White Male Privilege Is Why We Laugh At Lochte And Vilify Douglas
Pay close attention to the words being used to describe them.
08/18/2016 04:15 pm ET | Updated 1 hour ago
Emma Gray Executive Women’s Editor, The Huffington Post
Getty/AP
Ryan Lochte and Gabby Douglas: A tale of two Olympic “scandals.”
Gymnast Gabby Douglas “disrespected” her entire country by not putting her hand on her heart and smiling enough during the Olympics. Swimmer Ryan Lochte is a “kid” who deserves “a break” for allegedly destroying property and lying about a traumatic robbery.
If you were wondering what white, male privilege looks like, this is it.
To back up: On Sunday, it was reported that Lochte and three other U.S. swimmers were robbed at gunpoint in Rio, with specifics of the robbery coming from Lochte himself and his mother, Ileana Lochte.
Since then, multiple pieces of evidence have emerged that suggest the story was fabricated, something that Lochte’s teammates Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger reportedly confirmed to Brazilian authorities after being detained in the country. (Basically, it seems that an international incident may have started over the fact that Lochte didn’t want to admit to his mother that he and his friends had drunkenly caused damage to a gas station bathroom, and then gotten into a belligerent altercation with the security guard.)
The general reaction to what has been dubbed #LochteGate was initial confusion, a lot of spot-on jokes, and eventually a measured dose of criticism and a plea from Rio 2016 spokesman Mario Andrada to “give these kids a break” because “sometimes you take actions that you later regret.”
It didn’t take long for people to point to the cognitive dissonance between the compassionate, light-hearted response to Lochte, Bentz, Conger and fourth swimmer Jimmy Feigen’s drunken actions, and the widespread online vilification gymnast Gabby Douglas experienced just a week prior.
Douglas, who is just 20 years old, failed to put her hand on her heart during the national anthem, and did not style her hair and/or face to every individual’s liking. For those “crimes,” she was widely criticized for being “disprespectful,” “unpatriotic” and “un-American,” and called words that we’d rather not repeat in this piece. Lochte and friends reportedly defiled a gas station restroom, fought with a security officer, lied to national news sources, and may have filed a false police report. And the four of them get to be framed as talented “kids” (reminder: Lochte is 32) having one debaucherous night of fun.
The vast gap between these two public perceptions has everything to do with the identities of the people involved. Lochte is a straight, white man, who has long been beloved for his pretty face, doofy personality and charmingly slow demeanor during interviews. Douglas is a young, black woman who has battled racialized critiques of her appearance and attitude for years, despite winning three Olympic gold medals.
Anthony Dominic ✔ @tmzanthony
Gabby Douglas was destroyed for hand placement. He pisses on a business and blames a country, and people are making excuses. #LochteGate
This isn’t to say that Lochte and his teammates should be publicly vilified. But when the benefit of the doubt is given freely to white men when they mess up ― even in cases like this one where they actually may have broken the law ― and yet withheld from others, it perpetuates entrenched systems of racism and sexism.
What if Lochte had been a woman (of any race) who falsely accused a man of robbing and attacking her?
WendyBrandes ✔ @WendyBrandes
If Ryan Lochte lied about that robbery, how can we ever believe any man's allegations of robbery?
What if Lochte had been a man of color?
These “what ifs” are important, and the resulting thought experiments are telling. White men exist in a world that prioritizes their potential, gives them the benefit of the doubt and assumes their actions are mostly benevolent ― or at the very least, harmless.
Women, especially women of color, don’t have that luxury. Just ask Gabby Douglas.
Pay close attention to the words being used to describe them.
08/18/2016 04:15 pm ET | Updated 1 hour ago
Emma Gray Executive Women’s Editor, The Huffington Post
Getty/AP
Ryan Lochte and Gabby Douglas: A tale of two Olympic “scandals.”
Gymnast Gabby Douglas “disrespected” her entire country by not putting her hand on her heart and smiling enough during the Olympics. Swimmer Ryan Lochte is a “kid” who deserves “a break” for allegedly destroying property and lying about a traumatic robbery.
If you were wondering what white, male privilege looks like, this is it.
Lea @_MissLeandra
Insulting how Gabby Douglas(20) was being told she needs to fix her attitude in Rio, but #LochteGate and crew are all "kids" who got rowdy.
