I believe it does exist, though most commonly in the form of an extra level of disrespect and suspicion that black Americans have to endure (and the psychological debilitation that follows from that), and only much more rarely in the form of overt discrimination, though that happens too. This view is based on a couple of points of evidence.

Since I’m white, it’s all too easy for me to see how this phenomenon is invisible to most white people, and how its very existence must seem implausible. However, I have seen the results of studies which were done by sending closely-matched white and black actor-volunteers (both similarly well-dressed, well-spoken, etc.) into situations such as browsing in a store, trying to rent an apartment, etc. In a surprising number of cases, the black person was viewed with suspicion, or challenged, or rejected on trumped-up grounds, while the white person was not. So these things do happen.

Also, I once got to know a black man at my job well enough that he would sometimes talk freely about matters like this. He was a high-level manager and made a high income, and usually dressed in suits and ties. He was a basically cheerful individual and not a complainer by nature. Yet he had fairly often been, for example, stopped by police for no reason except that they were suspicious of him driving through a particular neighborhood. I have never been stopped by the police, no matter what neighborhood I was in, even though I never wear a suit or tie.

The reason I think most white people have a hard time believing all this is that they aren’t racist themselves and don’t know anyone who is. I myself am completely convinced that most white people aren’t racist at all. So the fact that black people experience so much discriminatory behavior seems to be a paradox. In reality, however, it isn’t. Think of the number of people you interact with in, say, a typical week — store clerks, co-workers, bus drivers, and so forth. It’s a lot. All it takes is for 5% of the white population to be racist, and statistically speaking a black person will end up having some sort of nasty experience every couple of weeks. So it’s perfectly possible for blacks to feel besieged and barraged by racism even when most whites aren’t racist. The “privilege”, then, is the simple matter of never having to face that barrage and occasional serious discrimination — a privilege which is indeed perfectly invisible to those who enjoy it, since they never see the problem they are escaping.

The sad part is that it takes only such a small number of bad apples to create such a divisive problem. Where forcefully changing behavior is concerned, I think society has already done all it can — most overt discrimination is already illegal, and laws can’t do anything about the patterns of day-to-day petty interpersonal interaction. What we can do is make sure that society keeps hammering home the message that racism is not acceptable and that racists are a despised fringe group. And, of course, when black people talk about their experiences, listen — don’t just dismiss what they say because it seems so at odds with the world as you know it.

Of course, it is always risky to try to interpret experiences one knows only second-hand, but this is my view of the matter in question.

With all due respect, you’re once again confusing race with culture. Trivial differences in physical appearance, such as skin color, have no innate connection with behavioral differences, so discriminating on the basis of race is unjustifiable. Culture, including religion, is a very strong influence on people’s values and behavior. Wariness towards people who embrace a value system (religion, ideology, or culture) which encourages violence and aggression is perfectly rational.