Social Class- November 26

          Last week in class we have talked a lot about social class and distribution of wealth. These past couple of days we have been working on a project that has really opened up my eyes. I never really knew what class to consider myself in and wasn't very educated on how much everything costs once we grow up.

          My group and I were assigned a family in the middle class which, like the name conveys, is not the best but not the worst. There are other groups in class that can barely provide the bare minimum of essentials for their families. Seeing and calculating how expensive everything is has really changed the way I think about things. Growing up in an area like Long Grove, I had never really thought about the families who are different than mine. Even when I came to Stevenson, I overlooked the people who aren't as privileged as I am and have been caught up in the stereotype that everyone has money because we live in a wealthy area. Obviously we do live in a wealthy area, but there are definitely people that go to Stevenson who aren't as fortunate as others. But nevertheless, I have began to truly appreciate the privileges and opportunities available to me. I think about things that are a part of my everyday life that may be a luxury to others. It is important to realize the differences in wealth around us and that we be thankful for whatever we do have. 

gender vs sex

This week in class we talked a lot about gender vs sex and even got a chance to listen to the stories of 4 students who are part of the LGBTQ community. I really enjoyed getting the chance to listen to these students experiences and it really opened my eyes to a lot of different things. For starters, I never really thought about the stress that these students have to go through. I thought that the stress of school, friends, sports, etc was a lot and hard for me to deal with. I never could even imagine what some of these students must go through. The stress of being an outsider and the stress of not being accepted. It is one thing to not be accepted by other students at school, but one of the girls on the panel was talking about not being accepted by her own brother. I could not even imagine what my life would be like if I wasn't supported by my friends and family. The extra baggage that those students carry with them is huge and really affects their character. After everything those students have gone through, they are so strong. They are stronger than most people I know because of what they deal with everyday. They have faced hardships of not knowing who they are, not knowing what to do or who to turn to. The amount of stress that comes with those hardships is unbearable and I have so much respect for the students who were on that panel sharing their stories with us. It really opened my eyes and I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to listen to the students who shared a part of their lives with me.
The other topic we talked a lot about was the idea of raising a child without a gender. I was intrigued by this idea but in the end thought that it could end very badly. I thought about if my parents had raised me this way and how I might have turned out. I ultimately thought that I would be very confused and a little upset at my parents. I think if I was raised this way, I would have been even more of an outsider because I wouldn't know what I was supposed to be. I think that the best way to go about this kind of situation is to raise a child as the sex that they were born with. If they grow up and realize that their gender does not match up with their sex then they have the opportunity to be who they want to be. But raising a child to be an "x" would turn out badly in my opinion.