How I Feel About My Birth Lottery
By: Project Hbe
Tags: Women, Self, Education, Culture, Diversity

How I Feel About My Birth Lottery

Dissecting my identity, as an Asian American first-gen woman studying business, in relation to social mobility

With the ever-widening wealth inequality and the rise of student debt, we often wonder: Is the United States socially mobile?

This is an ongoing, controversial debate because social mobility indicates equal opportunity — a crucial aspect of the American Dream.

Due to fast-paced technological advancements, many jobs are becoming obsolete, and employers are demanding higher levels of education for high-paying jobs. Among this intense competition, many of us agree that education is the sole key determinant of vertical, intergenerational social mobility.

As a student of higher education, I feel immense pressure to succeed and climb up the economic ladder. However, social mobility is a complex topic.

I often question the extent to which people can call themselves “self-made” and whether social mobility in today’s society is systematically constructed. How “self-made” can people truly be when their birth lottery (race, gender, etc) determines their life chances?

In this paper, I am dissecting my identity, evaluating each aspect’s relation to social mobility, and analyzing how our country’s structure enables or hinders it.

1. As a first-generation student attending a private university

My decision to leave California, where I grew up my whole life, and to attend an institution of higher education in Massachusetts was partially influenced by my family and mentors who convinced me that it would help me grow.

I never gave too much thought to what that may entail, but I was determined to get the most out of my college education.

My peers, many of whom come from middle to upper-class households, were constantly concerned about stocks and the financial market. They buried themselves in Burberry and Supreme: both brands that I had never seen before arriving at college.

After familiarizing myself with my peers’ tastes, values, and habits, I returned home to find myself unable to relate to my peers who had decided to dive straight into the workforce.

We simply wanted to talk about different things, which revealed that there were fundamental divergences amongst our values that inspired us each to take on separate paths. I felt distant from my family, my peers, my culture, and even my hometown.

While gaining invaluable experiences and knowledge in college, I felt an important part of myself surrendering to my newfound values. My institutional identity as a college student was growing stronger than any other aspect of me.

My identity as a first-generation student made me a minority, an oddity, and a problem at this university. I found that other first-generation students face a similar dilemma of disconnecting from their homes as they embody the school’s institutional identity.

Colleges that categorize first-generation students frame our identities by feeding into our desire to conform to the institutional culture. In fact, the terminology of first-generation students became widely used by educational institutions in the late 1990s.

There is a connection between the categorization of first-generation students and our sense of identity.

Ostensibly, the classification of first-generation students appears to be the school’s effort to provide additional assistance to those who come from households that may lack resources. In reality, institutions have hidden agendas solely for their own benefit.

The classification of first-generations “is not a power-neutral process that follows from an inevitable and logical classification of students, but rather an attempt to group students in a way that benefits institutional interests.”

The programs expose us to the tastes and values of the middle or higher class, transplanting a sense of homogeneous institutional identity within the first-generation students who are more likely to come from culturally-diverse, low-income households. The establishment of such an identity allows the college to form strong ties with its graduates, increasing its likelihood of receiving institutional services, such as donations.

The process of acculturation to the higher class also encourages us to believe that we can achieve upward social mobility through individual hard work.

This consolidates a mindset that may benefit us on our path to success; meanwhile, the categorization itself makes us believe that in order to achieve vertical social mobility, we must separate ourselves from our heritage and culture.

It inclines students to “fit in” to the middle class and their tastes and values. While familiarizing ourselves with the higher class atmosphere, we deviate from the background that formed our identity until that point. We start to attribute our success to individual efforts rather than other external factors, such as our family.

While acculturation to the higher class may increase our opportunities, it becomes harder for us to accept the identity that makes us unique.

We conform to the majority’s idealized institutional identity in order to achieve upward social mobility. We start investing in stocks and shopping for Burberry clothes if that means adopting the institutional culture, values, and lifestyle.

2. As an Asian American

My parents’ educational background is not the only element that makes me a minority at any school; the fact that I am a racial minority also influences the ease of climbing up the social ladder.

