Читать книгу Understanding Racism - Hephzibah Strmic-Pawl - Страница 53

White privilege is not just a manifestation of contemporary culture; it is embedded in the structure and institutions of society. White privilege has been repeatedly enforced through policies and laws, beginning with plantation slavery and the genocide of the indigenous and continuing through today. Noting laws and policies such as the internment of Japanese people in the United States during World War II and the denial of citizenship to various communities of color throughout U.S. history, Rothenberg states that White skin privilege is part of the very fabric of the nation.²² Wise refers to the highly restrictive immigration law of the Naturalization Act of 1790, discriminatory housing and mortgage polices, and the lack of enforcement of the Fair Housing Act.²³ Amico also addresses racist practices, such as restrictive immigration laws, the genocide of indigenous tribes, and the oppressive use of Chinese immigrant labor to build railroads.²⁴ And although not directly alluding to laws, McIntosh notes how the history of the United States speaks to the experiences of Whites in a positive manner: “When I am told about our national heritage or about ‘civilization,’ I am shown that people of my color [Whites] made it what it is.” She points out that she “can remain oblivious to the language and customs of persons of color who constituted the world’s majority without feeling in my culture any penalty for such oblivion.”²⁵ White privilege has been enshrined not just in ideology but in the very laws that created and sustain the United States.