• 2.3.5. Intergroup anxiety becomes most salient when groups experience fear and threats to how they view themselves and when goals and resources are being threatened. For example, intergroup anxieties are heightened when there are fears that other groups could be benefitting from a finite pool of resources (like jobs, opportunities, housing, etc.). These intergroup fears and anxieties are actively constructed by dominant voices, like politicians and the media (Richeson & Shelton, 2007; Riek et al., 2006; Roberts & Rizzo, 2020). Racial hierarchies, white privilege and white fragility Sidanius and Pratto (1999) asserted that all societies are ordered hierarchically in some way. Some societies, such as the United States, are ordered through a racial hierarchy (Roberts & Rizzo, 2020). Hierarchies are typically maintained through numerical majorities (which increase the power of the dominant group).11 Racial hierarchies often involve: • Systems, structures and processes built for the advantage of the dominant group, allowing them to gain greater status and power in society, while simultaneously disadvantaging minority groups. • In Western societies, this is known as ‘white privilege’ as it allows people of the dominant white ethnic group to easily access resources, opportunities and systems in society (e.g., healthcare, the justice system, etc.) in ways that people of ethnic minority groups are unable to do so (i.e., they face greater barriers due to their ethnicity). White individuals may be allies against racism themselves, but they still benefit from a system that is built to their advantage (Curllin et al., 2019). • White privilege reinforces the superiority of the dominant white ethnic group and normalises them. Other ethnic groups are then marginalised and excluded on the basis of their difference to the white norm. • White privilege also creates an internalised sense of superiority, lack of awareness and non-admission of privilege and feelings of white fragility in discussions about race. This also means that when the hierarchy is threatened or white privilege is pointed out, members of this group typically feel attacked. DiAngelo (2011) argues that white privilege provides a protective barrier to race-based stresses that other ethnic groups endure in day-to-day society12, so when they are accused of racial discrimination, their tolerance of race-based stress is low, and they often engage in hostile or 11 There are instances where numerical majorities are not necessary for a group to have dominance (see white South Africans during the apartheid era). 12 This can be mediated by socioeconomic class, where those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have less insulation from race-based stress compared to those of a higher socioeconomic background. www.malatest-intl.com Drivers of racism – March 2021 26