Dead White Males is a term used to deride the emphasis on Western civilization in schools (especially those in the United States), as the majority of figures considered "significant" in Western civilization are white males who are usually dead. The term was used pejoratively in the early 1990s by those advocating multicultural studies. The term finds widespread usage among members of the educational establishment who see students as agents of social change.

Typical "dead white males" include:

• Ancient Greek philosophers
• Modern European philosophers
• European explorers
• European and American authors
• Founding Fathers of the United States

The term has gained widespread enough currency that it can appear in mass-market media. For example, in the film 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), an African-American high-school English teacher performs a rap version of a Shakespearean sonnet. Afterwards, he remarks that although Shakespeare is a "dead white guy", he "knows his stuff" and is still worth the attention.