- 1.While I am walking on the street or driving a car, I won’t be pulled over and to ask to show my ID. In this case, I experience privilege.
- 2.I am living in a safe neighborhood and my apartment is clean and nice.
- 3.I can apply student visa and make it all the way to the states.
- But there are many ways that I experience oppressions:
- 1.I can’t find food from my culture in every neighborhood even here it is new york city. I still have to travel all the way to asian markets.
- 2.I can’t find people can speak my mother tongue easily, in this case I have to speak another language for communicating daily also people wouldn’t understand what I say sometimes.
- 3.I have to read books in other languages and it makes my reading paces very slow sometimes I even forgot what the book was about.
- 4.People couldn’t understand my mindset since it is not mainstream value also people would consider some of my mindset traditional since they assume my culture is developing or my mother country is developing.
For privilege, it is something you have, some abilities you were born with, sometimes it is not you, it is what your parents have more than other parents-like the abilities your parents have more than other parents or resources your parents have more than other parents. In the video, some people can have chance to study or doing their own things because they have parents that already make it for them so that they won’t be busy to work to earn enough tuition and so on. Some of them both parents are working regularly or earn decent money which salary level also designed by the system built by people stand with them so that benefit them.
Oppression is an unfair result leaded by a system that is not stand on your side, a network and system are banning you and set limitations for you from being a person with regular civil rights. As Marilyn Frye wrote in her book Oppression, Oppression is everywhere, it is not just one element. It is like a cage, and if you look closer to the cage, you wouldn’t notice the wires everywhere, but sometimes you have to take a step back, so that you can see the whole picture and then you can find where are the wires. It is same as oppression because oppression is everywhere and in our daily life.
I love that you made your own list.
Hi Yin, there were some privileges you listed that I hadn’t even considered but also relate to, such as not being pulled over to show ID, and living in a safe neighborhood. As for your list for oppression you experience I know what you mean, it’s hard to find asian markets if you’re not in Flushing, Ktown or Chinatown. Even then, the ‘multi-cultural’ section in a lot of supermarkets tends to be way on the smaller side. The part you mentioned about communication I can relate to too because sometimes things don’t translate well from one language to another, so it makes it harder to express yourself, let alone find someone who speaks that language. You’re right, oppression really is everywhere in our daily life and sometimes it almost feels like this dark cloud looming over you.
Hello Yin Lin,
I really liked reading your response. I also liked how you took the approach of making two lists showing how you are privileged as well as how you experience oppression. I also really loved how you explained oppression and the imagery you used when mentioning a cage.
Aw man, I really relate to you on the struggle to find cultural food nearby, and have to go to the Asian specific markets too.
Hi Yin Lin!
I can also relate to you and not being able to find your cultures food nearby, it can be so tough. It’s so frustrating when people around me give me looks when I speak in another language. I love how you made a list, I feel like i’ve gotten to know you. Thank you!