I saw a quote once that went something like, “Stop acting like you fought your way to the tenth floor, if you were born on the ninth.” It really struck a chord with me. Have you ever been listening to somebody talk about their problems, only to get agitated, because you feel like they haven’t experienced your problems? Or, have you ever gone through something difficult, and had a friend try to empathize with you by saying “I can imagine how you feel,” but you know they can’t? It doesn’t mean the person not experiencing the problems is awful. You just feel like they should be aware of how fortunate they are, right?
After I saw the above mentioned quote- I started feeling a pang in my chest every time I started to feel the sentiments I explained a bit ago. I couldn’t help but be so aware of what I have, that I did nothing to deserve. I thought of every opportunity I’ve been afforded because of circumstances I’ve been in that I did nothing to deserve. An obvious example: I was a dancer all my life, and it was sort of what I identified with. Dance was so important to me. But, I would’ve never been able to be a dancer if I wasn’t born into a family willing to pay for my lessons. Thinking of simple examples like this made me realize all of the opportunities that I’ve been afforded that I wasn’t even aware of. I am a white, able-bodied American, and that means that I’ve been afforded privileges. So many people reject the sentiment. They feel that they are not privileged- because they have problems of their own. It just comes down to the problems they don’t have- that others do, that they did nothing to avoid.
I will never understand how some Americans feel that they deserve to have certain privileges simply because they were born in a particular region of the planet. I will never understand how some white people feel immune to considering the struggles of other races, just because they were born white. I will never understand how people born into affluent families feel superior to those who live in apartments or trailers, because they were born into a family with money.
If you did nothing to deserve it, but still reap the benefits- it’s privilege. If you were born on the ninth floor, you are not more able than someone born on the third. You just might get to the tenth, first. It’s privilege.