As an Asian American, I assumed that there would be a clear disparity between my community and the white community. Surprisingly, I found evidence that Asian Americans are almost as socially mobile as Caucasians.

If one were to only examine the Asian Americans’ progress in the U.S., it would seem as if “earnings gaps driven largely by prejudice or misperceptions are not sustainable in competitive labor markets,” as Asian Americans’ success to their test scores is as high as those of their Caucasian counterparts.

Asians have been able to close their earnings gap because they have brought skill sets from their native countries in contrast to the African Americans who have not been able to advance their skill sets “from centuries of slavery and educational exclusion.”

There were days in the early 20th century in California when, at times, Asians faced harsher restrictions than the local blacks. The Naturalization Act of 1970, the Ku Klux Klan, and The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 all restricted Asians during the time when black people “were eligible for citizenship and suffrage.”

Despite the institutionalized discrimination against Asian Americans, we currently face less-severe prejudice relative to the black population, which allows us to be almost as socially mobile as the Caucasians — but still not at parity.

Institutionalized discrimination is more severe for other minorities. A study shows that “education itself does not equalize wealth accumulation opportunities among Black and White families.”

This is because “Blacks continue to be hampered by discrimination in both hiring and salary.” This emphasizes that being white serves as an advantage for social mobility.

The study indicates the substantial difference between the median net wealth of non-Hispanic college-educated white households compared to the college-educated black households.

Compared to the $55,419 median salary for college-educated white families, black families earned $36,260. The mean salary demonstrates an even greater difference: $235,252 for white families and $65,755 for black families.

This data asserts that salaries differ by race and that the distribution of salaries is greatly skewed with a higher number of outliers in the white population. This study not only raises a question of differences in social mobility by race but also confirms that white people are more likely to reach levels of exceptionally high salaries.

Despite society’s preconception of education as a tool to narrow the racial wealth gap, the black community faces a severe economic divide. Additionally, data shows that black kids in the middle class are twice as likely than middle-class white kids to demonstrate downward social mobility.

This proves that racial disparities exist even within the same social class.

Further disparities are shown for college graduates, as “four years after earning a bachelor’s degree, the average black graduate has $52,726 of student loan debt, compared to $28,006 for white.”

Because the differences in opportunities and treatment across racial groups are ludicrously obvious, we subconsciously learn to act more “white” or to assimilate to the group of people who have advantages, privileges, and successes.

Regardless of what minority group people fall in, these attempts to act more “American” stems from the desire to align with the image of a successful individual in America.

Racism continues to be the largest problem in achieving social mobility. Since the difference in social mobility by race is blatantly massive, as shown by research, people can easily examine the white advantage. As a result, similar to students adopting the institutional identity in exchange for their individuality, people may subconsciously start to idolize and conform to “the white identity.”

Another study illustrates this idea of conforming to the identity of the desired status. Because “symbolic meanings have been invested in objects on a personal and social level within human populations,” people utilize such objects to assert a status.

As an example, Ben and Jess, a Filipino couple, moved into a new middle-class neighborhood from a working-class neighborhood. In order to conform to the status and the expectations that follow, the couple expresses their status anxiety by constantly fixing their front yard to look like their neighbors’. They even went so far as to plant a “rare and expensive” tree as “a gesture of cultural superiority.”

In this case, the couple does not feel like a part of the middle-class neighborhood because of their background in the working class. Perhaps they even worry that their failure to conform to the middle class would negate their status.

The couple’s extensive effort into designing their yard to fit in with the rest of the middle-class neighborhood portrays the human tendency to conform to another group by forcing an inflated social image.

Likewise, I may realize my disadvantages in achieving social mobility due to my racial identity and may try to conform to another ethnic group by adopting their tastes and values. This speaks to why individuals of color are often found planting a “tree” that symbolizes assimilation and conformity.

3. As a native English speaker

One large tree that I’ve planted early in my life is one that asserts my fluency in English. I felt humiliated when people pointed out my accent; it made me unique, but different and still an outcast.

My desire to conform to my American peers was especially strong during my adolescence, and this desire and humiliation propelled me to work hard in perfecting my enunciation and planting such a tree.

