Does White Privilege Exist in the US
The participant that receives the most points from the voters is declared a winner.
Voting will end in:
- Publication date
- Last updated date
- Type
- Standard
- Number of rounds
- 4
- Time for argument
- One week
- Max argument characters
- 30,000
- Voting period
- Two weeks
- Point system
- Multiple criterions
- Voting system
- Open
I saw an interesting debate on here I did not see in time to accept, so I decided to just create the debate myself (Again, since this is not my original idea). I will be arguing Pro- Which means that I will be arguing the White privilege does exist and impacts minorities in a negative way, especially inside the US (I would argue that it affects Black people the most). Con will argue that White privilege does not exist in the US. The first round, my opponent can give definitions (My definition for this is "White privilege- White privilege refers to the unearned advantages afforded to people who are assumed, based largely on complexion and related physical features, to be of European ancestry." (Riders University). Argument time is one week, due to me working more than one job at the moment. I look forward to whoever I interact with!
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- Regarding your first question about my definition of evidence: My definition requires evidence to be based on physical and observable phenomena. For example, you claimed that school choice promotes segregation, yet not only was there no evidence presented to support this, but the movement itself emphasizes in its mission statement that all children, regardless of race, should not be segregated to specific schools but should be free to attend their school of choice. This directly counters your virtually non-existent evidence, which seems based on hearsay regarding the potential results of a movement you misrepresented.
- Regarding your second question: It is essentially the same point as the first, predicated on misrepresenting my arguments or lacking substance, so I will not repeat my response.
- Regarding your question on how statistics are manipulated in research: I already provided a perfect example of this earlier in my argument concerning the feminist claims about the gender pay gap, where initial broad statistics obscured crucial contributing factors.
- Regarding your question on how I determine if someone went out of bounds of the law: The process is straightforward: one must read the specific law in question, be fully informed of the actions taken, and then compare those actions to the requirements and prohibitions outlined in the law.
- Statistics consistently show a gap in average earnings between men and women (e.g., women earning 84 cents for every dollar earned by men in 2022, according to BLS data) (Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).
- However, attributing this entire gap solely to systemic gender discrimination overlooks significant contributing factors identified in economic analyses, such as differences in occupations, industries, work hours, and years of experience (Source: Pew Research Center Analysis).
- While discrimination can be a factor, detailed studies suggest that these other variables explain a substantial portion of the raw wage gap (Source: Blau & Kahn, Journal of Economic Perspectives).
- Unsupported Claims: For instance, the idea that most early public schools were built by African Americans who were later driven out lacks evidence and contradicts the historical reality that the vast majority of African Americans were enslaved during the early centuries of U.S. history (Source 1: General overview of Slavery in America). Similarly, claims about African Americans being the first to domesticate certain animals lack substantiation. Such points seem to be opinions rather than historically verified facts.
- Black History is Taught: The assertion that positive Black history is ignored is contradicted by historical initiatives and academic fields. Negro History Week (now Black History Month) was specifically created by Carter G. Woodson precisely to raise awareness of Black contributions within schools and society (Source 2: ASALH - Origins of Black History Month). Furthermore, the existence of Black Studies (or African American Studies) as an academic discipline in universities across the country directly refutes the notion that Black history is untaught or suppressed (Source 3: NMAAHC discussion on Black History importance).
- Misinterpreting Carter G. Woodson: Citing Carter G. Woodson as evidence for a deliberately 'whitewashed' history seems paradoxical. While Woodson was a pivotal figure in promoting Black history, his primary goal was to integrate the overlooked contributions of African Americans into the existing American narrative, not necessarily to dismantle or fundamentally challenge the entire framework as inherently false or deceptive. Critiques of Woodson's work sometimes note his focus on highlighting achievements within the context of American progress, rather than adopting a more radical critique of the national narrative or American exceptionalism (a point discussed in biographical analyses like Jacqueline Goggin's Carter G. Woodson: A Life in Black History). Therefore, citing Woodson, whose aim was largely additive and corrective within the established narrative, to support a claim of pervasive, deliberate 'whitewashing' appears to misinterpret his specific historical project. The goal of Negro History Week was different from the later, more critical approaches often found in Black Studies.
