An interesting exercise I ran across at
Rev. Scott's blog...
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. If you participate in this blog game, they ask that you PLEASE acknowledge their copyright.
Bold the statements that are true.
1. Father went to college
2. Father finished college
3. Mother went to college
4. Mother finished college
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.
We're a family of readers....
8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home. At least, it feels like more than 500!!
9. Were read children’s books by a parent. All the time.
10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18. Piano for a little while, and clarinet of course...
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
Not sure what that one's supposed to mean, so we'll leave it alone.
13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18
14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs At this rate, I'll be paying for college until I'm 65.
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 I went to Camp Fire Camp several years, and then in high school I went to both Marrowstone Music Festival (3 years) and the Interlochen Arts Camp (1 year).
18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18.
19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels. Generally I think family vacations were infrequent and involved staying at Grandma's house.
20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18. Unless buying fabric new and having grandma make the clothes counts...
21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them. BOUGHT me a car? HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! I have difficulty even imagining this.
22. There was original art in your house when you were a child. it was made by family members, I think, or someone close. Hammered copper stuff from Alaska.
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. As long as this doesn't mean "not making mortgage payments anymore"--cuz the mortgage is definitely not paid off even now.
25. You had your own room as a child. And I got to paint it myself.
27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course
28. Had your own TV in your room in high school. I don't think kids should have TVs in their rooms, actually. In fact, now I own my own condo and I have a TV only for use of the DVD player--I don't get any channels. I still don't have TV in any of my rooms!
29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college. Shoot, I STILL don't have IRA. Please don't lecture me about this, I know...
30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16. We went to Washington DC for band my freshman year of high school.
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. We're museum people as well as reading people, what can I say. But I don't recall a ton of museum going until I started visiting colleges. We went to lots of Aquariums (Aquaria?) though, and lighthouse museums, etc.
34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family. I didn't know the exact cost but I knew it was expensive to heat the house--our house was kept chilly and I complained a lot. I was constantly told to put on more clothes and that "being cold builds character." There was a Calvin and Hobbes series about "building character" and being cold was the subject of one strip--I would bet anything it's still on the fridge 13 years later.
I'm not entirely sure what to learn from this, other than to reflect on where I came from, where I am now, and how my past influences my choices. Which is a worthy topic for reflection! I think I might use this with my youth groups when we talk about our own privilege tomorrow after visiting homeless people. We'll see.