Language is a large aspect of culture that is often used as a tool to assimilate to another culture. There is a study that took place in Australia, where 60% of the entire population is composed of immigrants, establishing a cultural melting pot.

This study focused on eighteen practitioners, labeled as NESB (non-English speaking background) workers; he collected voluntary participants, interviewed them individually, and facilitated group discussions.

Disclaimer: Because participants volunteered to be a part of the study, the results of the study may be vulnerable to volunteer bias, presenting a rather extreme perspective that may not apply to the majority. In addition, eighteen participants may be an inadequately-sized sample to generalize this study’s findings to the whole population, but still offers a thought-provoking perspective of the bilingual social workers in Australia.

To begin, language is a cultural capital, possessing an intangible value in assisting people in the workplace, offering multiple life opportunities. People often perceive bilingualism in a positive light, but the study shows that bilingualism hinders people’s opportunities if English fluency is obstructed by an accent.

The simple classification of non-native speakers, the “nomenclature [as NESB,] accentuates what people are not, rather than what they can do, and downplays the value of bilinguality.” The participants, therefore, felt the pressure to learn English, to view English “as a marketable commodity,” and to utilize the language to fit the cultural standards and expectations of the English-speaking country. One participant who emigrated from Laos to Australia claimed:

“And I think especially now, with Americans speaking English, and probably one of the most powerful nations in the world and very rich too, they can turn things around to the way they want…And I guess that we all have to learn to live with that.”

The pressure to learn English is another pressure to assimilate to the Americans, enhanced by the U.S.’s powerful status in the global world. Society mandates people of color to master English beyond the level of adequacy.

Native speakers experience a certain level of advantage and superiority over the non-native speakers in terms of being able to easily assert surface-level professionalism and credibility through their “perfect” English language.

Although the U.S. is also a cultural melting pot, this problem persists. The study of an accent’s impact on people’s chances of upward social mobility also testifies to society’s preference for certain individuals.

It is almost as if minorities, in order to become as successful as the Caucasians, need to borrow the white identity in workplaces.

4. As a non-White American

In order to understand the idea that ethnic groups regularly feel the pressure to adopt the white identity, it is crucial to be aware that different ethnic groups have contrasting values and priorities.

The Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality released a report in 2016 that proposed various determinants of economic mobility, such as their parents’ education level and their attitudes toward family life. Especially in the relatively rigorous and challenging educational environment in America, children who are raised in an enriched environment can focus on school.

Students with parents who prioritize education are typically more socially mobile due to higher incentives and resources. The report shows that about 55 percent of Canadian children whose parents have no more than a high school diploma are read to on a daily basis. This statistic is almost equivalent to that of American children whose parents have college degrees, which implies the difference in family-work balance and the cultural differences between the U.S. and other countries.

Canadian parents may spend more time with their children, whereas American parents tend to push their children to focus their time on schoolwork and extracurricular activities that build their college application.

American values may negatively influence children of color and their opportunity to succeed as they grow up with the knowledge that their family’s expectations contradict those of their environment.

The difference contributes to the immense psychological destruction that American values may have on other ethnic communities. Despite how I may act to mask my values that differ from the American values, I have realized that the resulting cognitive dissonance only harms my mental health more progressively.

Throughout this research process, I have recognized the significance and inseparability of both my values and those of society. While I hold on to my core Asian values, I still need to endorse the American values if I want to be successful in this country.

Due to our society’s inflexibility, children and students of color carry the country’s burden. Children who grow up under circumstances in which their family’s values disagree with the American values, turn to other sources of influence, such as the media, and start to idolize the white lifestyle.

Interviewee A, a first-generation Hispanic student at Babson College, attests to this idea. She claims that as a first-generation student, she has felt like an exception because her mother has constantly pushed her in all areas of her life, including education.

She found that even the small overlapping of values between her mother and those of white parents put her to an advantage in terms of being motivated to accomplish and do well in school. She also did not lag behind during the college application process because of her family’s focus on education.

