Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

     During this week I observed an example of classism while watching a story on the news. The story was about a school district in the state of Pennsylvania where they sent a letter to the parents of children with outstanding debt from this past school year. If the debt was not paid the school was seeking to file a petition for those children to be removed from their homes and placed in foster care. A local business owner contacted the school district to pay the debt but was informed that it was not his responsibility to pay the debt and that the parents had money to pay (Olsen, 2019). The business owner then sent a letter to the local newspaper informing them of what happened. Based on the local and national news coverage of the situation the school district decided to accept the $20,000 donation to eliminate the children’s debt. After watching this story and reading more information about it I was angered by the actions of this school district and about their lack of care and concern for the children and their families. I wondered if the school district has sought other methods or techniques to work with the families. This type of microaggression which was classism affected me deeply because I believe this school district discriminated against poor families and sought to have their children removed from the family instead of offering resources or services.

References:
Olsen, T. (2019, July 24). School district that warned parents of foster care over unpaid lunch debt     rejects offer to pay it off, CEO says. Retrieved from https://www.foxnews.com/us/school-district-digs-in-on-collecting-debt-ceo-says

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

     I talked to my boyfriend whom and he defined culture as characteristics of a group of people from a certain location and diversity as differences in individuals.  Next, I as one of my co-workers defined culture as the heritage shared within a certain nationality or group of people. Last, I asked my mother and her response to culture was it is the makeup things such as language, food, and religion shared between a family or group of people.  All three shared the same answer about diversity.
    Based on the responses I received about culture and diversity they are in line with the different concepts we have learned about in the last couple of weeks. The media segment with the three-panelist stated that culture is a set of different characteristics and how culture is intertwined in almost everything we do on a regular basis. Exploring the different perspectives of other people’s views showed that we do not put thought into how important culture and diversity impact and influence us. With each person, I took the time to share the different things I have learned in the course about the readings and about myself.

My Family Culture

     If I had to relocate due to a major catastrophe event, I would take these three small items my book of photos, my cell phone with charger, and my Bible. I need my photos to have to reflect on the moments, events, places, and family members. My cell phone is essential because I have family and friends phone numbers, addresses, and I would be able to have contact with them. My Bible is important because it is key to my religion and will help get me through life’s test and trials.

     If I had to pick one of the three items from the previous list, I would choose my phone because it allows me access to so many different things. With my cellphone I would be able to maintain contact with family and friends, have and take phones with my phone, and utilize the internet to gain information about the new area I am residing in.

     Through this exercise, I realize that I do not have any meaningful family heirloom. I have a small family, and we all live very separate lives even though we are family. I grew up in a small town with my mother and younger brother.  During this week lesson I learned that culture can be defined in a family’s religion, language, lifestyle, and values. So, sitting back thinking about family culture made me realize that since becoming an adult, I have taken the time to create a different culture and traditions for myself. I did not like the family culture I grow in and I wanted something different for myself.  I been able to see and identify the cultural differences and see how it has influenced my life in different perspective like my values, beliefs, and lifestyle.