Synopses & Reviews
Privilege is about more than being white, wealthy, and male—as Michael Kimmel, Abby Ferber, and a wide range of contributors make clear in this innovative and timely anthology. In an era when diversity” is too often shorthand for of color” and/or female,” the personal and analytical essays in this collection explore the multifaceted nature of social location and consider how gender, class, race, sexual orientation, (dis)ability and religion interact to create nuanced layers of privilege and oppression. The individual essays are powerfully thought-provoking; taken together, they help guide students to a deep understanding of the dynamics of diversity and stratification, advantage and power.
The third edition features ten new or newly-recast essays which will help students understand the intersectional nature of privilege and oppression. Enhanced pedagogy (including new discussion questions and personal connections” activities at the conclusion of each section) encourages students to examine their own assumptions, beliefs, values, practices, and social locations—without becoming overwhelmed.
Review
"The diverse voices found in this book would add a unique and thought-provoking perspective to any undergraduate course examining the many aspects of oppression."
—MultiCultural Review
"This is a superb collection of work at the vanguard of a resurgent interest in how privilege works across a wide range of human experience. Kimmel and Ferber have skillfully knit together a coherent picture of otherwise unexamined and under-theorized connections in a dauntingly vast and fragmented literature."
—Troy Duster, New York University
"This excellent anthology forcefully illustrates how bigotry based on ethnic, racial, gender, and sexual stereotyping confines and blights the lives of those deemed inferior. Id like to see this book assigned in every high school and college campus in the country."
—Martin Duberman, Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus, CUNY
"Finally a book on how the other half (or less) lives, and how their status, power and way of life is related to the debasing and suffering of others. This volume will start to bring some semblance of balance to the study of inequality and injustice in the United States."
—Pedro Noguera, Harvard University
Synopsis
This innovative anthology expands the concept of privilege, exploring how gender, class, race, sexual orientation, (dis)ability and religion interact to create multifaceted layers of privilege and oppression.
About the Author
Michael S. Kimmel is Distinguished Professor of Sociology at SUNY at Stony Brook. The author or editor of more than twenty volumes, his books include
The Guys Guide to Feminism (2011),
Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men (2008),
Mens Lives (9th edition, 2013), and
Manhood in America: A Cultural History (3rd edition, 2011). He is also founder and editor of
Men and Masculinities, the fields premier scholarly journal.
Abby L. Ferber is Professor of Sociology and Director of the Matrix Center for the Advancement of Social Equity and Inclusion at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Her many authored, co-authored, and edited books include White Man Falling: Race, Gender, and White Supremacy (1998), Hate Crime in America: What Do We Know? (2000) and The New Basics: Sex, Gender, and Sexuality (2008). She is also co-organizer of the national White Privilege Conference and the Knapsack Institute.
Table of Contents
preface
Introduction: Toward a Sociology of the Superordinate, by Michael S. Kimmel
part one: making privilege visible
1 White Privilege and Male Privilege, by Peggy McIntosh
2 The Black Male Privileges Checklist, by Jewel Woods
3 The Invisible Crutch, by Jessica Shea
4 10 Myths About Legacy Preferences in College Admissions, by Richard D. Kahlenberg
5 The Heterosexual Questionnaire, by M. Rochlin
6 Top Ten Differences Between White Terrorists and Others, by Juan Cole
Discussion Questions and Activities, by Abby L. Ferber
part two: understanding privilege
7 Privilege, Power, Difference, and Us, by Allan Johnson
8 Hiring Quotas for White Males Only, by Eric Foner
9 Becoming 100 Percent Straight, by Michael A. Messner
10 White-Blindness: The Dominant-Group Experience, by Ashley Woody” Doane
11 Class: Still Alive and Reproducing in the United States,by Diana Kendall
12 The Everyday Impact of Christian Hegemony, by Paul Kivel
Discussion Questions and Activities, by Abby L. Ferber
part three: intersections: the complicated reality
13 Seeing Privilege Where It Isnt: Marginalized Masculinities and the Intersectionality of Privilege, by Bethany M. Coston and Michael S. Kimmel
14 Class and Race: The New Black Elite, by bell hooks
15 How Gay Stays White and What Kind of White It Stays, by Allan Bérubé
16 Questioning Privilege from Within the Special Education Process, by Janet Sauer and Heather Powers Albanesi
Discussion Questions and Activities, by Abby L. Ferber
part four: making new connections
17 Whiter Shades of Pale: On the Plurality of Whitenesses, by Clifford Leek
18 We Arent Just Color-Blind, We Are Oppression-Blind!, by Abby L. Ferber
19 Toward a New Vision: Race, Class, and Gender as Categories of Analysis and Connection, by Patricia Hill Collins
20 Winning Hearts and Minds, by Mark R. Warren
Discussion Questions and Activities, by Abby L. Ferber
index