Language Matters, Too
My brother, sister and I were all brought up to speak a very clear, accent-less English with good grammar and syntax. We were not “perfect,”... Read More
Oh No He Didn’t!
Check biased behavior before it keeps your holidays from being merry and bright. As I thought last week about Thanksgiving dinner and hosting my extended... Read More
3 Things to Keep In Mind as a Non-First Gen or Low-Income Student Leader
I dedicated the last two weeks this past summer to being a student leader for the incoming class of 2019. I’m an academic peer tutor,... Read More
Who Are the Despicable Racists?
We all know that a young white man murdered nine black worshipers at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in downtown Charleston, S.C., just two weeks... Read More
Class Consciousness and College Education: 529 Plan Strikes Nerve
President Obama released his budget proposal this week outlining a number of commonsense ideas to reduce inequality and create an even playing field. One provision... Read More
Taken-for-Granted Social Class Privileges
CLASS PRIVILEGE MEANS… A list compiled by the students in my sociology course on inequality: I can pay to have dental work and therefore keep... Read More
Women “having it all”
It seems not a day goes by when I’m not reading another headline arguing whether women can have it all, or, more accurately, why they... Read More
The Power of Storytelling
I’ve long been interested in the complicated processes of crossing class barriers, especially when that crossing is navigated through success in school. With British sociologist... Read More
Classism is in Fashion
Ever since Miley Cyrus twerked her bum on Robin Thicke’s crotch at the MTV awards, cultural appropriation has been a hot topic. But, society has... Read More
9 Classist Halloween Themes to Think Twice About
I’ve been glad to see so much recent coverage exposing the cultural appropriation, racism and sexism inherent in so many Halloween costumes. Students at Ohio... Read More
Intracommunity Rejection: Racist, Classist, Tragic
The Facebook post showed a 1950’s cartoon businessman: blonde hair, suit and tie, saying, “No, you can’t ‘axe’ me a question. I don’t speak Walmart.” ... Read More
Memorial Day: It’s the Least Wealthy Who Serve and Suffer the Most in War
“People like us don’t have children in the military”. I come in contact with a lot of military families. What is notable is the majority... Read More
Student Leaders Lobby for Affordable Education
Emily Dickinson once wrote, “why not have a big life?” These are the words I kept close to heart when I joined the Seattle Education... Read More
Action on inequality: Getting class recognized as a protected category
As the economic inequality gap continues to widen, students at Grand Valley State University in Traverse City, Michigan, started saying that they were tired of... Read More
Cross-class College Interactions
College, they tell us, is the great middle class-making machine. When I think back on my own cross-class interactions at college, I mostly feel gratitude... Read More
Who Counts as Poor (and who gets to talk about it)
I had a bizarre and frustrating experience recently talking to an agent at a writing conference. My main interest was to pitch a novel, but... Read More
“Is This for a Rental?”
Ever gone to a hardware store to buy a toilet, sink, or door and have the salesperson ask, “Is this for yourself, or for a... Read More
Is Classism a Hate Crime?
Classism is the new acceptable discrimination. It’s a phenomenon I met while growing up poor and continually saw in the physical facts of life—food, clothing,... Read More
New classism book holds the keys to movement-building
Barb Jensen was a rebellious teenager. When she tells her own stories in her new book Reading Classes, readers can vicariously enjoy her mouthing off... Read More
Exploring Classism
Just recently I attended a Class Action workshop. This was my first workshop ever dealing on the issues of classism. Heading into it, I didn’t... Read More
Going on Trial to Prove I Belong
Soon after arriving on campus as a freshman I found myself navigating the long hallways of college almost furtively, quietly darting between the large archways... Read More
From a Teenage Class Action Fan
My name is Liora and I’m fourteen years old. I’ve attended public schools my whole life except for the last year and half when I... Read More
Learning about Class in Private School?
Like parents everywhere, we wanted to give our teenage daughter advantages we never had. High on our list was to provide her a much clearer... Read More
Responding to an anti-immigrant email
An old friend sent me an unbelievable poem, probably not realizing it would offend me. It was titled “Mexican Poem.” It starts like this: My... Read More
So Wrong, It’s Not Even Close to Right
This crass advertisement for a “unique luxury resort” in Las Vegas assaulted my eyeballs from the pages of the January issue of Architectural Digest. The... Read More
Joe Bageant: 1946-2011
It is with great sorrow that we learned of the recent death of Joe Bageant. Joe and Class Action’s late co-founder, Felice Yeskel, were two... Read More
Connecticut Public Employee Activists Fight For Pension Justice
Out of the limelight, public employee activists have achieved a near victory in their quest for a fair pension plan. However, fulfillment of a national... Read More
Who Gets Plowed in New York?
After the first huge snow storm on December 26, my family was asking two questions: a) where are the damn snowplows in our Brooklyn neighborhood?;... Read More
Celebrating Felice Yeskel
Felice Yeskel, a peaceful warrior for economic justice, has left us. After a 2-year battle with cancer, Felice died on Tuesday Jan 11, surrounded by... Read More
Memories of Felice and class
A few memories of Felice and class from Betsy Leondar-Wright I remember when Felice first identified herself as working-class. When she was in her mid-20s,... Read More
Mourning the loss of Felice Yeskel
Felice Yeskel, co-founder of Class Action, passed away in her home early this morning after a courageous struggle with cancer. Felice was a tireless activist... Read More