Discuss the contemporary perception of Whiteness in the United States

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Whiteness, although it may often be invisible, is aggressively embraced and defended. However, White people do not think of themselves as a race or have a conscious racial identity. A White racial identity emerges only when filling out a form asking for self-designation of race or when Whites are culturally or socially surrounded by people who are not White. Therefore, contemporary White Americans give little thought to "being White." Consequently, there is little interest in studying "Whiteness" or considering "being White" except that it is "not being Black." Unlike non-Whites, who are much more likely to interact with Whites, take orders from Whites, and see Whites as leading figures in the mass media, Whites enjoy not being reminded of their Whiteness. Unlike racial minorities, Whites downplay the importance of their racial identity, although they are willing to receive the advantages that come from being White. This means that advocating a "color-blind" or "race-neutral" outlook permits the privilege of Whiteness to prevail.

New scholarly interest seeks to view Whiteness but not from the vantage point of a White supremacist. Rather, focusing on White people as a race or on what it means today to be White goes beyond any definition that implies superiority over non-Whites.