I've recently seen a few white folks on Facebook (mostly older relatives or family friends) sharing a post by Carol Swain, who is a black Republican, Trump-backer, and retired professor who worked on his 1776 report (none of which I am linking here, but you are welcome to Google!).
Swain’s essential statement is that since she "made it" against the odds, therefore everyone can do it. That because she did it, systemic racism and white privilege isn't real.
This is a pretty classic pro-meritocracy argument, which helps uphold hierarchical systems such as racism and capitalism.
There are a number of problems with Swain’s argument here. But the biggest is this: White privilege (or any other privilege) does not mean that no black, indigenous, or people of color will succeed. It simply means that white people experience fewer barriers to achieving their goals by virtue of their race (though they might experience barriers based on their class, sexuality, or other identities).
Often one person who "makes it" is held up as an example… that if someone just works really hard, they can make it. Unfortunately here, Swain is the exception, rather than the rule.
Over the years, I've seen a number of white women make this argument with regard to gender as well. They pulled their “bootstraps” up through the music scene (or politics, or the corporate world, etc.) and therefore anyone can do it. Or worse yet, that other women should also have to go through what they did to get there because they did.
This makes me really sad. Why wouldn’t someone want to contribute to making things better for those who go after them, which they likely have (even if unintentionally)? Instead, their internalized sexism is so bad that they want others to have to go through all hard, painful experiences they did in order to achieve "success.” Alternately, they might consider themselves “one of the boys” and either did not see, or were lucky to be sheltered from, the experiences of others.
However, just because they didn’t have that experience doesn’t invalidate the experiences of others.
But I digress.
Meritocracy never existed in America because in order for meritocracy to work, all Americans need to be operating on a level playing field, and that’s just never been the case.
Meritocracy makes privileged people (like those sharing the Carol Swain article) feel like they’ve earned all the privilege they’ve received. They, then, believe that those who haven’t succeeded don’t deserve to. While at the same time, those who haven’t succeeded might believe that if they just continue to work hard, they can “make it,” which, depending on their circumstances, might be a real challenge.
It’s a perfect system for exploitation and victim-blaming, focusing on the individual’s supposed faults rather than any problems inherent in the system.
So, how does this connect to the music and music gear industries?
If someone in an oppressed group succeeds, we assume that others can easily do so.
If someone has nice gear, runs a company, has or musical success, we assume they worked harder than others to get it.
If someone doesn’t have nice gear or success, we assume it is their fault.
If we succeed, we want others to have to work as hard as we did to get there.
If we haven’t succeeded, we believe we just need to work harder to get there.
Of course, none of this is true.
And, —let me be crystal clear— it does not mean that folks who have achieved success have not worked hard. I know many folks who have achieved the aforementioned successes, who worked very, very hard to get there.
I like to think I’ve worked hard to get where I am, as well. But I am under no delusions here. If I were not, for example, white or educated, I am certain that I would have had to have worked harder. By virtue of my identities, I have been able to access a good education and connections that have exponentially helped me get where I want to go.
How do we address the myth of meritocracy in the industry? Recognizing the roles that privilege and oppression play in our lives is a good start. Helping others who may not have the same privileges you have (not as their “white knight,” but as a partner) can be helpful, as well— whether through jobs, mentorship, internships, financial backing, sharing connections, or boosting them on social media and marketing (more on all this here, here, and here).
Overall, it’s important to recognize the ways that meritocracy creeps into our conversations and views of ourselves and others, and the ways that it props up the current system of power, whether in the music industry or beyond.