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>Of course, I'm a tall well-built, well-dressed white guy, i.e. all the things that automatically command respect.

? None of those things automatically command respect.

Yes, they do. Tall people make more money and are more successful in the workplace [1]. Wearing higher-class clothing elicits more responsiveness and lowers the perceived social status of others [2]. And of course, leadership is associated with being white and male, which leads to better responsiveness in work-type environments to white males [3]. I also seem to recall a talk by a professor at Berkeley showing that having some gray hair and wearing glasses commands more respect as well, though I can't find the research to back that up at the moment.

[1] http://timothy-judge.com/Height%20paper--JAP%20published.pdf

[2] http://psycnet.apa.org/?&fa=main.doiLanding&doi=10.1037/xge0...

[3] http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/conferences/2013-w50-research-sym...

The role of prejudice and discrimination in Americans?

None of that seems to make a case for "automatic respect".

Except they do, because they signal wealth, power, and authority - at least in European/European-descended countries.

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