Initial Impressions And Social Privilege
We have all heard expressions such as “first impressions are important” and “we are judged (even by ourselves) by our appearances. ” Such judgements lead to the development of values which develop not only on the reflections we see in the mirror but also in the way we choose to clothe ourselves and operate in the world. The preliminary judgements we make about people help us to understand whether or not they will fit into our social circles, whether they are someone we can get along with, and whether we have something in common with them. Making judgements about a person’s physical appearance is often problematized within discussions around human behavior, however these ‘first impressions’ are also intrinsically helpful to assist us in navigating social situations.
As a young woman of Caucasian decent I recognise that I have privilege in relation to how I appear in social settings. However, there are also challenges which present themselves due to my gender and appearance which will be discussed as follows. As a young woman in my undergraduate degree I am 19 years old. I am an averaged-shaped person, with an average height. As noted I am of Caucasian descent which allows me a level of privilege in how I navigate the world. I became highly aware of my privilege when I attended university for the first time. Although I was from a multicultural community and my high school was diverse, the community still predominantly reflected my own cultural upbringing. When I attended university for the first time I came to recognise more the way in which my outward appearance affected the way I was perceived in society.
When I attended university, I became acutely aware of the way my appearance as a young, white woman impacted my ability to relate to professors and other students. There are many ways in which this became clear. First, I recognised that my ability to speak fluent English in combination with my skin colour were positively perceived by professors. It is possible that professors did not even recognise their unconscious bias, however, I realized that because my skin colour and my English language fluency coincide there is more favour shown towards me during class time. Professors who speak English are more apt to provide me with one-on-one attention, answer my questions and listen to what I have to say. When students who cannot speak English speak up in class, there is a clear sense of resistance demonstrated by some professors, however I recognise that this is an unconscious bias and not meant to be racist or problematic. Simply because I am a fluent English speaker and because my skin colour reflects this, I am afforded more ease in my classes. This is but one example of the way in which I am privileged in comparison to some of my classmates of colour.
Second, another way in which I am perceived apart from my skin colour is by my gender. As a woman, I recognise that there are certain ways in which my behavior is understood and perceived. As a woman I am expected to act in a certain way. For a very blatant example, because I am in a female body, I am expected to use the women’s washroom. I make this example because I recognise that there are individuals who do not have the luxury of embodying a space where they are able to use the washroom with the gender they identify with. One of my good friends was born into a body which would be perceived as a woman’s body, however they identify more with the male gender. There were times in my friend’s life when they did not feel comfortable accessing either washroom for fear of being chastised or harmed. In this way I recognise my privilege relative to being comfortable with the sex I was born with. My gender and my sex are compatible according to social standards and in this way, I am able to navigate this portion of social life flawlessly. However, there are ways in which my gender presents challenges to my life. I would be remiss if I did not discuss the difficulties I experience navigating public transportation, particularly during the evening hours. I am a person who lives in a relatively small body. In this sense, I find it challenging to take the subway. When people push and shove to ascertain that they acquire a good spot in the train, it is challenging for me to make my presence known and not be pushed out of the way. Due to my small stature I have recognized that people perceive me differently. In the traffic situation in particular, I find that my body is shoved aside easily by people who do not seem to have a regard for whether or not they might hurt me. In this way it feels that my body is seen as disposable.
Similarly, in combination with my gender, it often feels that people do not take me seriously. As I am a young, woman who is small in stature, I feel that my words often go unheard. This is tied to the way in which women are treated in general in society. Though women are making headway in terms of becoming more equal to men, there are still many situations in which women’s gender makes it difficult for them to speak out and be heard. Although I recognise that I certainly benefit from my skin colour, I am also cognizant of the way in which my gender impacts how I am perceived in the academic realm and in the world in general. When I speak in class, due to my stature and my gender I realise that I am often perceived as having a weak opinion. Although my identity as a white woman allows me to navigate the world with more ease than some of my friends of colour, there are still instances where both of these factors place me in a realm of judgement. In this way, when people judge me as a small woman, I tend to internalize this. Other people’s behaviors and the way they react to me has an influence on the way I perceive myself. As people often see me as a small woman, it makes it difficult to unearth those deep ceded perspectives.
When I look at myself in the mirror, it takes me time to unpack all of the prejudice I have experienced as a woman and convince myself that I am worthy of attending university like the rest of the students in my class. I think that the way I feel in relation to these public opinions is not an isolated experience, and I believe that it is connected to larger systems of oppression which recognise women as having lesser societal value. Although I recognise that I have privilege in terms of my race, I also know that systems of oppression are intersecting. I bear the brunt of sexism in my role as a young, woman who embodies a small frame. However, this does not alleviate the way in which I participate in the inadvertent oppression of others through my position as a white person. As such, it is essential to recognise the social positions we embody and understand how we are all at once privileged and oppressed. In this way we may come to understand the other and place less value on initial impressions.
