Why Do You Want to Be Poor?
Growing up poor on Long Island builds character. While trying to balance personal responsibilities with maintaining a GPA high enough to make myself a competitive... Read More
A Total Commitment to First Gen Students
Instead of a program located in one department, Mount Holyoke provides a dynamic, collaborative initiative focused on ensuring that the august institution is meeting the... Read More
Andy’s Story: Class and Homelessness
Before the year 2004, the word “classism” was not in my vocabulary. As a music teacher at a prestigious private elementary school and a private... Read More
Spring Break?
When I think of spring break, I think of MTV and early 20-somethings soaking up the sun. I believe that this ideal spring break is becoming... Read More
Was the International Women’s Day Strike Classist?
What did you do for International Women’s Day? Did you strike? Well, I’m currently unemployed, and my partner has been supporting us while I’ve been more-or-less taking... Read More
Five Classist Pitfalls to #Resist in Your Activism
In a moment of potentially revolutionary activism and mobilization, don’t let classism undermine your efforts. The past few weeks have been both terrifying and inspiring.... Read More
Beyond Trump: Building a Coalition for Change
Part of the White, Working Class, and Worried about Trump (#WhiteWorkingClassVsTrump) Campaign*: I grew up in South St. Louis City in a multi-racial, working-class neighborhood. My... Read More
Risk Telling the Truth
I thought I was going to be a career teacher. But after a decade, I hit bottom. Teaching in inner-city schools, I saw the barriers... Read More
Being an Owning-Class Activist
All of us are more than a label, right? We each are more than one of our identities standing by itself. We are complex, changing,... Read More
Wealthy, Come Home
Here’s my invitation to those of you, like me, in the top of America’s income and wealth ladder. Come home. What I mean by “coming home”... Read More
My Summers on the Cape
Working, Not “Summering,” on Martha’s Vineyard Summer rolling around means vacations for many. But for others it means seasonal migration to restaurant and hospitality work.... Read More
No Interest in Sharing the Wealth?
As a young person with inherited wealth who is public about my identity, sometimes my friends will ask me for a gift or for a... Read More
African Americans and Classism:
It’s Complicated When I started this post, I thought it would be a straight-forward musing on classism on and in African-American communities. A few minutes in, and... Read More
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
Health and Cost-savings through Class Privilege and Contacts
Recently our family had an experience of cheaper and easier health care, because of the people that we know and our current financial status. My... Read More
Intrusions on solidarity work
For the past year, I have been having conversations in the predominantly White, middle class, progressive faith community where I worship, about making choices so... Read More
How I Learned to Check My Privilege
My best friend texted me the other night. He was letting me know that he’d been asked to submit a micro-aggression that happened to him... Read More
Should Americans Talk About Class?
Helllllllllllllll yes! “But why?” some ask. Good question. My short answer: because talking about class is revolutionary. American society as a whole, as judged by... Read More