[^1]: "White Privilege: A Myth," YIP Institute, June 21, 2021, https://yipinstitute.org/article/white-privilege-a-myth.[^2]: "Debunking 'White Privilege'," The Objective Standard, February 20, 2022, https://www.theobjectivestandard.com/p/debunking-white-privilege.[^3]: Vincent Harinam and Rob Henderson, "Why White Privilege Is Wrong—Part 1," Quillette, August 22, 2019, https://quillette.com/2019/08/22/why-white-privilege-is-wrong-part-1/.[^4]: "Affirmative Action: Equality or Reverse Discrimination?" Liberty University Honors Program Senior Thesis, 2010, https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1148&context=honors.[^5]: "What Is Affirmative Action? How It Works and Example," Investopedia, updated March 11, 2025, https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/affirmative-action.asp.[^6]: "The rise of “reverse” discrimination claims," Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP, JD Supra, November 6, 2024, https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/the-rise-of-reverse-discrimination-3306674/.[^7]: "The Misinformation Trap - Conspiracy Theories," The University of Southern Mississippi Libraries, accessed April 18, 2025, https://aquila.usm.edu/misinformationtrap_conspiracytheories/.[^8]: Lily Rothman, "This Is How February Became Black History Month," Time, January 29, 2016, https://time.com/4197928/history-black-history-month/.[^9]: Courtney Erdman, "History in its entirety: How whitewashed history education leaves much of history, students out," The Badger Herald, April 5, 2021, https://badgerherald.com/news/campus/2021/04/05/history-in-its-entirety-how-whitewashed-history-education-leave-much-of-history-students-out/.[^10]: "What is Historical Revisionism?" Institute for the Future of Education, Tecnológico de Monterrey, August 20, 2021, https://observatory.tec.mx/edu-news/historical-revisionism/.[^11]: See: "Brown v. Board of Education (1954)," National Archives and Records Administration, accessed April 18, 2025, https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/brown-v-board-of-education; and "What Is the Civil Rights Act of 1964? What's Included and History," Investopedia, updated January 28, 2025, https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/civil-rights-act-1964.asp.[^12]: "Beyond Enrollment: What Parents Really Want from Their Children's Education," EdChoice, November 12, 2024, https://www.edchoice.org/engage/beyond-enrollment-what-parents-really-want-from-their-childrens-education/.[^13]: Brandon Dutcher, "School Choice Reduces Racial Segregation," Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, December 7, 2015, https://ocpathink.org/post/analysis/school-choice-reduces-racial-segregation.[^14]: Kyla Wazana Tompkins, "Whiteness," Keywords for American Cultural Studies, New York University Press, accessed April 18, 2025, https://keywords.nyupress.org/american-cultural-studies/essay/whiteness/.[^15]: "One American Identity, Two Distinct Meanings," Bruce D. Benson Center for the Study of Western Civilization, University of Colorado Boulder, accessed April 18, 2025, https://www.colorado.edu/center/benson/western-civilization/summer-institute/summer-institute-essays/one-american-identity-two-distinct.[^16]: Robert A. Margo, "Slavery in the United States," EH.Net Encyclopedia, ed. Robert Whaples, accessed April 18, 2025, https://eh.net/encyclopedia/slavery-in-the-united-states/.[^17]: Tyler Cowen, "How much have white Americans benefited from slavery and its legacy?" Marginal Revolution (blog), May 25, 2014, https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2014/05/how-much-have-white-americans-benefited-from-slavery-and-its-legacy.html.
Point taken lol! I’m a researcher so I don’t debate often. We also try to pack a lot in one area (Examples are lit review sections of articles). I am mainly doing this to read for a new research study I am thinking about publishing. Anyway good debate!
Good debate for you as well! I would enjoy debating you again. However, I would suggest that you refine the way you write because the manner is both difficult to read, and quite impossible to address in vast quantities. Still I enjoy good sportsmanship.
If I don’t get the chance to say it good debate lol! We disagree but I appreciate you read a lot lol! I’m slow with replies due to grad school so I will eventually be there (I have to drive almost two hours for my PhD class in multivariate analysis. That typically takes it out of me for the week because I work two jobs as well lol)! Anyway best of luck in the future and I’m sure we may debate again if you ever want. This experience has been fun lol!
Ok man! I do think this is a pretty good debate so sure. I like that it is at least getting views lol!
Ping me when this one is done. I think I'll vote on it.
I am about to send my next reply, but I do want to put something in the comments for my opponent and the audience to see. We are of course pretty contrasting in styles which I am cool with and I am enjoying the discussion. Debate is spirited and I actually don’t take anything said to be mean spirited lol (We may spar a little more with words in this lol)! I know I of course critique my opponent with sources, but I do want to say I am not accusing someone of purposely saying something to be misleading. I will let my reply speak for itself, because I don’t want to make arguments in the comment section (I don’t think that would be right). I just want my opponent to know, that even though I make strong claims with certain things with citations, it is more because I actually conduct research with it, or I have some form of background (Things such as stats and research methodology is hard. I am a PhD student in educational research and stats is my strongest background and I still make plenty of mistakes lol!) My research at the moment is limited to Charter school segregation, so I am really still a student of the game in many aspects (Idk if my article will get published. I spoke at Cornell about it, and it was good enough for that but I am new to the publishing process lol). The interesting thing is the more I learn is the more I find out I have way more to learn. Anyway I look forward to by opponents reply!
I have my reply ready, minus the reference page made. I am just waiting because I need to post a reply in my other debate and I am focused on my homework for a grad school class lol!
I am looking forward to this, my reply won’t be until later in the week due to me being in grad school. I do this for fun on the side lol!