Education

Missouri State Board Of Education Member: America’s Organizing Principle Is ‘White Male Privilege’

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In an op-ed published in the St. Louis American on Monday, a member of Missouri’s State Board of Education argued that American society is built upon “white male privilege.”

“Americans believe the organizing principles of this country are capitalism, democracy and freedom. They will refer to the founding document of the American experiment, Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence, arguably the most eloquent words ever written about the political context of the human condition,” Mike Jones wrote.

“Since Americans have been told this since the crib, it must be true. Except, it’s not,” Jones continued.

“Since the creation of the republic, America’s cultural, economic and political systems have rested upon one never-changing principle: white male privilege. If you were a white man (or, relatively speaking, a white woman married to a white man), the system worked.”

In his article, which was titled “Donald Trump and the last stand of white male privilege in America,” Jones claimed that “Only white male privilege explains Donald Trump.”

“Trump is not only a white man, he was born a rich white man. For men like Trump, any requirements of intelligence, competence and character are not necessary for achievement or advancement.”

Jones went on to say that black, Hispanic, Muslim and LGBT Americans need to vote for Hillary “as a matter of self-defense.”

“If you are African-American, Latino, Asian, Muslim or a member of the LGBT community, voting for Hillary Clinton for president is a matter of self-defense — self-preservation, really,” Jones wrote.

“If you are an American who identifies as white, you face a choice latent with profound moral and social implications, much like the election of 1876.”

According to the American, Jones currently serves on the Missouri State Board of Education and has “held senior policy positions in St. Louis and St. Louis County government.”

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