Watch This Enlightening Video About Privilege and What It Means In Our Daily Lives

By SheSpeaksTeam Jul 10, 2015

Talking about privilege and what it means in our daily lives can be a difficult subject. You might not think much about social advantages (and disadvantages) completely out of our control like gender, sexual preference and family background but a new Buzzfeed video demonstrates an insightful exercise that highlights just how large of a gap can be created.

In the video a handful of people are asked a series of 35 questions and told to step back, forward or stay in their place depending on how they answer the question. For example one prompt states, “If you are able to move through the world without fear of sexual assault, take one step forward.” And another says, “If you took out loans for your education take one step backward.”

Two women are shown during one part of the exercise having to let go of each other’s hands as one goes forward and the other gets left behind. Another participant who made it pretty close to the front says of his experience with the exercise, “Just looking back and seeing a bunch of people behind you is not a good feeling.”

Others involved in the exercise described it as “awkward” and one woman pointed out how thinking about privilege takes on a whole new form when you can see it represented visually. Literally taking a step back or forward due to something completely out of your control like your gender or heritage can put a lot of things in perspective.

What do you think about this video highlighting privilege?

What does privilege mean to you?