Privilege Meme
Jan. 1st, 2008 12:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
helwenAs I sit here drinking my New Year's Eve drink of choice, chamomile tea...
Bold means the statement is true, italic means I don't know or it's complicated:
* Father went to college
* Father finished college
* Mother went to college
* Mother finished college
* Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor (1st and 3rd)
* Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
* Had more than 50 books in your childhood home (more than 50 in my bedroom)
* Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
* Were read children's books by a parent
* Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18
* Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18 (flute, ballet, karate, scuba diving)
* The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively (some positive, some negative)
* Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
* Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs (around half. I worked part of the time, my univ. job paid for some of it, and got a grant and scholarship for the final year)
* Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
* Went to a private high school (There are no public schools in Hong Kong)
* Went to summer camp (Day type only)
* Had a private tutor before you turned 18
* Family vacations involved staying at hotels (some hotels, mostly trailer or relatives' homes)
* Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18 (Hah! Does this mean all new in my senior year of high school? That might be true then. Otherwise, hand-me-downs well-mixed-in with the new stuff, including clothing from my brothers).
* Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
* There was original art in your house when you were a child
* Had a phone in your room before you turned 18
* You and your family lived in a single family house
* Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
* You had your own room as a child (only girl)
* Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course (No, but I read one of the books on the SATs, studied up for the Latin ACH for a couple of weeks, and for the Biology ACH for about a month. 720/680 (Verbal/Math SAT), 500 Latin, and something less than spectacular for the Bio, 480 I think. Nothing replaces experience in the lab, which I didn't have. The Latin was mostly for fun, but it came in handy to count for my foreign language req at UMass)
* Had your own TV in your room in High School (Whatever for?)
* Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College
* Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16 (Flew to Taiwan via Hawaii and Japan when I was 4. Father was doing his doctoral thesis work in Taiwan. Also at least once from MA to CA to visit relatives, and of course during high school).
* Went on a cruise with your family
* Went on more than one cruise with your family
* Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
* You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family
Of course, regardless of privileges one may have grown up with, like high intelligence or great natural skills of whatever sort, none of it matters unless you can find a good way to use it, and are adaptive to whatever life throws at you. My successes have certainly varied over time!
Also, despite apparent differences in background, L's and my backgrounds would be more similar if we compared his background with my parents -- my folks' generation were the first to go to college, both sides, at least as far as I know. But they still did some amazing things -- more so than many college grads.
Bold means the statement is true, italic means I don't know or it's complicated:
* Father went to college
* Father finished college
* Mother went to college
* Mother finished college
* Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor (1st and 3rd)
* Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers
* Had more than 50 books in your childhood home (more than 50 in my bedroom)
* Had more than 500 books in your childhood home
* Were read children's books by a parent
* Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18
* Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18 (flute, ballet, karate, scuba diving)
* The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively (some positive, some negative)
* Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
* Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs (around half. I worked part of the time, my univ. job paid for some of it, and got a grant and scholarship for the final year)
* Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs
* Went to a private high school (There are no public schools in Hong Kong)
* Went to summer camp (Day type only)
* Had a private tutor before you turned 18
* Family vacations involved staying at hotels (some hotels, mostly trailer or relatives' homes)
* Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18 (Hah! Does this mean all new in my senior year of high school? That might be true then. Otherwise, hand-me-downs well-mixed-in with the new stuff, including clothing from my brothers).
* Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them
* There was original art in your house when you were a child
* Had a phone in your room before you turned 18
* You and your family lived in a single family house
* Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home
* You had your own room as a child (only girl)
* Participated in an SAT/ACT prep course (No, but I read one of the books on the SATs, studied up for the Latin ACH for a couple of weeks, and for the Biology ACH for about a month. 720/680 (Verbal/Math SAT), 500 Latin, and something less than spectacular for the Bio, 480 I think. Nothing replaces experience in the lab, which I didn't have. The Latin was mostly for fun, but it came in handy to count for my foreign language req at UMass)
* Had your own TV in your room in High School (Whatever for?)
* Owned a mutual fund or IRA in High School or College
* Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16 (Flew to Taiwan via Hawaii and Japan when I was 4. Father was doing his doctoral thesis work in Taiwan. Also at least once from MA to CA to visit relatives, and of course during high school).
* Went on a cruise with your family
* Went on more than one cruise with your family
* Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up
* You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family
Of course, regardless of privileges one may have grown up with, like high intelligence or great natural skills of whatever sort, none of it matters unless you can find a good way to use it, and are adaptive to whatever life throws at you. My successes have certainly varied over time!
Also, despite apparent differences in background, L's and my backgrounds would be more similar if we compared his background with my parents -- my folks' generation were the first to go to college, both sides, at least as far as I know. But they still did some amazing things -- more so than many college grads.
