WHEN A POOR PERSON DIES OF HUNGER, IT HAS NOT HAPPENED BECAUSE GOD DID NOT TAKE CARE OF HIM OR HER. IT HAS HAPPENED BECAUSE NEITHER YOU NOR I WANTED TO GIVE THAT PERSON WHAT HE OR SHE NEEDED. - Mother Teresa of Calcutta
My first recognition of the concept of "privilege" must have been the first time I ever noticed a difference between the way I live and the way that others live in the world. The idea has been reinforced in different ways ever since. Most recently, through the past several years, I have begun to see and appreciate that my experiences in life are really just that- my experiences. It seems like such a simple concept and yet to begin to understand that the vast majority of the world lives, thinks, acts, and even breathes differently than I do has been what I consider to be a huge wake up call. The things I think about, the things I worry about and, most importantly, the things I don't are a reflection of my "place" in the world and my privilege.
Starting out with a basic example- I have never had to worry about: being hungry, having somewhere to live, having clothes to wear, having some form of healthcare, being able to trust the law and justice system, having opportunities to further my education, wondering if anyone really cares about me...Of course, these are things any parent would want for his or her child, but, unfortunately, they are not a given in this country or this world. Thousands of people in the US and millions of people around the world live without these assurances. And why is that?
There are a hundred different answers but, ultimately, power struggles throughout history economically, politically, and socially have always left "winners" and "losers." Another way to look at this is that they leave one person/party/group in power and another disempowered. This is the nature of power struggles. Those who end up in power make decisions for the disempowered groups, often trying to disable them further, so they can't put up as much of a fight the next time around. You can see this at the end of wars, especially. The winners' children, therefore, end up with a clear advantage over the losers' children by nature of the circumstances they were born into. This is called privilege. It is not a God-granted gift or creation- it is not the result of being reincarnated into a better life (based on my beliefs)- it is a simple reality associated with historical economic, political and social power struggles, many of which took place before I was even born. Generally, the powerful are able to grow more powerful because they have money, access to resources, and arms that the less powerful tend not to have or tend not to have in such large supply.
So, what's wrong with this? Well, seemingly nothing if you're one of the "winner's" children, but things are much more problematic if you're on the losing end of this whole scenario. Essentially, the less power you end up with from a particular power struggle, the more difficult it is to gain back that power. From a Christian and, frankly, a moral standpoint, what's wrong with this is that regardless of whether we are on the privileged end of things or not, we need to be concerned about those who are underprivileged, underrepresented, under spoken for- those who have lost their pull and voice in society because that's what we're called to do. And, as if that's not enough, we're called to do it without judging the decisions, motivations, or the circumstances that landed them in the "losers" seat to begin with. We don't criticize their strategies, one because it is irrelevant if our goal is to work toward the good of humanity as a whole, and two because their loss resulted in our win. I am privileged precisely because someone else is not. This is a hard concept to choke down and associated with a lot of guilt when we begin to understand the truth behind it, but it is a reality that has to be faced. Unlike many would have us believe, power does not exist in an isolated sense and, therefore, the things that give people power, including monetary wealth does not exist independent of other factors.
It is this interconnectedness related to privilege that is precisely what people in my socioeconomic class seem to have such a hard time gulping down. They want to believe that their choice to drive an SUV, take 30 minute hot showers, buy more food than they could ever possibly eat, have bigger homes that require more resources and take up more space than they could ever utilize is a choice independent of any consequences...that they first and foremost, earned it and that they deserve it. This attitude of entitlement and really of denial about the connections between one's actions and the well being of the earth and people on the earth is incredibly problematic because it allows us to go on living our lives in a manner that is destructive to the earth and destructive to the well being of our brothers and sisters around the world without thought or recognition of consequence.
