What is Classism?

Classism is prejudice or discrimination on the basis of social class. It can be seen in various aspects of society, from political ideologies, to how people treat someone in a clothing store. Classism is generally dealt by those in the middle and upper classes to those in the working and poor classes. Those in the middle and upper classes believe that they are superior to those in the working and poor classes because of their socio-economic status. Admittedly, classism is more subtle than it used to be, but it can still be seen in various aspects of life.

Ignoring Classism

Many people choose to ignore classism in general. In A Two-Fold Unveiling: Unmasking Classism in Group Work, it talks about how people believe that they live in a classless society. It goes on to explain that people do not want to talk about classism because it causes them to be uncomfortable. I find this to be true. People, with any issue of oppression tend to at first ignore it and hope that it will go away. It is not wise to do this because when you ignore the problem you are, in essence, contributing to the problem itself.

The affects of classism

Classism has many affects on society. One of the affects is that it places a sense of superiority in the upper classes, and a sense of inferiority in the lower classes.  Another affect of classism is that it divides people. It puts people in a section of being rich and poor. Most rich people do not live in the same neighborhoods as poor people, or shop in the same areas as poor people, it separates us as a society. Classism also makes people angry and bitter at America's economic system, people believe that it is unfair and sometimes do extreme things they believe are justifiable, because of the inequalities they have been dealt with. In Coping with Everyday  Classism: Experiences of Low-income People in a Southeastern Rural Community, it shows how low income people cope with everyday classism.

What makes someone upper class, middle class, working class or poor

  Poor is defined as lacking enough money to live comfortably in society. Working class is defined as the social group consisting of people who are employed for wages, esp. in manual or industrial work.Middle class is defined as the social group between the upper and working classes. Rich is defined as having a great deal of money or assets. Popular opinion believes that poor people probably make less than $10,000 a year, working class makes anywhere from $10,000-$40,000, middle class make $50,000 to $500,000. Now middle class ranges so high because there are different sections in the middle class: lower middle class, middle class, and upper middle class. What makes someone upper class or rich is when someone makes $500,000 a year or more. It is usually the middle class and upper class that discriminates against the working and poor classes.

Where is classism found?

In my opinion, classism can be found just about anywhere, even in the the tax code. It is seen in malls, in grocery stores, just about anywhere.  By comparison if you shop at a store that is frequented by a wealthy clientele you will notice that the customer service is much more friendly, and the overall shopping experience is better then shopping at, lets say, TJ Maxx. Classism is most commonly used by treating someone wealthy better than someone who is poor. If I was to pull into a bank in a Mercedes, then walk into the bank with a designer suit on, do you think they'd treat me the same way if I walked in looking like I was homeless? Most likely not.

Reverse Classism

Some claim that there is such a thing as reverse classism. Reverse classism is when the poor and working class receive more advantages than their wealthy counterparts. This can be seen in our education system where many poor students get a "free ride" to college because they are poor, meanwhile many middle class families struggle to get their child through college. I think this is probably the only case where we see reverse classism. My personal opinion is that we oppress the poor and working class so much, they do deserve to have one aspect of the system that tilts in their favor.