Privilege has become a dirty word, and I suspect it is in no small part due to the fact that some people feel it is over-emphasized compared to other aspects of

Privilege has become a dirty word, and I suspect it is in no small part due to the fact that some people feel it is over-emphasized compared to other aspects of one’s status (especially on an individual level, of course,) and because it is sometimes used in a combative manner to cut others down, which perhaps unconsciously sends the message that instead of increasing the privilege of the underprivileged, we’d rather decrease the privilege of others instead, to even the playing field. And I can’t really attest to this, because I mostly stay out of political discussions, but it would fit with the American, and perhaps human, tradition of focusing on retribution instead of, but often under the guise of, improving the status quo, ignoring evidence that this is not the happening. I feel this kind of behavior is really evident any time human emotions run high, and it unfortunately describes how we handle a lot of problems in the U.S., especially crimes: we don’t really want to try to improve on the root causes, or to rehabilitate, often we want people to rot in prison. The word privilege on its own should not bring all of this baggage, but it feels like it’s too late. The word is now tainted for many. Does this mean serious discussion about it has been pushed off a couple generations?