The Hidden Costs of Whiteness:

A Pyramid Scheme Analysis

In today's discourse on identity, culture, and power, a nuanced examination reveals the intricate dynamics of whiteness, akin to a pyramid scheme, underpinned by historical colonization and forced assimilation. This analysis offers a deeper understanding of the concealed tolls on individuals who have been coerced (remember whiteness is non-consensual) into forsaking their ethnic cultural identity to blend into the dominant white narrative. The metaphor of a pyramid scheme illuminates the exploitative structure of whiteness, where the benefits accumulated by those at the top are predicated on the losses and erasure of those below.

Decoding the Scheme: Whiteness as Currency

The Foundation: Colonization and Forced Assimilation

At the base of this pyramid lies the historical process of colonization, an era marked by the subjugation and assimilation of diverse cultures into a monolithic identity. This process not only stripped individuals of their unique cultural heritage (mind, body, and soul) but also institutionalized whiteness as the standard, a currency of social, economic, and political capital. I define whiteness at its creation as a sociopolitical stance that says who can vote, who make money, and who can gain upward mobility based on geno and phenotypes, the only thing that holds whiteness together is power. Forced assimilation into this identity has perpetuated a cycle of erasure, where the price of admission into the dominant group involves the suppression or complete loss of one's ethnic roots.

The Mechanism: Privilege Accumulation and Cultural Loss

As with any pyramid scheme, the structure promises upward mobility - in this case, through the acquisition of white privilege (I prefer leverage as there is no privilege in losing who you are). However, this privilege/leverage comes at a significant cost: the disconnection from one's own cultural lineage and the perpetuation of systems of oppression. This transaction, where cultural identity is exchanged for perceived societal benefits, underscores the exploitative nature of the scheme, enriching a few while disenfranchising many, including other white people.