In many ways, college is intellectually freeing and full of opportunities. Students have access to a wide range of academic resources to enhance their studies. Work-study programs and clubs offer students a chance to gain experience in leadership positions and find a way to reach out to and connect with others. College is a place where students can discover a new subject that they never would have thought to study, and it can open up a brand new path toward a meaningful career.
While all of these examples are true, it is also equally true that college harbors white male entitlement just like the rest of society.
I was studying in the quiet study section of my college’s library when a few men decided that their existence was more important than mine. Sitting at my preferred table, I sat my books down on the table and cracked open my notebook. I had a test later in the week, and I was not going to let a few moments of free time go to waste. At that moment, a group of middle-aged white men came walking by, chatting loudly with one another and completely ignoring the “Quiet Study Section” signs. I paid no attention to the men because I was already engrossed in my notes. However, when these men started talking about what I was studying, I looked up. Standing across the table, one of the men picked up my book, started flipping through the pages, and joked with his cohort that he should read this book. When the cohort laughed and said, “No, thanks,” the man who took my book as his own placed my book back on the table before walking away. During the entire mind-blowing situation, neither of the men acknowledged my presence, nor did they ask me if it was okay to look at my book. They just assumed that anything in their line of vision was automatically theirs, and that they had no reason to be respectful to me.
I was in such a state of shock that all I could do was give these men an are you kidding me? look. The situation unfolded and came to an end so abruptly that it was nearly impossible to make any comment. Unfortunately for these men, I happen to be a writer, and I have just permanently recorded their actions as a lesson for all of us to learn.
White male entitlement is the product of a long line of patriarchal history that has shown favor to white European men. It is something that society has engrained into white men to act out either consciously or subconsciously. White male entitlement appears in society when men believe that they can take whatever they want--- that their wants and needs exceed the basic right of human dignity for all persons. White male entitlement teaches men to invade a woman’s space while she’s reading alone in public by hitting on her or having an unwanted conversation with her. It also teaches men that they “deserve” to have a woman’s affection, even if it means harassing and stalking a woman. It even appears in society when a man picks up and goes through a woman’s book as if it was his right to do so. I have a newsflash for everyone: women do not exist to satisfy a man’s sense of entitlement.
When 20-25 percent of college women are raped, it does no good to ignore stories like mine. The way to reverse white male entitlement before it grows into something worse, like rape or assault, is to publicize the smaller, disrespectful actions. No matter how shocking a situation may be, remember to address instances of white male entitlement. There can be no change unless we commit ourselves to being the force of change.
