A research team led by Colgate University psychologist Erin Cooley examined the “consequences” of white privilege theory through a series of two studies. The first recruited 484 Americans online and asked them to read a short essay about white privilege, then asked to name privilege white Americans enjoy.
Afterwards, participants were asked to read a newspaper column about a low-income New York City resident named Kevin who was raised by a single mother, on welfare, and “doesn’t feel like he has the skills or ability to obtain a well-paying job.” Researchers told half the participants Kevin was white, and the other half that Kevin was black.
Pacific Standard reports:
The researchers found that ‘social liberals showed significantly less sympathy for Kevin when he was described as white compared to black.’ In contrast, social conservatives’ attitudes toward the young man were basically the same, no matter his reported race.
Put another way, white privilege theory – or the popular progressive notion that America is hopelessly stacked against blacks and other minorities to the advantage of whites – leads to a racist perspective on poverty among liberals who buy into it. Conservatives, the study suggests, are unmoved by race. – READ MORE