The Seven Deadly Priviledges

The Seven Deadly Priviledges

Hi everybody, Mary here.

So, I was watching some feminist/LGBTQ+ videos and some of them addressing priviledge and the relations between an oppressive group and an oppressed group, and I realised, that when reading the comments in the comment sections of these videos, lots of priviledged people do not realise, like, at all, what being priviledge is.

Since priviledge folks apparently have a hard time thinking about their oppressive behaviour and how it affects oppressed groups and minorities, I will be discussing very briefly about the Seven Deadly Priviledges.

Basically, I will start with seven priviledges, that are very easy to recognise, and also the most prevalent forms of priviledge in our societies. Of course, there are many ways in which people are oppressed and I can't talk about them in this post as I'm trying to vulgarise my speech for the common masses who don't even know how to Google.

Just like the Seven Deadly Sins and how people can sin in many other ways, here are the Seven Deadly Priviledges, a.k.a. the first seven priviledges you'll probably learn in your life, and that need to be taken the most seriously.

1) Being white. This is quite obvious, and guess what ? I am white myself and I am aware of that priviledge that I have over people of colour. Being white means you do not experience racism, any form of oppression based on your skin colour, your origins, or your ethnicity. And this prevents you from living discrimination, oppression, violence and murder for your ethnicity. Don't take that for granted, like, ever. Thank you. (Also, stop cultural appropriation, thank you.)

2) Being cisgender. By being cisgender, a.k.a., identifying with the gender that has been assigned to you at birth, you do not experience transphobia, or in my case, non-binary phobia/erasure. If you never have to question your gender, have to spend money, time and efforts through surgery and hormones, see your gender invalidated or erased, then you have a priviledge that many of us transgender and non-binary folks don't. Please be aware of that.

3) Being straight. Performing hetero-normativity in every sense of the word (a.k.a. being heterosexual AND hetero-romantic at the same time) is a priviledge, because guess what ? Your romantic and sexual orientations will never be the cause of your discrimination, oppression, violence, corrective rape, or death. It's people who share my identity who are being killed and violated everyday in the streets, not you, little straighties. Before you even start talking about "how good of an ally you are", remember that. Thank you.

4) Being a man. Because you will never experience sexism. I think this one is quite obvious : you won't have to worry about recieving less money for the same job because of your gender, be sexualised, reduced to an object, be the subject of every sexist joke that hinders your progression, and as a female-aligned non-binary person and a feminist, I can't take this anymore. Please check your priviledge as a man while I sip my cup of male tears. Away from you.

5) Being able-bodied. Not needing a wheelchair, a cane, or mobility aids to go around is a priviledge, and I have it. It means you will never hear complains about "how slow you are", being fatigued because of your disabilities, having to take less space, because able-bodied people feel entitled to take all the space they want, and expecting you to move out of the way when they are the ones who can move and not you. Remember this priviledge, oh, and also, the fact that it's legal to pay disabled people under the minimum wage. Wow. (Chronic illnesses also fall under this category of oppression.)

6) Being neuro-typical. You don't have a personality disorder, a mental illness, a dys-something (dyspraxia, dyslexia, dyscalculia, among many others), or aren't in the autistic spectrum yourself ? Wow, this is a priviledge that, as an autistic person with multiple personality disorders and mental illnesses, will never have in my entire life ! Being neuro-typical means the world is catered to you. From socialisation in schools to the work field and literally the whole world, being neurodivergent means you have to face the expectations of being neuro-typical and having to behave like neuro-typical people. Be glad it isn't you who's exhausted everyday to perform an act that is unnatural for us. Thank you.

7) Being a middle-class to upper-class person. No financial problems with you, it seems. No problems to buy food, make it to rent, pay your bills, send your kids to (elite) schools, without fearing the crushing debt ? Not having to make two or three jobs to survive and still being afraid of extra expenses ? Not fearing debt when going to the hospital or going for a medical treatment ? Being able to be financially sustainable and pay all your expenses debt-free ? This is also a priviledge that people from lower classes and who have lower incomes don't have. And I'm aware of this as a person from a middle-to-upper class background. So, yeah, please think about this next time you say "oh, that's not expensive" to someone who can't afford something. They probably know they don't have the means for it and they don't need your classist ass to remind them that. Thank you.

TL;DR : Are you one of the following words : white, cis, straight, a man, able-bodied, neuro-typical, or a middle-to-upper class person ? Congratulations : YOU ARE PRIVILEDGED. It doesn't mean you are a bad person for those priviledges. It just means you have been given something that gives you a headstart, something that isn't given to other people and is the basis of their discrimination and oppression. You have to be aware of these "gifts" that haven't been given to others, and own them, and listen to the oppressed groups and give them a voice in a world that is so deeply trying to erase and silence them. Thank you.

Wow. This post is way longer than I expected. Anyways, now I hope you understand how priviledges work, how you can work around your own priviledges, and how you can learn about oppression and discrimination without making everything about yourself and your sacro-saint "allyship" (that should be called "allyshit" tbh) and "how good of an ally you are".

I will see you soon with a new post.

And as usual, our last word : KIDNEYS !!!