Wis. education officials want students to wear ‘white privilege’ wristbands

[dead0man]

pick your poison

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Nobody will have a problem with this.

[DC Al Fine]

I swear they are trying to set a speed record in Godwin's Law.

[anvi]

dead0man, the link you have above just takes me to the Google search page.  Could you link to the story?  Thanks!

[dead0man]

They mostly are copy of the same article, any of the first few links should work for the story.  A link to one of them.  A link to the....poster? I don't know what it's supposed to be....the thing that is causing the stink.  I do note that it's got a 2006 date on it, not sure what that means or how serious Wisconsin educators are about it.  I just find things like this weird and counter productive.

[anvi]

Thanks!  Yeah, the wristband and flowchart stuff do sound like faint echoes of the Cultural Revolution...

[Indy Texas]

Before I read the article, I assumed this was a conservative idea to try to satirize political correctness in an affirmative action bake sale kind of way.

But no, I was wrong.

Anyway, do you really need white people to wear wristbands to make sure everyone knows we're white? It's not like our lack of melanin, narrow nasal bone structure and thin lips don't make it glaringly obvious.

[Lief 🗽]

Children should be taught about white privilege (and male privilege, etc.), but there are probably better ways to do this.

[Small Business Owner of Any Repute]

If you truly want to feel white privilege, walk around Los Angeles with a Hispanic friend. I may not be the right race to win an Assembly seat in SoCal, but I sure am the right race to win dinner reservations.

[Ban my account ffs!]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

But any person who might suffer from other social stigmas (like being fat or gay or whatever) doesn't want to be told he has privilege and that he should feel bad about it.

That will never solve any problems.  Instead, awareness about institutional and subtle racism should be brought up.  Treat each person with respect and dignity while making them aware of problems with discrimination... and they will be more likely to treat those different than them with dignity and respect.

Start wagging your fingers and tsk tsking the white gay male kid cuz he's "so privileged" and you'll just make the problem worse.

Good intentions, bad idea...

[badgate]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

I think that's the whole intent, to get to the kids who sadly couldn't care less about their privilege and force them to face it.

This is a pretty weird idea though, and I'm pretty sure it goes against freedom or some patriotic sh**t like that.

[Donerail]

If you truly want to feel white privilege, walk around Los Angeles with a Hispanic friend. I may not be the right race to win an Assembly seat in SoCal, but I sure am the right race to win dinner reservations.

Do you have to show your wristband?

[Indy Texas]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

I think that's the whole intent, to get to the kids who sadly couldn't care less about their privilege and force them to face it.

This is a pretty weird idea though, and I'm pretty sure it goes against freedom or some patriotic sh**t like that.

How do you think some (very white) high schooler in Morgantown, West Virginia who works a minimum wage job to afford gas and insurance for his car, has an underpaid mother and an underemployed father, and whose only pathways to a middle class standard of living are risking his life bolting roofs in a coal mine or getting shipped off to some godforsaken Islamic country in hopes that if he makes it back Uncle Sam will pay for some of his schooling afterwards, is going to respond to something like this? "White privilege? What privilege?!"

[Antonio the Sixth]

Children should be taught about white privilege (and male privilege, etc.), but there are probably better ways to do this.

[Old Man Svensson]

Children should be taught about white privilege (and male privilege, etc.), but there are probably better ways to do this.

My God, I'm actually agreeing with Lief here. Also, when I first saw the title, I had a terrible feeling it would be the Walker administration mandating the appreciation of white privilege.

[Small Business Owner of Any Repute]

If you truly want to feel white privilege, walk around Los Angeles with a Hispanic friend. I may not be the right race to win an Assembly seat in SoCal, but I sure am the right race to win dinner reservations.

Do you have to show your wristband?

 I would, but the damn thing keeps ripping off my arm hairs when I try taking it off.

[badgate]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

I think that's the whole intent, to get to the kids who sadly couldn't care less about their privilege and force them to face it.

This is a pretty weird idea though, and I'm pretty sure it goes against freedom or some patriotic sh**t like that.

How do you think some (very white) high schooler in Morgantown, West Virginia who works a minimum wage job to afford gas and insurance for his car, has an underpaid mother and an underemployed father, and whose only pathways to a middle class standard of living are risking his life bolting roofs in a coal mine or getting shipped off to some godforsaken Islamic country in hopes that if he makes it back Uncle Sam will pay for some of his schooling afterwards, is going to respond to something like this? "White privilege? What privilege?!"

