Hello

I just wanted to say a quick hello as my first post. I hope to document a long term journey as I grow to understand the non-white/male/cisgendered/multi-cultural world around me. I have always logically known that others have not gotten the same chances as myself due to their gender/race/sexual orientation and religion. For some reason though it never sunk in on how prolific or how rooted in as part of the system it was.

I struggled when I was younger, I grew up in poverty that was probably greater than anyone I have met (my family was homeless for over a year in high school, living in cars, state parks, etc). I always assumed that put me on equal footing with other people who were denied things due to other privileges they lacked but that I had.

I honestly hadn't realized that it is not the same. True, it took me 15 years longer to work my way through college, and I had always assumed with how difficult it was that it erased any other privilege I might have as a white male, seemingly cisgendered (not quite, but that is a future post to talk about) who wasn't Christian, but wasn't treated poorly by people who were, as they just automatically assumed I was.

However, over the last year or two I have learned that I still am granted a lot of privileges by society and that those advantages are denied others. I have always been a "white knight" losing jobs and friends over defending people who I felt were being treated poorly. For some reason though I hadn't realized it wasn't just individuals but entire groups of people (frankly the majority if you count all the aspects of privilege).

Now, I know I still sometimes (more than I like to admit) have knee jerk reactions when I feel I am being targeted unfairly by others who are subject to discrimination. I am still working through that reaction, and I hope to grow as a human being. I don't have a specific order or theme for this blog other than my learning about others, coming to terms with my own racists/sexist/intolerance ideas as I unearth them. I also will not hesitate to tell others when they are wrong. I am hoping to review media, news articles and maybe put a different light on some of the subjects (I have a rather extended range of careers in my prior and current path that may help).

I may never reach the full enlightenment of the Buddha, but I would like to die much older and much more enlightened then I am now.