Luke Visconti’s Ask the White Guy column is a top draw on Fair360.com. Visconti, the founder and CEO of Fair360, formerly DiversityInc, is a nationally recognized leader in diversity management. In his popular column, readers who ask Visconti tough questions about race/culture, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability and age can expect smart, direct and disarmingly frank answers.
Question:
Do you feel entitled to success and position just because you are white Do your friends generally feel entitled Do you feel that white men are smarter than black men and white people smarter than blacks, as a whole When a white man, in general, competes with a black man for a job, does the white man automatically think that he is a better candidate Just wanted to know!
Answer:
No, I do not feel entitled, but then again I’m not a typical white guy. I associate with friends who feel the same way I do.
In my opinion, the insidiousness of racism in this country is such that the majority of white people are likely to feel entitled or superior even if it is subconscious. You can prove this by measuring disparities that are allowed to exist.
This behavior is not limited to white people; we human beings tend to discriminate as part of our nature.
That’s why, in a country that will be minority white by 2050 and in a world that is 75 percent not white, diversity management is critical to corporate success. We must manage to overcome our common negative human tendencies.
