Might Privelege

 He acted like a child. A spoiled child. A child of Might Privelege.

I don't think I have ever watched the Oscars; life, after all, is sometimes boring enough. But the Slap  that Went Round the Tuned-in World, namely the whack Will Smith gave Chris Rock while many (millions?) watched in shock, horror, delight or whatever, was another matter. The video clip was hard to ignore, for a while even Putin had to take a powder. 

For those of you who live on a different planet, I shall summarize the incident. Chris Rock, the MC of the Oscars this year, made what, in my opinion, was a very mild joke about Will Smith's wife. Mr. Smith seemed unfazed until he took a look at the hurt expression on his wife's face. Then he rushed onto the stage and slapped the unsuspecting Mr. Rock. Smith went back to his seat where he told Chris Rock, on national televesion, to keep his 'wife's name out of your  f-ing mouth!' Chris Rock remained the professional, and didn't initiate an adolescent donnybrook. Later that night, Smith was awarded an Oscar of his own.

Smith's fury and furious behavior made headlines. Unless you are really living on another planet, you know this already. Most commentators were 'shocked' at Smith's egregious behavior; Rock's professional demeanor thorughout was mostly--and deservedly-- praised.

I would like to discuss the incident from a different angle, one  that, to my knowledge, received no attention. I would like to discuss what I call Might Privelege.  

Race matters, of course, but in this case it matters relatively little. Both Rock and Smith are very famous and very wealthy. Their income level and name recognition puts them in the elite group of the rich and famous. 

If a so-called nobody did what Smith did, he would have been led away by the police, and probably would have been charged with assault. (This is a 'thought experiment' of course, for a so-called nobody would not have been able to attend the Oscars.)

Mr. Smith can therefore be said to have 'Might Privelege'--his high position in society enabled him to get away with egregious behavior. (True, he has recently been banned from the Oscars for ten years, but thisbslap in the face didn't come along with hands that took away his Oscar. There was thus no fitting consequence to his action.)

We have something to celebrate, however. The incident happened to have occurred between two famous African-Americans: race was, relatively speaking, at least, not an issue. I am convinced that many observers saw the event as something that occurred between two human beings; their ethnicity wasn't important. White people certainly would have viewed the situation differently in the past. We have made enormous racial progress, though the day when the color of one's skin doesn't matter at all is still far off. (But that day is coming, as Dr. King said, the arc of history bends toward justice, although the angle of inflection is proving to be a lot smaller than a lot of us would like.  One day people will realize that the immense effort and self-deception needed to maintain a lie is no longer worth the effort to maintain it. Well, maybe.)

Might Privelege now can be had by people of all races. It is a version of class privelege--Have you noticed, for instance, that just about every victim of police brutality against African Americans has been from the so-called lower class? In these cases, race matters indeed, but so does class. Afican Americans can be victims of prejudice no matter their class, but if they have might privelege. they are unlikely to be shot.

Let us dissect Smith's behavior further. Let us forget about his race and his Might Privelege for a moment. What happened happens alas! all too frequently. Smith behaved as a man--usually a man--who flies into a rage. The rush of cortisol from his Flight or Fight response swept all restraint away. When this force is directed outward, as what happened in Smith's case, agression, even murder, can be the result. When rage is directed inwards, depression, even suicide, may follow. Maturity demands that an adult control his impusles and act accordingly.   That Smith gave into his impulses while millions watched demonstrates not only Might Privelege, but a shameful lack of maturity as well. Chris Rock, in contrast, acted with restraint.

That Smith forgot his better nature so egregiously, resulting in a slap that will always be part of his legacy is a shame. Even if he puts such behavior behind him and acts wisely in the future, the image of his slap will always be there to haunt him. Just because he acted as a belligerent adolecscnt, however, doesn't mean he will always act that way,; he might well improve in the future. His clean image is sullied, proabably forever. I thus feel sorry for him. But not too sorry. Those with Might Privelege, in comparison to those without it, are able to get away with a lot. 

Some day people might be judged by the content of their character. no matter their race, gender, or class.  That day has yet to arrive.