Do you believe usage of "white privilege" makes somebody a self-righteous asshole, by default?

I never said anything about usage. I said the people who CREATED "White privilege" were self-righteous assholes. Some people who use it are merely self-righteous fools. But no, it's not a matter of bad apples spoiling the bunch; the bunch is bad, but in varying degrees.

...what types of more relatable terminology or academic references would you create (as an alternative to "white privilege") when conveying the concept of systemic racism?

Why not "benefit of systemic racism"? If you think about situations in which you would want to say "White privilege" but not "benefit of systemic racism," you may grasp that the term "White privilege" exists only to weaponize the benefit of systemic racism, to facilitate ad hominem "rebuttals" and shut down disagreement. There is no valid alternative, because the purpose is corrupt.