Being a person with a lower-class status impacted my personal college journey. I was homeless for a year, so I missed a year of school and graduated a year late. I could not afford an ACT or SAT tutor, so I opted for community college. I could not afford community college, so I worked for a year and a half to save for college before going. I could not afford to stay in college after one and a half years in, so I took a year off to save more money. I did not save enough, so I started relying on scholarships to help finance my college career. As such, I am older than most students within my class and this sometimes results in a generation gap in experiences and viewpoints. Sometimes, I am completely floored by their thoughts and beliefs. And this forces me to realize that the …show more content…
I accept that loudness, aggressiveness, and boldness differs from “acceptable” American behavior, yet just because it differs from tradition does not mean it is bad. My lower-class upbringing impacted and race shaped my ghetto identity. My loudness is both a survival tool and a cultural characteristic. One, I have to be loud, change is not quietly accepted in America. Change is typically demanded and it is done so loudly because American history and history of progress is shaped by a motto of “now or never”. Now requires noise and loudness. Loudness, aggressiveness, and boldness are a part of my lower-class and racial identities. Yes, they are all survival tools, but they are also a part of me and my soul. I do not believe in celebrating quietly; and loudness, aggressiveness, and boldness are a part of my celebration. I grow-up in a culture in which I had to accept the behavior of cultures that differ from mines and others should extend me the same courtesy. I will state that my identity as ghetto does not brand me as rude, obnoxious, ignorant, or stupid. Again, I am no one’s negative