" Johnson's" Privilege, Power, and Difference

Power, Privilege, and Difference
By Allan G. Johnson

Quotes:

Dictionary.com defines Power, Privilege, and Difference as....

Power means to have possession of control or command over others.

Privilege means a grant to a individual of a special right.

Difference means to be not alike in character or quality; distinct

I believe that to understand what Allan Johnson is trying to tell us, we must understand the idea of what the words, previously stated. All of these words holds a much stronger meaning, they tap the glass and breaks down what world we actually live in, the reality.

“People are tagged with other labels that point to the lowest-status group they belong to, as in "woman doctor" or "black writer," but never "white lawyer" or male senator". Any category that lowers our status relative to others' can be used to mark us; to be privileged is to go through life with the relative ease of being unmarked.”  "Allan G. Johonson"

It is so frustrating that people, specifically women are seen as the "woman lawyer" or as the "black CEO." We as people should be simply know for being that amazing lawyer, who has won many cases with great success. Or be that CEO who is respectful and does the best for his company. Our gender and race should not have anything to do with our success. If you want to be successful you have to try, from personal experience while I am working towards a certain goal I do not think how I am white. I work till I achieve my goal. I remember one day, I was home my mom called me to come watch something on ABC news. She mentioned that it was about a ballet dance, I rushed in and ended up missing the tide bi about her. However, my mom explained what it was all about. "Her name is Misty Copeland, she recently made it big in the ballet world." My mom continued on by saying how she would be performing in some shows in the month of December. She also mentioned that Misty was in a commercial about preserving to reach your goals, I needed up watching it on youtube. I was in love but my mom told me that it was not aired. I felt an uproar of emotions. I said to my mom, "she should be known for the dancer she is, not that she is a great black dancer." Misty Copeland took ballet classes because she loved ballet, this has nothing to do with her skin color. 

While i watched this, i was in awe. I remember saying to my mom, "I hope I could be a as great a dancer as Misty." What I about her is that she tries her hardest to put all of the harsh comments about her enthcity because she knows herself that it has nothing to do with her talent in dancing. 

“Male experience is what patriarchal culture uses to represent human experience, even when it is women who most often live it.” Allan G Johnson

Patriarch is defined as a person regarded as the father or founder of an order or class according to dictionary.comDictionary.com. The idea that men are in charge while women have deal with being second to the male gender is ridiculous. My mom always says that we come into this world the same way and we all leave this world the same way, so none of us are better than anyone else. Male and female are difference biologically and mentally but that is not a negative thing, it is how we were meant to be made. If we are living in the same world we should be experience our life fairly Within the idea of SCWAAMP, "M" stands for maleness. This screams how males are favored, for example they paid more for the same job a women holds simply because they are male. A women is paid 79% of what a man is paid for working at the same level. There is no legitimate reason to discriminate women in the work place finically  because of their gender.  For example, my sister went to school for civil engineering  Her school of engineering was a ratio of 3 guys to 1 girl. Since she graduated she works at General Dynamics in Groton, CT that is government established facility working nuclear engineers. In the departments she has worked in there has been two thirds male in her office. This should not matter in any regard. 

I have watched my sister work tirelessly through out the week, many filled with over time completed some successful work. While working, she has seen many male co workers slacking off, enjoying a fight of throwing food at other co workers in the office. Why are paying women only 79% of what men earn then?
At General Dynamics there has been an acceptance of women applying to the corporation as this company has been supporting women, whether of color, and decent. For there to be a change, there must be more companies standing for this as it is a different world now. 


“The public response to feminism has been ferociously defensive precisely because feminism touches such a deep nerve of truth and the denial that keeps us from it. If feminism were truly ridiculous, it would be ignored. But it isn't ridiculous, and so provokes a vigorous backlash.”  Allan G Johnson

Johnson strikes such a chord with this statement. Feminism now has so accumlated so many meanings as the world has evolved. According to Dictionary.com, feminism means "to advocate for social, political, and other rights of women that men have acquired".  While the Merriam Webster Dictionary states that feminism means, "a belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities." Dictionary.com stated like women must work for this goal of equality while Merriam Webster states it like women already have the same rights that men have. In the year, 2015 the idea of feminism is the opposite of narrow. An article done by CNN states that less women are getting married or women chose to marry later in life. It is different but I do not blame any women for the choice they make. For the longest time, women were seen as a dependent to a man. Now that we have more freedom to be on our own, many women take the chance to be single, get their masters degree, travel constantly simply because they have the opportunity. 

Personally, I love this idea. I do not live my life looking for someone depend on because being independent is amazing. You can accomplish so much on your own as you have time for yourself. I work for a mother who went to school to find a husband and have a family. She told me that it was a year after she graduated that she was married and months later was pregnant. I can remember going home in such confusion. I said to my mom how I never would consider going to school to find a husband. Going to school is something you should do for yourself, to better yourself as learner and make a happy world for yourself. This mother is almost living in movie like "The Help." Where the women would go to school and then move on to family life while the man worked outside the home. It drove me crazy. 

Emma Stone, who played as Skitter, who was the one girl who went away to school outside of the town where she grew up. She continued on to get a job at the Jackson Journal once she came back home. Her mother said, "you can write my obituary and mention that she has a daughter who is single." Skitter's mother did not understand her daughter. She was proud of skitter but could not comprehend the life she wanted, working for a paper, traveling and going beyond Jackson. Skitter's mom was a true southern women, who had a baby, had a black nanny to care for Skitter and for the whole house while she did whatever she felt she wanted to do. Skitter represented the women in the coming generations, such as myself. This character and I had the same intention to go to school beyond high school to better ourselves so we could find a great career, where we can benefit from. Skitter and I also have anther trait in common, boys. Throughout the story she has one "boyfriend"and I have few to count as well. Both my relationships and her relationship did not last because the guy wanted something completely difference; power, domaince, being a follower, and a kind of girl who wants to stop her life after making a family.