Sitting with Privilege
If you’re reading this newsletter, chances are your eyeballs are fixed on a computer, a mobile phone, an iPad, or some other screen technology that escapes my awareness.
If you possess such a device, I dare assume you have some level of privilege. You might have hustled for it, had it handed over, or a blend of both.
And if you’re based in the global north, your privilege score just got a little chubbier. And the list goes on if you’re white, male, straight, financially comfortable, non-disabled, fit, stereotypically attractive, identifying as cisgender or monogamous.
If you’re reading this, maybe privilege is a word you know intimately. One that weighs in on your decisions of where to live and work (if to work at all), and how to show up in your world.
Perhaps you feel comfortable with your privilege. You’re grateful to yourself, for lifting yourself up from wherever you came from. Or you are appreciative to those who bless(ed) you with an easier life as you figure(d) out your place on this strange floating planet.
Or perhaps privilege is a word you avoid—one that makes you feel somewhat uncomfortable. Guilt might creep in as you wonder if you really deserve all these perks. Shouldn't you need to work harder for stability? Put in the hours, earn your keep, understand what life truly entails for most people?
Wherever you fall on the privilege spectrum, today, I’d like to share a thought that has been swirling in my consciousness lately: privilege as a responsibility, or rather, privilege as response-ability.
Think about it: someone who is responsible is, by definition, someone who, savior complexes aside, has an ability to respond.
In the midst of the daily whirlwind, it’s easy to forget our good fortune—get caught up in to-do items, shopping lists, WhatsApp messages, Instagram scrolling, clients’ demands, you name it!
The bigger picture can get a bit blurry. Suddenly, we stop noticing the homeless person in our street, that friend struggling to find a job, that acquaintance who, to everyone’s surprise, fell into a depression. Not to mention our relation to the rest of the Earth’s population!
So, what if, instead of burying the awareness of our privilege somewhere to be forgotten, we keep it close, letting it gently push us into action, wherever we can, whenever we can?
And I’m not talking about quitting your studies or your job and dedicating your life to a humanitarian career (though, as you can read below, that’s exactly what our guest this month did).
Showing up can be as simple as pushing for better conditions at your workplace (as discussed last month with Rebecca Seal), picking a company that is not harming the environment, calling discrimination out, or listening more deeply to someone’s troubles.
After all, what makes privilege problematic is not that you or I get to enjoy life’s pleasures, it’s that not everyone gets to do the same—hence, the responsibility to do something about it.
Warmly,
Carlota
Listen
This month I conversed with Amanda Huits, who early on in her life decided to take responsibility for her privilege and dedicate her career to humanitarian work.
After visiting her mom’s original home in a favela in Brazil, Amanda, born and raised in the Netherlands, ventured into studies in International Relations and, more recently, integrated the Learning and Operations team at GPPAC (Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict), the world’s largest network of civil society organizations across the globe.
Youth Shoutout
This month’s shoutout goes to the Earthrise Studio. Founded in 2020 by Alice Aedy, Jack Harries, and Finn Harries, they’re an impact-driven media company for people and the planet.
I’ve been following their work for a bit. It’s inspiring to see them evolve, expand their network, and reach important voices in the activism space such as David David Attenborough and Greta Thunberg.
They seem to be up to something, blending impeccable branding with engaging storytelling and important climate-related messages.