Despite this, she found herself watching the Disney Channel and growing to adore the “white lifestyle.” She mentions:

“On Disney Channel, they always had big houses and friends and families that supported them. I’ve always wanted what rich white people had. We don’t have Hispanics that are completely living that life.”

She also added that telenovelas that may showcase wealthy Hispanics still focused heavily on drama rather than the actual lifestyle.

The American ideals emphasized on media in the U.S.overwhelmed her young identity with the desire to have what white Americans had. Even today, her success is driven by the idea to achieve the white lifestyle: a big home with supportive friends and family.

No matter how parents of color may try to enforce the American values, my non-Caucasian peers and I still find ourselves replacing our culture with American ideals.

5. As a woman in business

On top of being a racial minority, I am a minority as a woman in the field of business. My gender in this field adds to the massive amount of societal pressure I feel as I strive for success.

Women face challenges that most men do not face. Only up to 16% of C-level jobs or board seats are taken up by women. Even in non-profit sectors, only 20% of the leaders are women.

Dr. Anthony P. Carnevale and his fellow professors at Georgetown University adds to this argument that women with bachelor’s degrees in art earn $520,000 less over the course of their careers than men with the same degree and major. In business, if both a man and a woman have a Bachelor’s degree, the man will make, on average, $1.1 million more over his career.

There are other behavioral differences between men and women. Men tend to attribute their successes to themselves while women attribute it to external factors. In fact, women do not tend to negotiate for their first salaries, which leads to a dramatic difference in the long run.

These behavioral differences are attributed to the feeling of guilt we, as women, carry throughout our professional endeavors. For example, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg claims that, before boarding on the flight to make her speech at TEDTalk, she found herself calming down her daughter who pleaded with her to stay.

“Whether we have a family, a husband, a significant other, or even a plan to have any of those, we feel guilty as women when we recognize the societal expectations of us as caregivers. When we feel guilty, subconsciously we stop raising our hands, stop sitting at the center table, and stop voicing our opinions.”

The psychological obstacles that women face as they ask for a promotion or for higher pay are constantly larger than that of men. As Sandberg says, “No one gets the promotion they think they deserve.” The way women and men assert themselves in the business world differs significantly.

Women often feel like they need to prove themselves in different lines of work and to show their male counterparts that they are worthy of being present. This psychological trend amongst women exemplifies the reason men make more income and dominate higher positions in corporations.

Women need to believe in their competence. At Babson College, a business school where all first-year students create teams and start their own companies, 51.9% of the CEOs happened to be females in one particular class year.

This case study at a small business school proves that young women are capable of achieving high positions — without the expectations of being a caregiver.

Simultaneously, the privilege of our birth lottery undermines internal diversity in all aspects and decreases our complacency and self-confidence as individuals.

A letter to myself

If young students like myself were to prioritize our economic success over our individual uniqueness, our status anxiety and excessive desire to conform will increase.

This incentivizes us to deviate from our culture and plant “trees” that are inconsistent with ourselves yet aligned with the perfect recipe for social mobility.

While inequality within students striving for social mobility is apparent, some anecdotes and studies, in addition to my personal experience, demonstrate that the recipe for upward social mobility encourages us to become someone who we are not.

As students, we believe what we hear when our society tells us that education is the answer. We constantly strive for success, but we realize that there are constantly people above us no matter how far we climb up.

During these day-to-day struggles of realizing that certain people have advantages or can take shortcuts around the efforts that we have to make, we find ourselves finding problems within ourselves. We want our efforts rather than our identity to shape our success, but in today’s world, society has constructed a recipe for success.

No matter how hard we try to follow that recipe, some aspects of ourselves refuse to fit in. We may work on changing the alterable aspects of us, such as the connections we make, the education we pursue, the persona we embody, but deep inside we question our identity and realize that we may have lost the birth lottery.

When others’ identities become the recipe for success, we resist our own and instead embrace those of others.

So if my family and mentors tell me again that “typical” American experiences will help me grow, I can tell them that they are wrong.

Instead of growing as an individual, I have simply learned to take on the persona of somebody else.