Regardless of our denial, however, the resource wars have already begun. People are absolutely dying right now because of scarcities in oil and water, because of land and fossil fuels and we, the privileged in the US, are not immune. Our privilege may keep us out of harm's way a little longer, but certainly not forever, and it will be the next generation that experiences the results of our carelessness most harshly. We have to recognize ourselves as part of the problem and we have got to work to even out the distribution of wealth and power- economic, political, and social- within our own country and within the world. It is our moral obligation to our families, our communities, our countries, and our world.
I am not talking about making sure that everyone has the exact same two story four bedroom house and 15 lima beans to eat at dinner every evening. I am talking about living more simply- not buying things for the sake of buying, not eating in excess, just because we can, not purchasing toys and gadgets for your children that will isolate them from engaging with your family even more just because they're popular. I'm simply asking you to honestly look at your own privilege and where your values line up with your lifestyle.
When I first started working and saw all the money that was taken out of my paycheck for taxes, I was apalled. I thought, "with what right do they take my money away?" It took me this whole year to realize with what right did I earn that money in the first place. There are plenty of people who work much harder than me, much longer hours, doing things they hate and make much less. They suffer health consequences, emotional consequences, psychological consequences... and not always because of bad choices, though it wouldn't matter if it was; oftentimes, it is simply because they were born into a disempowered situation and did not have the same opportunity as I did to get ahead. Now I ask, "with what right do I take more than I need?" Who cares if half my paycheck goes to someone else's healthcare as long as I have healthcare too? As long as I have food to eat and shelter and clothes, and a loving family and meaningful work, what more could I ask for? With what right do I deny others their basic needs when I have more than enough?
For my children, if God blesses me with some one day, I wish for them the security of knowing they are loved, of having what they need and of being safe. I recognize that I can't make that wish without working towards the completion of it and without doing something to educate others about their and my responsibility in this matter. We have a responsibility to care for others in this world as their homes and lands and lives are being torn apart because of resources in their countries. We have a responsibility to feed the hungry and clothe the naked so that tomorrow, when we are hungry and naked, as we so easily could be, they will do the same for us. And even if we never have to face that day, when the tables turn, we have the moral obligation to do it. If that does not motivate you to move to action, then do it for your children and your children's children, so that war can be avoided at all costs and so that people are no longer motivated by fear and desperation but are able to live in a basically satisfying state of life.
My first recognition of the concept of "privilege" must have been the first time I ever noticed a difference between the way I live and the way that others live in the world. The idea has been reinforced in different ways ever since. Most recently, through the past several years, I have begun to see and appreciate that my experiences in life are really just that- my experiences. It seems like such a simple concept and yet to begin to understand that the vast majority of the world lives, thinks, acts, and even breathes differently than I do has been what I consider to be a huge wake up call. The things I think about, the things I worry about and, most importantly, the things I don't are a reflection of my "place" in the world and my privilege.
Starting out with a basic example- I have never had to worry about: being hungry, having somewhere to live, having clothes to wear, having some form of healthcare, being able to trust the law and justice system, having opportunities to further my education, wondering if anyone really cares about me...Of course, these are things any parent would want for his or her child, but, unfortunately, they are not a given in this country or this world. Thousands of people in the US and millions of people around the world live without these assurances. And why is that?
There are a hundred different answers but, ultimately, power struggles throughout history economically, politically, and socially have always left "winners" and "losers." Another way to look at this is that they leave one person/party/group in power and another disempowered. This is the nature of power struggles. Those who end up in power make decisions for the disempowered groups, often trying to disable them further, so they can't put up as much of a fight the next time around. You can see this at the end of wars, especially. The winners' children, therefore, end up with a clear advantage over the losers' children by nature of the circumstances they were born into. This is called privilege. It is not a God-granted gift or creation- it is not the result of being reincarnated into a better life (based on my beliefs)- it is a simple reality associated with historical economic, political and social power struggles, many of which took place before I was even born. Generally, the powerful are able to grow more powerful because they have money, access to resources, and arms that the less powerful tend not to have or tend not to have in such large supply.
