All the Ways Race Impacts White Folks…

Ok,“all” the ways is a stretch. But I do want to talk about some of the ways I’ve seen whiteness show up in my own life, identity, and story—and in the lives of other white folks I’ve walked alongside.

Photo by Author taken on 11/30/24.

For me, race impacting white folks starts with curiosity—What evidence do white people have that our lives aren’t touched by race? Can we let go of the dream that it doesn’t?

Because when I look around, I don’t see neutrality for us. I see patterns. I see whiteness showing up, shaping things. I think you can sense it too.

It seems there’s never been a version of the U.S. without white folks in it. Whiteness has been operating in this country since its beginning. It’s stitched into our systems, our stories, our sense of self. So how could white people possibly have gone untouched?

Here’s just a few places whiteness shows up—

In our leadership. 

Most of the people in power — those writing laws, shaping budgets, deciding who gets what — are white. We’ve only had one president who didn’t look like us. Imagine if it were the other way around — if almost every president had been a person of color. We’d notice. We’d feel it. This matters — it’s not coincidence. It sends messages about who’s trustworthy, who deserves authority, whose voice counts. And for many of us, it means we see ourselves reflected in decision-makers before we even realize we’re looking.

In the U.S. legal system. 

From the start, the laws in this country were written by white people, for white people — to protect our rights, reflect our interests, and keep power in the hands of those who looked like us. That history still shapes the legal system we live with today. White folks are more likely to get second chances, to be seen as someone who made a mistake instead of someone who’s dangerous. But for people of color — especially Black and Native American folks — the same actions often bring harsher punishments. This isn’t about who’s a “good” or “bad” person. It’s about how the system was built to work in our favor, whether we notice it or not.

In wealth and health outcomes in the U.S.

White folks have gotten a head start in this country — and it still shows. We hold most of the wealth and tend to live longer lives. It’s not because we’re smarter or work harder, but because for generations our families had easier paths to good jobs, solid healthcare, and lives less weighed down by the constant stress of racism. Those advantages didn’t disappear when the laws changed — they’re still shaping life today.

In our art, media, and stories.

We’re swimming in whiteness when it comes to art, media, and the stories we grow up with. Most of the books we read, the shows and movies we love, the history we’re taught — it’s all told from white perspectives, with white heroes and white values at the center. When that’s mainly what we see, it quietly teaches us what’s “normal,” what’s worth paying attention to, and even what’s worth valuing.

In who we find ourselves spending the most time with.

If you’re white in the U.S., chances are most of the people you spend time with — at home, at work, in your kids’ schools, or in your church — are also white. That’s not just random. Decades of housing policies, school zoning, and hiring practices have shaped where we live and who we cross paths with. And, white Christianity in the U.S. began with the belief that white people were God’s chosen and that inequality was just part of the divine plan. Because this story is deeply woven into faith, identity, and tradition, it’s been hard for white churches to move beyond it — even today. The result? We can go through life surrounded mostly by other white people without even realizing how much that shapes — and limits — how we see the world.

Here’s what I’m not doing — I’m not asking you to believe like me. I’m not trying to convince you to carry my perspective.

And I’m definitely not presenting all of anything.

But I am asking, Can we be realistic?

Can we acknowledge the ways race has shaped us, not just the people we see as “not white?”

Can we get honest about the forces that have been forming our identities, our opportunities, our beliefs — our stories — from the beginning?

Because if we can do that, we open the door to healing. To possibility. To wholeness. To something more true.

This isn’t just about justice — it’s about becoming the kind of people we want to be.

So… what’s one place you’ve seen whiteness show up in your story?

Let’s start there.