This is an activity that we participated in outside as a class.

1. Madison Parsons
Privilege Walk
First Year Seminar
During class on September 16, 2015, we were told to go outside to do an activity
in the field. The activity was constructed of 35 questions about our parents, home life,
ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and everyday lifestyle. This activity was like
nothing I have ever participated in before and it made me really think after leaving the
class.
All of the students, including myself, formed a straight horizontal line in the field.
The sidewalk ahead represented success. The closer a person got to the sidewalk, the
more likely he/she would be successful and the farther away, the most likely not
successful. Professor Blanco began asking the 35 questions. The questions were asked in
a way that required a yes or no answer and told the direction to step.
During the exercise there were some questions asked that made me feel sad at
times. For example, one of the questions was, “If you ever had to skip a meal or were
hungry because there was not money to go buy food where you were growing up, take
one step back.” Some of the people in my class took a step back. That broke my heart
because no child should have to grow up like that. Also during the exercise, many of the
questions asked if you had ever been discriminated in some way due to gender, race,
ethnicity, or sexual orientation. Personally, I have never been discriminated for any of
those reasons but many of the kids in my class had been and had to take steps
backwards. Some of the questions asked I did not realize were truly an issue in our
society today.
At the end of the exercise, Blanco asked us to look around and view our position
compared to our peers. He also asked, “What race or color is more towards the success
line?” The answer was obvious but not one that everyone wanted to state: Caucasian
students. I had never realized that Caucasian or white students tend to be more
successful due to less discrimination that they have in their lives. I felt sad because of
the responses that the students gave and also sad because of the discrimination that
goes on in a country that is supposed to be “land of the free and home of the brave.”
Discrimination is not freedom.
One thing that I have learned from this experiment is that discrimination
happens a lot more than I realize. I grew up in an area that did not have much of a racial
diversity. Coming to Marshall University has really opened my eyes to different people
and cultures. This exercise also made me want to put a stop to discrimination of any
type. Just because people have a different skin color, sexual orientation, or lifestyle as
you doesn’t mean they should be discriminated and told they will not be as successful.
Everyone can be successful if they put their mind to it.