Insulting how Gabby Douglas(20) was being told she needs to fix her attitude in Rio, but #LochteGate and crew are all "kids" who got rowdy.
To back up: On Sunday, it was reported that Lochte and three other U.S. swimmers were robbed at gunpoint in Rio, with specifics of the robbery coming from Lochte himself and his mother, Ileana Lochte.
Since then, multiple pieces of evidence have emerged that suggest the story was fabricated, something that Lochte’s teammates Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger reportedly confirmed to Brazilian authorities after being detained in the country. (Basically, it seems that an international incident may have started over the fact that Lochte didn’t want to admit to his mother that he and his friends had drunkenly caused damage to a gas station bathroom, and then gotten into a belligerent altercation with the security guard.)
The general reaction to what has been dubbed #LochteGate was initial confusion, a lot of spot-on jokes, and eventually a measured dose of criticism and a plea from Rio 2016 spokesman Mario Andrada to “give these kids a break” because “sometimes you take actions that you later regret.”
It didn’t take long for people to point to the cognitive dissonance between the compassionate, light-hearted response to Lochte, Bentz, Conger and fourth swimmer Jimmy Feigen’s drunken actions, and the widespread online vilification gymnast Gabby Douglas experienced just a week prior.
Douglas, who is just 20 years old, failed to put her hand on her heart during the national anthem, and did not style her hair and/or face to every individual’s liking. For those “crimes,” she was widely criticized for being “disprespectful,” “unpatriotic” and “un-American,” and called words that we’d rather not repeat in this piece. Lochte and friends reportedly defiled a gas station restroom, fought with a security officer, lied to national news sources, and may have filed a false police report. And the four of them get to be framed as talented “kids” (reminder: Lochte is 32) having one debaucherous night of fun.
The vast gap between these two public perceptions has everything to do with the identities of the people involved. Lochte is a straight, white man, who has long been beloved for his pretty face, doofy personality and charmingly slow demeanor during interviews. Douglas is a young, black woman who has battled racialized critiques of her appearance and attitude for years, despite winning three Olympic gold medals.
Anthony Dominic ✔ @tmzanthony
Gabby Douglas was destroyed for hand placement. He pisses on a business and blames a country, and people are making excuses. #LochteGate
Joshua Thicklin @JoshThicklin53
Gabby was verbally stoned on social media for not putting her hand over her heart but people are making excuses for #LochteGate.
Gabby was verbally stoned on social media for not putting her hand over her heart but people are making excuses for #LochteGate.
#1 Rachel 
✔ @rachel
is it just me or did people seem a lot more upset about Gabby Douglas not raising her hand to pledge than Ryan Lochte lying to police?
✔ @rachel is it just me or did people seem a lot more upset about Gabby Douglas not raising her hand to pledge than Ryan Lochte lying to police?
Sade Diana Sellers @sadesellers
Let me gets this straight - Gabby Douglas hates America but #LochteGate was just a bunch of kids having fun? Hmmmm
Let me gets this straight - Gabby Douglas hates America but #LochteGate was just a bunch of kids having fun? Hmmmm
This isn’t to say that Lochte and his teammates should be publicly vilified. But when the benefit of the doubt is given freely to white men when they mess up ― even in cases like this one where they actually may have broken the law ― and yet withheld from others, it perpetuates entrenched systems of racism and sexism.
What if Lochte had been a woman (of any race) who falsely accused a man of robbing and attacking her?
WendyBrandes ✔ @WendyBrandes
If Ryan Lochte lied about that robbery, how can we ever believe any man's allegations of robbery?
What if Lochte had been a man of color?
Tariq Nasheed ✔ @tariqnasheed
If Black athletes pulled that #LochteGate stunt, the headlines would read "Black Lives Matter Thugs Caused Terror At The Olympics"
If Black athletes pulled that #LochteGate stunt, the headlines would read "Black Lives Matter Thugs Caused Terror At The Olympics"
These “what ifs” are important, and the resulting thought experiments are telling. White men exist in a world that prioritizes their potential, gives them the benefit of the doubt and assumes their actions are mostly benevolent ― or at the very least, harmless.
Women, especially women of color, don’t have that luxury. Just ask Gabby Douglas.
