Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Privilege and Marginalization: Intersectionality

I am an able bodied white woman. I come from a two-parent household. I had a sister. We grew up in the suburbs. I'm pretty, well educated, spoiled, privileged in every sense. I'm also a troubled individual. I stumbled my way through my teen years, in and out of doctors' offices and hospitals. I dropped out of high school twice. I've been diagnosed with clinical depression, ADHD, generalized anxiety disorder, substance abuse and dependence, EDNOS. I've been labeled a slut, stupid, a whore, fat, ugly, a junkie, a drunk, a bitch, a waste of space. I've never really been able to determine how I can be so privileged and so outcast simultaneously. There are many inner struggles, but the all encompassing one is just that: where do I fall in society? I am a woman which marginalizes me to an extent. I am mentally unstable at times - stigmatized. I dropped in and out of school, leaving me behind my peers - uneducated marginalization. I have a criminal record - marginalized. I think I feel guilty for the troubles I've had in my life. I wasn't supposed to struggle; I'm a thin, pretty, heterosexual white girl from the 'burbs, boo-freaking-hoo. This is my biggest insecurity. I should be, and I very much am, grateful for the privilege I was born with and born into. So why do I feel like a freak?

1 comment:

  1. I think many women who have grown up "privileged" have experienced similar feelings of guilt. I remember reading in Peggy McIntosh's piece that growing up privileged can be quite damaging. But it is the culture that is damaged. Continue thinking about these issues, and talking about them, writing, etc. There are many people out there who feel the same way you do!

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