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What did you learn or experience in 2006 that heightened your awareness of classism? What will you do in 2007 to challenge classism and contribute to positive change?
Survey Responses:
Being employed in a so-called "working-class" profession for the past year and a half has showed me the way class has operated in my life. This has lead me to think more closely about my experiences growing up in a working class household and how in my high school years my parents began to make more money resulting in a different experience. However, I think the most important thing I realized in reflecting was that although my parents are now more upper middle class than they once, where they still have the same working-class set of values they raised me with and they themselves were raised with. These are: hard work, a sense of community, valuing family and friends, importance of education, resourcefulness and less importance on material posessions. In 2007 I hope to further my understanding of my privilege as an educated person and transform my class based biases. I really want to learn how to talk to people about issues of race, class, and gender in a way that's not alienating or confrontational, to try to build alliances and frameworks for understanding with a diverse range of people.
I attended a class action workshop, bought the books and read about the issue. I spoke about my experiences and my feelings and observations that I have become more attuned to since the workshop. Knowing less is more daunting. Starting the conversation on this very taboo topic is a real ice breaker. I feel way more comfortable now when thinking and discussing the issue of classism.
The one year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina came and went, and the continued neglect of people of the Gulf coast, and low-income people all over the world continued to bring home the lack of class awareness. Those of us with class privilege have no clue what others experience day to day.
Read earlier survey responses:
December 2006: What responsibility do different economic classes bear for reducing their contributions to global warming pollution? Should wealthy people assume more of the cost of fixing the problem?
November 2006: For those who have served (or who are currently serving) in the military: Have you encountered classist attitudes about your choice to serve? For everyone: Do you see a class divide in terms of who serves in the military? What does this mean for the military and the country?
October 2006: How is television perpetuating stereotypes or classist portrayals? What are some examples of characters, storylines, or news stories that you have found particularly troubling?
September 2006: Higher Education can be a class marker, the access channel to "upward" mobility,or class liberator. What are the connections with class and higher education for you?
August 2006: How does class affect how you spend your non-working hours and impact your vacation options?
June 2006: What are the ways that you see class or classism play out in your spiritual community or congregation of faith?
May 2006: When did you first become aware of your class or class differences? How old were you?
March 2006: All U.S. citizens benefit from different forms of government assistance. Some are more stigmatized than others. What forms of assistance benefit you and others in your class?
February 2006: How do class differences impact your relationships?
January 2006: What privileges should we all have?
Are there any privileges none of us should have?
December 2005 Survey Question:
How do class issues come up for you during the end-of-year "consumer" holidays?
November 2005 Survey Question: Please tell us about your experiences of class, class differences, and classism in your education/school.
October 2005: Tell us about a time you've either been an ally to someone or had someone be an ally to you around issues of class.
September 2005: What are the ways you see the race and class divisions exposed by Katrina?
August 2005: What class did you grow up in? What was good or bad about your class experience growing up?
July 2005: What are your strongest memories connecting race and class?
June 2005: The New York Times and Wall Street Journal each ran their own series on class. What is your response to the recent press on class?
May 2005: The good, the bad, and the ugly of cross-class relating
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