‘White People, Do Something’: Stop Hoarding Your Privilege

Radical generosity calls for us to share influence and power, not just wealth, to end systemic racism

In the wake of yet another tragic killing of a black man at the hands of police, protesters across the country are marching to make their demands heard. Justice for George Floyd. Police and criminal justice reforms. Policy changes that end systemic racism.

Those important goals must stay at the forefront of the movement, but another grassroots demand is emerging. It’s a plea for help and a call to action.

White people, do something.

Listen, read, teach, march, organize, speak, share, give, love, write, lobby, vote, fight — do any or all of it. Just do something.

This moment requires white involvement because white people have something black people have never had in this country in large measure: privilege and power. More than anything else, these are the weapons of change that will end institutionalized racism in America. Without white allies who pushed back against unjust systems, blacks on their own could not have ended slavery, desegregated society or passed civil-rights legislation.

In the past, I’ve written about the dangers of hoarding wealth, and how our financial abundance should lead us to be radically generous, not more secure. But as the black bodies pile up — George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, just to name the recent unjustifiable and heartbreaking killings — it’s obvious that too many affluent white Americans also hoard their privilege.

Unfortunately, that’s also true of white Christians — in some cases, especially true of white Christians — despite their biblical obligation to stand with the oppressed and lead the ministry of reconciliation. Collectively, we prioritize our own comfort over the pain of our black brothers and sisters, and at times even use our influence to defend the status quo. At the very least, the white church too often remains silent and complicit when it comes to injustice and violence against the black community.

It’s time to be generous with our privilege and use it to fight deep-seeded racism in our country, which is why I resurrected The Rich Fool during this time of social unrest.

‘Dream Hoarding’ Among Affluent Americans

Over the past few years, scholars have recognized the idea of “privilege hoarding” or “the hoarding of the American Dream.” The concept originated in a book called “Dream Hoarders” by Richard Reeves of the Brookings Institute, who argues that rich Americans — and not just the 1 percent, but the upper middle class — don’t just hoard money, but also opportunity. As a result, they don’t just protect their own wealth, but also deny social mobility to lower classes of people.  

Here’s how the Brookings Institute describes the concept on its website: 

“Various forms of ‘opportunity hoarding’ among the upper middle class make it harder for others to rise up to the top rung. Examples include zoning laws and schooling, occupational licensing, college application procedures, and the allocation of internships. Upper middle class opportunity hoarding, Reeves argues, results in a less competitive economy as well as a less open society.”

On the website, a game called “Are You A Dream Hoarder?” poses a series of difficult questions about common choices made by upper-middle-class Americans that perpetuate a “class system that prevents people we’ve never met from being able to climb the income ladder and achieve the American Dream.” As a rich American who fits Reeve’s “upper middle class” definition, the quiz made me squirm because it turns seemingly innocent choices made in the best interests of quality of life and family into decisions that sustain systemic injustice. 

It made me realize that I contribute to a broken and unfair system, whether I do so intentionally or inadvertently. But I’m not just talking about the secular American Dream; for Christians, this is more importantly about a gospel calling to use all of our God-given resources — including wealth and privilege — to seek justice, serve the marginalized, and reconcile all men and women to their creator and each other.

In a speech on racism and corporate evil, Christian pastor and author Tim Keller talks about levels of responsibility within a society where unjust power structures exist. Unless you resist, he argues, you bear responsibility in one of four ways: you lead the system, enthusiastically participate in it, intentionally turn a blind eye to it, or willfully ignore it so you can continue living an uninterrupted life. 

A similar logic applies to privilege. Like wealth, you can use it to dominate and exploit others; gain small life advantages that rob others of opportunity; or remain silent and hoard it, so it continues to grow and get passed on for generations to come. 

Or you can share privilege as a tool to fight for justice. 

Expanded Focus: Money, Power and Privilege 

The central thesis of The Rich Fool remains the same: Personal finance is most powerful when it enables us to be at our most generous — not when it makes us more secure. So far, that statement has shaped how I view and write about personal finance. After all, the parable of the rich fool is a cautionary tale about the danger of hoarding wealth. 

But this blog isn’t just about money anymore. As I get back on track with this post after a long hiatus, I’m doubling down on that niche and committing to an even deeper exploration of the responsibilities that come with riches. My theory on the concept of privilege hoarding first started taking shape after the fear-based white evangelical response to the migration crisis, and it has further evolved in recent weeks as the nation grapples again with its 400-year history of black oppression.

I still plan to offer advice on how to structure your personal finances in an intentional way that enables increasing levels of charitable giving. That remains a critically important topic, especially for Christians who have been blessed with abundance. Recently, however, I can’t get away from the idea that generosity doesn’t end there.

It’s not enough to give away money but simultaneously leverage privilege to protect personal comfort and security, especially in the face of injustice. Wealth and privilege are too intertwined to not address them both. 

This topic is a big leap from articles on how to cut lifestyle inflation, but the church needs more voices to speak against this hypocrisy and remind Christians that the Bible promises “you will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion.” That includes the blessings of wealth, power and privilege.

A couple footnotes:

The first part of the protest sign in the photo quotes civil-rights heroine Fannie Lou Hamer from a 1964 speech: “For three hundred years, we’ve given them time. And I’ve been tired so long, now I am sick and tired of being sick and tired, and we want a change.” Read the full speech here. 

If you’re a Christian and want to learn more about the biblical mandate to seek justice, I encourage you to watch the sermon below from Pastor Ron Zappia of Highpoint Church. “Too often, we’re guilty of preaching a gospel that is missing the reality that righteousness and justice are intricately woven together and cannot be separated,” he says. It’s a timely and critical message for the church today.