Trying to Get Rid of Classism Prejudice in My English Class

In Western society, certain questions and topics are intentionally excluded from polite conversation. Straightforward inquiries such as “How much do you make?” or worse “How much are you worth?” elicit personal consternation in many socioeconomic settings of our culture. Instead, differences in economic class reside as the proverbial white elephant in the room, almost as if we would rather pretended it did not exist (Yeskel, 2007). However, while the question may remain verbally unspoken, many of us, including myself, are guilty of asking the question subconsciously when forming opinions of other people. Class is an element of culture by which we construct an identity for self and others based on the associations we make with one's economic prosperity (Barone, 1999). My participation in ADED 6590 has helped me to realize that while I have consistently challenged my own narratives of race and ethnicity throughout the acquisition of my master's degree in multicultural and transnational literatures, issues of classism underscore my remaining prejudices toward others.
In the same way that societies create diversity, the power structures of societies also create stratified disparities (Kottak & Kozaitis, 2012). Classism works in conjunction with existing prejudices toward minority ethnicities. While only half of the entire white population is considered to be poor, the majority of the poor population is comprised of black, latino, and Native American individuals (Yeskel, 2007). Therefore, the structure of the American economy works consistently to conceal classism behind a facade of racial and culture differences, convincing its citizenry that the differences in wealth are ascribed to differences in ability and work ethic. According t...

... middle of paper ...

...the opportunities to discover ways that their own practice is discriminatory toward various socioeconomic groups. Finally, as Tilly and Taylor posit (2012), it is not enough to try to change the world view of individual learner and teachers; rather, the focus must be multi-faceted, including both the content, the curriculum, school policies and institutional practices. My position on the department head council within our school affords me a voice in various structural and academically-concerned decisions. This awareness of my own prejudice will allow me to add a critical perspective to the conversation that considers the ways that the working-class population may be affected by our institutional practices. In these ways, I hope to help students overcome the discrepancies they face as well as to help our school overcome the discrepancies we have unknowingly enforced.