A List of Christian Privilege in America

I think very few people would argue against the idea that Muslims face overt discrimination and oppression right now in America (and other countries). But many people don't recognize that Christians actually have privilege on top of that.

[Side note: Yes, Christians as a whole or as individual sects/groups have also been discriminated against and overtly oppressed in the past. But not in the last couple of centuries in America. I am talking about contemporary American culture right now - the way America is in 2015. Christian oppression that occurred in previous generations but that is no longer occurring is unrelated to this discussion. Christian oppression that is still occurring around the world but not in America is also, similarly, unrelated to this discussion. These things are horrible (as all oppression is), and I am not denying that. But oppression against past generations of Christians or against non-American Christians does not impact the privilege American Christians do have in contemporary American society. Imagine if I were talking about a store that sold canned peaches and you brought up, as counterpoint, a store across town that refused to sell canned peaches. What does that have to do with my comments about the canned peaches at the store I was talking about? It doesn't. It's unrelated. It contributes nothing helpful to the discussion.]

Anyway, here is the list of just some of the ways Christians (mainstream Christians, who belong to a denomination that is recognized as legitimate by a majority of other denominations) have privilege in contemporary American culture.

In America today, a Christian can say all or most of the following statements as true, while a non-Christian can not:

• My elected representatives are mostly people of my own religion
• I am confident that I will never have to cast a vote on election day at a place of worship intended for a religion other than my own
• I can easily find religious commentary on local, state, and federal politics that I agree with or understand. If I want to listen only to news anchors or visit only news websites who subscribe to my religious beliefs and share my opinions, I can easily find such opportunities.
• When I ask to see "the person in charge," odds are I will face a person of my own religion
• When my religion has a major holy celebration, odds are that I will automatically receive that holiday as a vacation day from work or school; if I do not receive it automatically, it is easy to request it off and have that request accepted
• If I work in a career that requires 24-hour shifts (such as hospital employees, law enforcement, etc.) and can not request time off for my holiday, it is only because my holiday is so ubiquitous that all or most of my fellow employees would also request that day off, and they cannot grant all of those requests. If I do have to work on my holiday, I will likely receive extra monetary compensation (overtime pay), as well as other forms of compensation (free food, office celebrations, holiday decorations) to make up for having to spend the holiday with coworkers instead of with family. (Even employees who may not consider such a day important might receive these "compensations" for having to work on that day; because the default assumption is that it is a holiday for everyone.)
• There is little chance I will be ridiculed or harassed for my religious beliefs
• I can be loud or assertive about my religious beliefs without fear of being shamed, ridiculed, demonized, or seen as "other"
• I do not have to worry about "the message" my religious clothing, decorations, music, or language might be sending about my ethnicity, heritage, customs, beliefs, citizenship, behavior, or intentions
• Artifacts, clothing, and decorations of my religion can easily be purchased at any nearby store (Just try to find Hanukkah candles or Kosher-for-Passover matzoh in an area of the country without a sizable Jewish population... It's like searching for a needle in a haystack.)
• I can easily find music of my religion on the radio (especially true this time of year, but even all year round there are Christian radio stations)
• I can easily find "inspirational" novels and movies that prominently feature my religion or my religious beliefs
• Should I wish to send someone a greeting card with an inspirational/religious message, I can easily find one to purchase that incorporates the beliefs and wording of my religion
• I can be confident that the ordinary language of day-to-day existence will include terms and practices favored by my religion (i.e. a moment of prayer at the start of a ceremony)
• When I am asked to take an oath in court or at an inauguration ceremony, I am given a holy book from my religion to rest my hand on
• I can reference something from my religion in conversation with the confidence that everyone will understand what I am referring to, whether they subscribe to my religion or not (every American knows the basic story of Jesus, even if they don't believe in it; everyone will know what you mean if you say "Sunday School" or "Mass" or "Priest"; everyone will know what the cross symbol or fish symbol on the back of your car indicates)
• If I want to purchase a religious bumper sticker for the back of my car - or religious-themed wrapping paper, or paper plates, or invitations for my child's religious event (i.e. a Christening/baptism/dedication) - these products are readily available
• I can refuse to learn the language, or practices of other religions without worry of being ostracized for my ignorance or left behind in a conversation (especially in a classroom setting, where even the most secular literature in an English class might inspire talk of "Jesus allegories", etc.)
• I can walk into a public building or inspect a piece of government money and expect to see words or symbols associated with my religion (i.e. "In God We Trust")
• If there are religious themed displays at a public building (such as a Nativity scene at Christmastime on the lawn of a school, city hall, library, etc.), it is likely that it is my religion being displayed
• I can be confident that I will learn the history of my religion and read literature written by people of my religion in public school
• Should I want to, I can easily find private, accredited schools for my children to attend which incorporate my religion into its daily curriculum
• If I want to marry someone of my religion, I can easily find a partner who shares in my beliefs, and can easily find a nearby venue to get married in that will follow the marriage customs and language of my religion
• If I want to find a new place of worship within my religion, I can easily find several options to explore
• If I want to compare programs at local places of worship (especially around the holiday season), I can open up any local newspaper and find a list of churches of my religion
• Magazines, billboards, television, movies, and virtually all of media is catered to people who share my religious beliefs/upbringing (even if religion is not a specific, blatant, referenced part of a TV show, you can bet every sitcom family puts up a Christmas tree, and every sitcom wedding follows the traditional Christian format and customs - even if its a slightly more secularized version)
• I will most likely never be asked to speak "on behalf of" my religion as a whole, or to explain my religion's customs and beliefs, or to defend or explain the actions of someone else who subscribes to my religion 
• My ability to make important decisions and my (moral) capability in general will never be questioned as dependent on my religious upbringing
• If I were to carry a gun, it would not be interpreted as an act of evil intent or religious zealotry
• If I were to commit a crime, my religion would not be called into question

I'm sure there are even more ways I haven't even thought of... If you think of something, leave a comment and let me know!

Obviously some of these are a lot more dangerous than others. Adding together just the more "mundane" privileges (i.e. the availability of Christian radio stations and Christian bookstores) creates a culture that makes anyone who does not self-identify as Christian feel left out, ostracized, excluded, and ignored. Many Christians, I am sure, do not mean to make others feel left out, ostracized, excluded, or ignored. Many do not even realize others feel this way at all. But it is exactly because they have Christian privilege that they can go about their lives not realizing the privilege they have.