest of the world.

    • #45
  16. Randy Weivoda Moderator
    Randy Weivoda
    @RandyWeivoda

    I Walton (View Comment):
    The most open place and the only place  in which anyone black, yellow brown,white compete well and share in power is the United States.

    I am given to understand that most Caribbean Island nations are also societies with a high degree of racial harmony.

    • #46
  17. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    I Walton (View Comment):

    I served in every continent except Africa. There is rampant Japanese privilege in Japan, Chinese in China, Kiwi privilege in New Zealand, Singapore Chinese privilege in Singapore etc. In the Philippines it was mixed power as it is in Malaysia, with Chinese having more economic power and indigenous mixtures exercising political power. That was probably from British and American influence. The most open place and the only place in which anyone black, yellow brown,white compete well and share in power is the United States. Maybe I should say was the United States because that’s changing. We’re joining the rest of the world where it’s political power that matters, which is why the others had privileged dominant races in the first place. By the way in Africa it isn’t blacks with privilege, it depends on the country and while they are all pretty black, the variety of racial differences exceeds the rest of the world.

    Isn’t it interesting that those promoting going backwards to these practices and customs that Western Civilization has worked so hard to discard are called “Progressives”, a capstone to the vileness of language use today.

    • #47
  18. Flicker Coolidge
    Flicker
    @Flicker

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    I Walton (View Comment):
    The most open place and the only place in which anyone black, yellow brown,white compete well and share in power is the United States.

    I am given to understand that most Caribbean Island nations are also societies with a high degree of racial harmony.

    Oh, yes.  Not political harmony though.  In Trinidad the blacks and Indians are quite at odds.  And, I believe, muslim Black power groups have been active, and one actually tried to overthrow the government once.  IIRC, I think they were caught coming ashore with bombs.  And I vaguely recall something about tunnels.

    Good times, the 70s.

    • #48
  19. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):

    TBA (View Comment):

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege”? Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese?

    I don’t know if @ roblong has spent time in China himself or just knows about this from other sources, but on many a podcast he has talked about how everyone but the Han Chinese are looked down upon in China.

    So can we expect at least some of the U.S. based social justice warriors to start a movement in China about the evils of Han Supremacy and to force the Han to give up their Han-ness? [He asks sarcastically]

    I doubt it. They seem to believe that racism is not a problem of human nature, but something that is exclusively a white-people mentality.

    On the contrary, I get the impression that they believe racist contempt for non-Han Chinese is real and justified and entirely laudable. And as a matter of fact, Thomas Sowell and a few others have observed that racial, ethnic, and religious bigotry exist all around the world and are largely exhibited without shame. We Westerners are somewhat unusual in that regard.

    While I certainly don’t want to promote shameless racism, I also don’t want people mistreated or taken advantage of as they try to be decent – that is what this is about.

    ? Do you believe we are in disagreement?

    Not that I can tell. 

    • #49
  20. TBA Coolidge
    TBA
    @RobtGilsdorf

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Misthiocracy got drunk and (View Comment):

    I haven’t been through the comments so apologies if I’m repeating what others have already written.

    Han privilege is totally a thing in China. Genetic testing has (allegedly) revealed that the Chinese government greatly over-reports the percentage of the Chinese population that is ethnically Han, because it wants everyone to associate “Han Chinese” as “the best Chinese”.

    In Africa, there’s totally ethnic privilege, but it’s split along myriad tribal lines rather than “racial” lines. I’ve read quite a few stories about African-Americans who visited Africa and were shocked how badly they were treated because “they have no tribe”.

    So why are “my people” the only people group being ordered to debase and devalue ourselves?

    Possible German and Japanese nationals post WWII were so ordered, and there is solid but largely failed effort to get the Turks to do some as well. 

    Oh, and of course the Israelis. 

    • #50
  21. Paul Stinchfield Member
    Paul Stinchfield
    @PaulStinchfield

    TBA (View Comment):

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):

    TBA (View Comment):

    Paul Stinchfield (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    Full Size Tabby (View Comment):

    Randy Weivoda (View Comment):

    I understand that in China the Han Chinese ethnic group dominates culture and the social and political power structures. Is race (or ethnicity) a non-issue for Han Chinese? Do they have “Han Chinese privilege”? Is their racial or ethnic minority status a constant issue for non-Han Chinese?

    I don’t know if @ roblong has spent time in China himself or just knows about this from other sources, but on many a podcast he has talked about how everyone but the Han Chinese are looked down upon in China.

    So can we expect at least some of the U.S. based social justice warriors to start a movement in China about the evils of Han Supremacy and to force the Han to give up their Han-ness? [He asks sarcastically]

    I doubt it. They seem to believe that racism is not a problem of human nature, but something that is exclusively a white-people mentality.

    On the contrary, I get the impression that they believe racist contempt for non-Han Chinese is real and justified and entirely laudable. And as a matter of fact, Thomas Sowell and a few others have observed that racial, ethnic, and religious bigotry exist all around the world and are largely exhibited without shame. We Westerners are somewhat unusual in that regard.

    While I certainly don’t want to promote shameless racism, I also don’t want people mistreated or taken advantage of as they try to be decent – that is what this is about.

    ? Do you believe we are in disagreement?

    Not that I can tell.

    Good. I was concerned that the wording of your response might mean otherwise.

    • #51
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