January 2nd, 2008 - Privilege mem
Yondalla did this and I think it’s powerful. Items in bold are true for me:
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 I have grandparents, aunts, and uncles fitting these. My parents are qualified to be professors (Master’s Degrees) and Dad did teach but he was a librarian. Not sure if he was a tenured librarian, but likely.
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. Not certain of this, as we checked most of our books out of the library. But probably.
10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18 Piano
11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18 I don’t think anything else was offered in my little town! Or does band count? If so, this would be a yes.
12. The people in the media who dress and talk like me are portrayed positively.
13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18. I was about to say not until I went to college at 18 years 6 weeks, but I think I got it before going to France earlier that summer. Not that my parents paid for anything I put on it!
14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs.
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 But I paid for it all by myself (gift money, allowance, work, etc.).
18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18.
19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels (I’m saying no because hotel stays were only in between family/friend stops or for vacations for parental conferences. Maybe that’s a yes?)
20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18 (Many, but lots of hand me downs.)
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. My parents and other relatives are artists plus put great store in other artists’ work.
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
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 (I was 14.)
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.
34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family. Unaware of the amounts, but certainly aware of the costs. We built a passive-solar house and kept the thermostat down in winter and up in summer.
A couple of years ago Yondalla’s son went to a diversity seminar. There were three kids there who were biokids of foster parents, the rest were foster kids. They lined them all up in the middle of a large room and then had them take steps backwards or forwards depending upon the answers to questions like these. Then they had to run to get a seat in one of two chairs. It made quite an impression on her son. He got one of the chairs, and he didn’t have to run. He was only a step away. That would be me, too. (Most of this paragraph taken from her post.)