He's going to be very confused when he realizes he's in Wisconsin.

[dead0man]

Confused, but thankful to whatever deity pulled off that miracle!

[Indy Texas]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

I think that's the whole intent, to get to the kids who sadly couldn't care less about their privilege and force them to face it.

This is a pretty weird idea though, and I'm pretty sure it goes against freedom or some patriotic sh**t like that.

How do you think some (very white) high schooler in Morgantown, West Virginia who works a minimum wage job to afford gas and insurance for his car, has an underpaid mother and an underemployed father, and whose only pathways to a middle class standard of living are risking his life bolting roofs in a coal mine or getting shipped off to some godforsaken Islamic country in hopes that if he makes it back Uncle Sam will pay for some of his schooling afterwards, is going to respond to something like this? "White privilege? What privilege?!"

He's going to be very confused when he realizes he's in Wisconsin.

Because poor, disadvantaged white people don't exist in Wisconsin? Stuff like this is part of the reason so many of them don't vote for you anymore.

[badgate]

Oh my God you are taking this exchange way too seriously.

[Lief 🗽]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

I think that's the whole intent, to get to the kids who sadly couldn't care less about their privilege and force them to face it.

This is a pretty weird idea though, and I'm pretty sure it goes against freedom or some patriotic sh**t like that.

How do you think some (very white) high schooler in Morgantown, West Virginia who works a minimum wage job to afford gas and insurance for his car, has an underpaid mother and an underemployed father, and whose only pathways to a middle class standard of living are risking his life bolting roofs in a coal mine or getting shipped off to some godforsaken Islamic country in hopes that if he makes it back Uncle Sam will pay for some of his schooling afterwards, is going to respond to something like this? "White privilege? What privilege?!"

He's going to be very confused when he realizes he's in Wisconsin.

Because poor, disadvantaged white people don't exist in Wisconsin? Stuff like this is part of the reason so many of them don't vote for you anymore.

Being poor doesn't make a white person's skin color (and the benefits and advantages that come along with it) disappear.

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

I think that's the whole intent, to get to the kids who sadly couldn't care less about their privilege and force them to face it.

This is a pretty weird idea though, and I'm pretty sure it goes against freedom or some patriotic sh**t like that.

How do you think some (very white) high schooler in Morgantown, West Virginia who works a minimum wage job to afford gas and insurance for his car, has an underpaid mother and an underemployed father, and whose only pathways to a middle class standard of living are risking his life bolting roofs in a coal mine or getting shipped off to some godforsaken Islamic country in hopes that if he makes it back Uncle Sam will pay for some of his schooling afterwards, is going to respond to something like this? "White privilege? What privilege?!"

He's going to be very confused when he realizes he's in Wisconsin.

Because poor, disadvantaged white people don't exist in Wisconsin? Stuff like this is part of the reason so many of them don't vote for you anymore.

Being poor doesn't make a white person's skin color (and the benefits and advantages that come along with it) disappear.

But it's insulting to go talk to a poor white person and tell them just how damn privileged they are, don't you realize that? They're privileged compared to starving children in Africa, of course, or a poor black person, but they're still goddamn poor and they're not privileged compared to the average American.

[HoosierPoliticalJunkie]

"a series of suggestions"... chances are, most children who volunteer to wear these wristbands probably are more aware of privilege than other kids who really couldn't care less.

I think that's the whole intent, to get to the kids who sadly couldn't care less about their privilege and force them to face it.

This is a pretty weird idea though, and I'm pretty sure it goes against freedom or some patriotic sh**t like that.

How do you think some (very white) high schooler in Morgantown, West Virginia who works a minimum wage job to afford gas and insurance for his car, has an underpaid mother and an underemployed father, and whose only pathways to a middle class standard of living are risking his life bolting roofs in a coal mine or getting shipped off to some godforsaken Islamic country in hopes that if he makes it back Uncle Sam will pay for some of his schooling afterwards, is going to respond to something like this? "White privilege? What privilege?!"

I agree.  It's ridiculous a society would view a West Virginia white teenager as "privileged" but a middle class/upper-class black kid as the son of two professionals is a victim.