Let me begin by saying that I am a white, heterosexual, cisgender female. To unpack that statement, I am categorized and self-identify as white or caucasian based on the pigment of my skin. To be heterosexual or “straight” means to be attracted to people of the opposite sex. To be cisgender means I identify with the gender ascribed to me at birth. I was born female, and I identify as a girl.

There are few words that make people categorized as white more defensive or more uncomfortable than the words white privilege. In fact, up until recently, I tried to reject the idea that I am privileged based on something so arbitrary as my skin color. I rejected this idea because I wanted to believe that my accomplishments are entirely the product of the work and dedication that I have put in. And I, naively, wanted to believe that everyone can accomplish their dreams and goals if they simply work hard enough.

I think the reason why so many people reject notions of white privilege (or privilege based on gender or sexuality) is because of the implications of the word privilege itself. When we, or at least when I, think of privilege I think of someone who is placed on a pedestal or someone has had everything given to them. Which means that when people think of white privilege, they assume that the implication is that because they are white, they haven’t had to work for anything.

But privilege isn’t like that. Not at all. All that privilege means is that there is something, based on some arbitrary or unearned aspect of your identity, that you don’t have to worry about. For example, as someone identified as white or caucasian, I can go through security at the airport without worrying about adding in extra time in the event that I am pulled aside for a more thorough and invasive "random" check. Because I’m pale, “skin tone” colored pencils, crayons, or markers closely match my real skin tone. As a heterosexual, the phrases “girlfriend and boyfriend” or “husband and wife” resonate with and apply to me. As cisgender, I never have to think twice about what bathroom or changing room to use. I will always use the one that says girls, ladies, or is marked by a stick figure wearing a dress.

All of these aspects of my identity are unearned. I didn’t choose to have pale skin. I didn’t choose to be heterosexual. I didn’t choose to be cisgender.

I was simply born this way. I didn’t earn my privileges.

Privilege doesn’t excuse those privileged from struggling. That is worth reiterating. Privilege doesn’t excuse those privileged from struggling. Everyone, no matter who you are, has struggles and everyone is faced with obstacles they must overcome. It is part of being human.

Moreover, privilege doesn’t exist solely on one dimension. I am privileged because I am white, heterosexual, and cisgender. I am burdened because I am a female in a world that is still tainted with ideas of male superiority and patriarchy. In the future, my salary may be less than an equally competent male doing the same job. I am told not to walk alone at night. In math, science, or engineering classes (typically male dominated fields), my intelligence may be questioned or doubted. The length of my shorts, skirt, or dress may be seen as a reflection of my character and the way people interact with me may be different depending on the length.

I will never say that I got to where I am today solely because of my privileges. I worked hard throughout high school, and continue to work hard everyday in college. But, my accomplishments are not all mine. I am privileged because I come from a two parent household and have a mom and a dad. I am privileged because I grew up in an upper-middle class neighborhood where people pay high taxes which funneled into funding for the public school that I attended. I am privileged because I am white and I went to a predominately white high school and never was made to feel ostracized, marginalized, or incapable.

I am privileged because my parents have the resources to pay for extracurriculars, to pay for summer programs, and to pay for college counseling and SAT tutoring. And part of the reason that my parents were able to provide me with these resources is because of their privilege. Privilege that has been accumulated and passed and passed down generationally. Yes, I took those resources and opportunities and ran with them. And I put in the work. There are people who have resources that they don’t take advantage of. That is why privilege cannot be boxed by a two-category system. Privilege doesn’t automatically or inevitably lead to success -- whatever we define success to be. But privilege gives you an unearned leg up because of the way our society is currently structured. As much as I would love to think that I am solely a reflection of myself, I am the compilation of hundreds of people who, over the course of my life, have taught me, have fought for me, have advocated for me, have pushed me, and have given me resources and access.

We cannot avoid the subject of privilege anymore. We live in a society pervaded with racism, sexism, and heterosexism. As years pass, and time progresses, these unfair and unearned gaps in equity and treatment are not closing and disappearing at the rate that they should be. And in some cases, these gaps are widening.

I don’t mean, in the slightest, to make people feel guilty. Feeling guilty for aspects of our identity that we have no control over serves no purpose. Guilt leads to sympathy, not empathy. And sympathy leads to division not to unity. Guilt doesn’t lead to structural change. But if we are aware of the ways that we are privileged (and the ways that we are burdened) we can consciously think about the ways that we are arbitrarily and unfairly placed at an advantage. We can work for, advocate for, and be an ally to those marginalized by one or more (or the intersection) aspects of their identity. We can understand the challenges and the plight of oppressed groups in a different way. And, I believe, that it is only through understanding that change occurs and the opportunity for equity and equality in treatment emerges.