What is white privilege?

You might have heard the term "white privilege" used a fair bit in the past year, particularly since the death of George Floyd and protests that happened around the world.

Now, a new report on the UK education system by a group of MPs has caused new debate because of its reference to white privilege.

According to a committee on education, poorer white children underachieve and have been "let down and neglected".

It states the phrase, which suggests white pupils are at an advantage, is the "opposite" of the reality disadvantaged white children experience.

What does the report actually say?

It wants schools to consider the impact of what it calls "politically controversial terminology".

The committee described "white privilege" as the idea that "societal privilege that benefits white people over other ethnic groups".

The report said it was "concerned the phrase may be alienating to disadvantaged white communities" and may have contributed towards a neglect of white people who face hardship and need specific support.

But it didn't only look at white privilege.

Protests occurred around the world after the death of George Floyd

Other potential factors, such as family experience of education, inequality based on where you live and being disengaged from school were mentioned, in relation to why some pupils may be at a disadvantage.

The committee recommended a number of things, including improving support for families, better funding to areas that need it, teacher training initiatives and making sure all pupils get the best careers advice.

What is white privilege?

It can be a term that some people find upsetting and offensive. But it refers to the concept that people have basic rights and benefits simply because they are white.

JT Flowers is a 26-year-old American rapper, student and activist living in the UK. He spoke to Newsbeat in 2020 about this.

JT felt some people get defensive about this term because it's misunderstood.

"You might be a white person and still be poor with a lack of access to education or face a language barrier in the workplace. It doesn't mean you can't be disadvantaged in other ways."

"It just means with respect to that one particular thing - your race and skin colour - you do have the luxury of not being able to think about it."

"It means having the luxury of being able to step outside without fearing that you're going to be discriminated against or oppressed in any way because of the colour of your skin," he says.

Statistics show black people in the UK are more likely to be stopped and searched by police than white people. They were also more likely to be arrested and have forced used against them by police.

'It doesn't mean life hasn't been hard'

According to Kehinde Andrews, a professor of black studies at Birmingham City University, the phrase "white privilege" was first written by the famous black civil rights activist William Du Bois in the 1930s to explain the way white workers in America benefited from segregation and the colour of their skin.

"Even if you're poor and not doing the best in society, there's still this benefit you get from being white," Professor Andrews says.

Many argue black people have to deal with an extra burden of worrying about how they will be treated because of how people perceive them

Courtney Ahn is a Korean-American designer from the US. Her guide to white privilege attracted over 700,000 likes on Instagram.

She's previously told the BBC that white privilege doesn't mean, or suggest, that you've had an easy life.

"It doesn't mean you haven't earned your successes but it does mean that your life hasn't been harder because of the colour of your skin", she said.

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