“Honorary White”

Racial Stratification, White Supremacy, and Honorary Whiteness

To fully grasp the contextual meaning of being honorary White, it is important to understand the principles of racial stratification and White supremacy since both provide “big picture” understandings of racial dynamics. Racial stratification refers to the hierarchical arrangement of races within a society for the purpose of restricting access to power, wealth, and other forms of privilege. A group's position within the hierarchy reflects its members' access to resources (economic, educational, political, and cultural), as well as their social standing. This system may be formally implemented and enforced, as in the case of South Africa during apartheid and the United States prior to the civil rights movement, or de facto, as is the case in the United States today. The concept of White supremacy acknowledges that within this racial ranking system, Whites occupy the top or supreme position and reap the benefits resulting from this fact. This includes being the norm by which other racial groups are evaluated and by which success is defined. Exclusivity is an important component of White supremacy. While other individuals and even groups may successfully emulate Whites or attain prominence politically, socially, and/or economically, still Whiteness remains the gold standard. The hierarchy itself remains unaltered.

Within a racial ranking system with Whites at the top and Blacks at the bottom, other non-Whites and those who are partly White by definition occupy intermediate positions. Honorary Whites are those individuals and groups whose social, economic, and political status is elevated above Blacks but that is still not at the same level as Whites. However, not all non-White groups that rank above Blacks are necessarily honorary Whites. This designation is granted only to preferred groups—those who come closest to emulating Whites and typically possess some degree of wealth and/or education. In the United States today, some Asians (Chinese, Japanese, Koreans) and Latinos (those who are lighter skinned and wealthier) are considered honorary Whites.

Honorary Whites perform a “buffering” function whereby they are viewed as and treated better than other non-Whites but are still considered socially below Whites. They resemble Whites in values, behaviors, and opinions, but are not quite White. Thus, they are considered “honorary” Whites and are privileged vis-à-vis other minorities but still disadvantaged relative to Whites.

From Biracial to Triracial Relations?

The concept of honorary Whiteness has gained prominence in recent years in response to dramatic demographic changes taking place across the United States and other trends pointing to the globalization of race relations. Unlike in earlier historical periods when immigrants to the United States came primarily from European nations, today's immigrants are more likely to hail from Latin and Central America, Asia, and other regions of the world where the population is predominantly non-White. Their large numbers combined with diversity in terms of national origin and personal resources (economic, political, social) have complicated traditional race relations and led to many speculations concerning the future of the color line, racial hierarchies, and White supremacy. Some scholars argue that the conventional biracial order in the United States, where Whites occupy the top tier and non-Whites are equally inferior in the eyes of Whites, is being transformed into a triracial order consisting of Whites, an elevated category of honorary Whites, and Blacks. Blacks include African Americans as well as other darker-skinned racial groups with lower socioeconomic standing. Others argue that a new Black/non-Black divide is emerging in which being socially defined as Black (or not) is the most salient criterion in determining one's social standing and life chances. This framework makes being socially defined as [Page 1113]non-White the determining feature of an individual's standing in the hierarchy.

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