"It's Not My Fault I'm Privileged!"

Oh boy.

You know I don't like being called a social justice warrior when I give my input into something. The internet, of course, has done a wonderful job at making people look like idiots. Suddenly, if someone is educated on a topic they're seen as a social justice warrior. I'll never understand where this mindset comes from. I don't really want to find out either as its better to save myself from a headache.

However, I'm sure many of us have seen the news item about the three teenage boys being sentences to pretty much nothing. Alongside these boys, we have the news of a Maori man being sentenced to much more for simply taking fish to feed his family.

Surprisingly, the comments are filled with people talking about white privilege. But, of course, we have the people who do not think white privilege does not exist. I've read enough and experience it daily to know exactly what white privilege is. I understand that it is not the fault of my white friends who are here today but it does not change the fact that they still benefit from their privilege.

The sentencing of the three white boys, for damaging 80k worth of goods, was met by a number of community service hours. The sentence of Maori man, for a much smaller crime, was twice as big. I'm not ignoring the fact that by the law they both committed crimes. But it is very clear who here gets the privilege and who doesn't. The fact that people are defending the boys says quite a lot about them and how they too view the world.

You cannot simply damage something that does not belong to you. I guarantee you if the boys were of another race the judge would not look twice and sentence them harshly. So, like many I am sitting here confused and also aware as to how white privilege is seemingly present in every day life. Sure, we can easily say "it's okay, it was your ancestor's fault not yours". But that easily ignores the sufferings of generations before and after us as well. Forgiving does not mean forgetting.

I've noticed this on the train as well. A white woman, who was dressed very nicely, made quite a big deal about her not topping up her train card on time. In short, she would not have enough on her account for when she tags off at her destination. The ticket inspector let it go and even apologised to her. Another twenty minutes later, three students jump on with the exact same situation. They too had their train cards with money but not enough to reach their destination. And as expected, they were kicked off without another glance. Well done Auckland Transport.

Back to my main point. This privilege is present everywhere and every time. The stereotypes contribute towards such treatment as well. The European image has been made dominant and seen as doing no harm. In all honesty, the sentences should have been reversed if you really wanted people to learn for their crime. Of course, we cannot expect for everyone to be aware of this as many do not care or rather do not want to learn. However, educating one another on such topics is a good start.