So, what's wrong with this? Well, seemingly nothing if you're one of the "winner's" children, but things are much more problematic if you're on the losing end of this whole scenario. Essentially, the less power you end up with from a particular power struggle, the more difficult it is to gain back that power. From a Christian and, frankly, a moral standpoint, what's wrong with this is that regardless of whether we are on the privileged end of things or not, we need to be concerned about those who are underprivileged, underrepresented, under spoken for- those who have lost their pull and voice in society because that's what we're called to do. And, as if that's not enough, we're called to do it without judging the decisions, motivations, or the circumstances that landed them in the "losers" seat to begin with. We don't criticize their strategies, one because it is irrelevant if our goal is to work toward the good of humanity as a whole, and two because their loss resulted in our win. I am privileged precisely because someone else is not. This is a hard concept to choke down and associated with a lot of guilt when we begin to understand the truth behind it, but it is a reality that has to be faced. Unlike many would have us believe, power does not exist in an isolated sense and, therefore, the things that give people power, including monetary wealth does not exist independent of other factors.
It is this interconnectedness related to privilege that is precisely what people in my socioeconomic class seem to have such a hard time gulping down. They want to believe that their choice to drive an SUV, take 30 minute hot showers, buy more food than they could ever possibly eat, have bigger homes that require more resources and take up more space than they could ever utilize is a choice independent of any consequences...that they first and foremost, earned it and that they deserve it. This attitude of entitlement and really of denial about the connections between one's actions and the well being of the earth and people on the earth is incredibly problematic because it allows us to go on living our lives in a manner that is destructive to the earth and destructive to the well being of our brothers and sisters around the world without thought or recognition of consequence.
Regardless of our denial, however, the resource wars have already begun. People are absolutely dying right now because of scarcities in oil and water, because of land and fossil fuels and we, the privileged in the US, are not immune. Our privilege may keep us out of harm's way a little longer, but certainly not forever, and it will be the next generation that experiences the results of our carelessness most harshly. We have to recognize ourselves as part of the problem and we have got to work to even out the distribution of wealth and power- economic, political, and social- within our own country and within the world. It is our moral obligation to our families, our communities, our countries, and our world.
I am not talking about making sure that everyone has the exact same two story four bedroom house and 15 lima beans to eat at dinner every evening. I am talking about living more simply- not buying things for the sake of buying, not eating in excess, just because we can, not purchasing toys and gadgets for your children that will isolate them from engaging with your family even more just because they're popular. I'm simply asking you to honestly look at your own privilege and where your values line up with your lifestyle.
When I first started working and saw all the money that was taken out of my paycheck for taxes, I was apalled. I thought, "with what right do they take my money away?" It took me this whole year to realize with what right did I earn that money in the first place. There are plenty of people who work much harder than me, much longer hours, doing things they hate and make much less. They suffer health consequences, emotional consequences, psychological consequences... and not always because of bad choices, though it wouldn't matter if it was; oftentimes, it is simply because they were born into a disempowered situation and did not have the same opportunity as I did to get ahead. Now I ask, "with what right do I take more than I need?" Who cares if half my paycheck goes to someone else's healthcare as long as I have healthcare too? As long as I have food to eat and shelter and clothes, and a loving family and meaningful work, what more could I ask for? With what right do I deny others their basic needs when I have more than enough?
For my children, if God blesses me with some one day, I wish for them the security of knowing they are loved, of having what they need and of being safe. I recognize that I can't make that wish without working towards the completion of it and without doing something to educate others about their and my responsibility in this matter. We have a responsibility to care for others in this world as their homes and lands and lives are being torn apart because of resources in their countries. We have a responsibility to feed the hungry and clothe the naked so that tomorrow, when we are hungry and naked, as we so easily could be, they will do the same for us. And even if we never have to face that day, when the tables turn, we have the moral obligation to do it. If that does not motivate you to move to action, then do it for your children and your children's children, so that war can be avoided at all costs and so that people are no longer motivated by fear and desperation but are able to live in a basically satisfying state of life.
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