Privilege
An exercise to remind me that maybe I don't have it all that bad...
You are supposed to highlight every sentence that is true for you. (This meme is from From What Privileges Do You Have?, based on an exercise about class and privilege developed by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University. They ask that you please acknowledge their copyright if you use the meme.)
1. Father went to college (and grad school)
2. Father finished college (and grad school)
3. Mother went to college (and grad school)
4. Mother finished college (and grad school)
5. Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
6. Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
7. Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home (does this mean at once? Then no, but if it means that we had more than 500 books in our house at some point, then yes...)
9. Were read children’s books by a parent.
10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18. (I was forced to take piano..and then I took trumpet lessons.)
11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18.
12. The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively. (Hmm, maybe the talk like me part...I don't regularly dress like the folk in the media.)
13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18. (Definitely not.)
14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs. (Scholarship, some parents, work study.)
15. Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs.
16. Went to a private high school.
17. Went to summer camp. (Camp Mennoscah represent!)
18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18.
19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels. (Maybe once or twice. For us it was usually a tent or a borrowed tent camper.)
20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18. (umm does hand-made from new fabric count???)
21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them.
22. There was original art in your house when you were a child.
23. You and your family lived in a single-family house.
24. Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home.
25. You had your own room as a child. (Sometimes, but not always.)
26. You had a phone in your room before you turned 18.
27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course.
28. Had your own TV in your room in high school.
29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college.
30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16. (It's not like we could drive back to the states from Africa...)
31. Went on a cruise with your family.
32. Went on more than one cruise with your family.
33. Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up. (Museums yes...I think EVERY family vacation had that historical/teaching moment. This is what happens when both parents are teachers.)
34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family. ( I might not have known the exact amount, but I did know that curling up next to the wood stove was good, but sprawling on the floor in front of the electric/gas heater in the living room was wasteful.)
So does this mean I grew up 44% privileged? Ever since I became aware of the concept of money and stability, I have resided in the spectrum of financial struggle. My parents were always struggling, but we were also incredibly fortunate during my childhood. We lived in the country on a plot of land that provided us with the majority of our food during the summer months, and my parents were incredibly resourceful. My parents made by hand many of the things I now head to the store for - blankets, toys, clothing, home and car repairs, furniture, etc. Very little of our food actually came from a grocery store - my parents gardened, raised chickens and even cows, our milk and eggs came insanely cheap from the dairy next door, peanut butter, flour, oatmeal came at a discount from a food co-op my parents were working members of....and the list goes on.
On the flip side, I was very supported in my academic studies. I was not only encouraged, but expected to go to college, and my parents made it possible for me to go to a good college. Later I was able to also attend graduate school (never mind the fact that I'll be paying it off for the rest of my life.) I have also never been homeless, have only been unwillingly unemployed for about two months total, and I've never had to ask a charity organization for financial or food assistance. (On the other hand, we have been given food and financial help from two different churches in the last few years because we were known to be struggling financially.) Even though it often seems like we're never going to feel financially ahead, I do feel privileged in the sense that I do know where my next meal is coming from, I do have a very nice place to sleep each night, and I do have a very strong community of support surrounding us. I think this in and of itself is the biggest privilege of all...
You are supposed to highlight every sentence that is true for you. (This meme is from From What Privileges Do You Have?, based on an exercise about class and privilege developed by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University. They ask that you please acknowledge their copyright if you use the meme.)
1. Father went to college (and grad school)
2. Father finished college (and grad school)
3. Mother went to college (and grad school)
4. Mother finished college (and grad school)
5. Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor
6. Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
7. Had more than 50 books in your childhood home
8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home (does this mean at once? Then no, but if it means that we had more than 500 books in our house at some point, then yes...)
9. Were read children’s books by a parent.
10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18. (I was forced to take piano..and then I took trumpet lessons.)
11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18.
12. The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively. (Hmm, maybe the talk like me part...I don't regularly dress like the folk in the media.)
13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18. (Definitely not.)
14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs. (Scholarship, some parents, work study.)
15. Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs.
16. Went to a private high school.
17. Went to summer camp. (Camp Mennoscah represent!)
18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18.
19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels. (Maybe once or twice. For us it was usually a tent or a borrowed tent camper.)
20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18. (umm does hand-made from new fabric count???)
21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them.
22. There was original art in your house when you were a child.
23. You and your family lived in a single-family house.
24. Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home.
25. You had your own room as a child. (Sometimes, but not always.)
26. You had a phone in your room before you turned 18.
27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course.
28. Had your own TV in your room in high school.
29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college.
30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16. (It's not like we could drive back to the states from Africa...)
31. Went on a cruise with your family.
32. Went on more than one cruise with your family.
33. Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up. (Museums yes...I think EVERY family vacation had that historical/teaching moment. This is what happens when both parents are teachers.)
34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family. ( I might not have known the exact amount, but I did know that curling up next to the wood stove was good, but sprawling on the floor in front of the electric/gas heater in the living room was wasteful.)
So does this mean I grew up 44% privileged? Ever since I became aware of the concept of money and stability, I have resided in the spectrum of financial struggle. My parents were always struggling, but we were also incredibly fortunate during my childhood. We lived in the country on a plot of land that provided us with the majority of our food during the summer months, and my parents were incredibly resourceful. My parents made by hand many of the things I now head to the store for - blankets, toys, clothing, home and car repairs, furniture, etc. Very little of our food actually came from a grocery store - my parents gardened, raised chickens and even cows, our milk and eggs came insanely cheap from the dairy next door, peanut butter, flour, oatmeal came at a discount from a food co-op my parents were working members of....and the list goes on.
On the flip side, I was very supported in my academic studies. I was not only encouraged, but expected to go to college, and my parents made it possible for me to go to a good college. Later I was able to also attend graduate school (never mind the fact that I'll be paying it off for the rest of my life.) I have also never been homeless, have only been unwillingly unemployed for about two months total, and I've never had to ask a charity organization for financial or food assistance. (On the other hand, we have been given food and financial help from two different churches in the last few years because we were known to be struggling financially.) Even though it often seems like we're never going to feel financially ahead, I do feel privileged in the sense that I do know where my next meal is coming from, I do have a very nice place to sleep each night, and I do have a very strong community of support surrounding us. I think this in and of itself is the biggest privilege of all...
posted by Gade at 3:55 PM
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