white supremacy / white supremacy culture
Last updatedDefinition
Historically in the United States, the term white supremacy refers to an ideology that holds that white people and culture are superior and thus should be dominant forces in society, supporting white power and status, supporting structural racism, and suppressing opposition, people of color, and certain religious groups. The term can have different definitions depending on context, including narrowly to refer to viewpoints and hate groups that actively work to decenter and harm people of color and other historically underrepresented groups; and more broadly to refer to white people and culture as the dominant, foundational forces of US institutions and society.
When determining whether to use the term white supremacy, consider how an audience may perceive it given the context. Think of, for example, describing school policies and job dress codes that ban certain hairstyles and appearances that differ from white-centric beauty standards versus referring to extreme manifestations of the ideology, such as hate groups like the Ku Klux Klan or neo-Nazis. Because many people may associate the term “white supremacist” strongly with the latter, consider if it is the clearest term to audiences for what you are describing or if alternatives like “white-centering,” “institutional racism,” or “systemic racism” are a better fit. More broad, casual use of the term “white supremacy” may weaken the impact of the phrase to some.
Media can further entrench the idea of whiteness as “superior” by more heavily covering stories centered on white people and including racial identifiers only for people of color, suggesting whiteness as a “default,” and minimizing the experiences of people of color and other marginalized communities. Depending on the story, this can also perpetuate the concept of white saviorism, telling the stories of people of color only through the lens of white people. Seeking out voices from historically underserved communities, and consulting with individuals rather than relying solely on official sources, can help mitigate some of this coverage bias.
Additional resources
- Racial Equity Tools Glossary (Racial Equity Tools)
- Glossary of Terms: Race, Equity and Social Justice (International City/County Management Association)
- Race and Ethnicity Terms & Definitions (Amherst College)
- Whiteness (National Museum of African American History and Culture)
Summary
Historically in the United States, the term white supremacy refers to an ideology that holds that white people and culture are superior and thus should be dominant forces in society, supporting white power and status, supporting structural racism, and suppressing opposition, people of color, and certain religious groups. When determining whether to use the term white supremacy, consider how an audience may perceive it given the context: in the broader, societal sense, or in the narrower sense related to the extremist ideologies of white supremacist groups.