My Family Structure

1200 Words5 Pages

The times have changed now compared to how life used to be a few decades ago. Family structure and class has been modified as the years have gone by. We encounter mixed families more and more now that the economy has changed drastically and you no longer are able to buy a house or even obtain a job so easily due to the fact that the economy has made it more difficult for us to live comfortably. We have to obtain high school diplomas and go to college to try and better ourselves for the future so we may one day own our own house or even have the career of our dreams just so we can live the way we want to. Class plays a major factor because it may either help us or be used against us. When it comes to the economy, education and our family structure, …show more content…

When I think of the 50s, I also wish I lived in those times but I forget that class and race was a big issue and not many accepted you if you were not white. The lower class was made up of Blacks, Hispanics, Asians and majority of middle and upper class consisted of whites. Growing up as a Hispanic woman, culture is the main focus and we always have to be there for our families which includes helping them out financially and socially. Today I do not take my culture into consideration as much as when I was a younger. I live my life, follow my own beliefs and choose to better myself regardless of what my culture is. Culture holds you back because you have to follow certain rules that may limit you to your success. I think class is more important since society looks at you based on your class status. Everyone judges another human being by looking at them and trying to figure out if they come from low income families or not. Gerstel and Sarkisian say “we find that social class rather than culture is the key to understanding the differences in extended family ties and behaviors between Whites and ethnic minorities.” (Gerstel and Sakisian 47). Minorities most of the time help their family no matter what because that is how we grew up, watching our parents, uncles, aunts, and grandparents whenever they needed something. Many grow up to be spoiled and …show more content…

In minority families, many grandparents or parents would rather their kin go off and work hard to help support the family and take care of them instead of encouraging them to go to college and get a degree. Now you need a diploma or GED to obtain a minimum paying job and if you want a career that pays well, you need to go to college to gain a college certificate. Parents might think that their child going away to college is a form of them not wanting to help the family out and deem them selfish. Middle and higher-class people most of the time would rather help themselves before they agree to stay at home instead of continuing their education. The flaw in this is that by holding someone back from furthering their education, most will be miserable, feel stuck and unhappy with their lives. When you think of culture, class and family, you think of the persons ethnicity, how they were raised, do they have good moral values but no one ever just excepts them for who they are and applaud them for trying to come into the light and better themselves. We quickly judge them by their appearance and location. Class effects what we do in life, how we are raised and it either encourages us to grow and continue our education in order to live the life we could not as a child or it can discourage us. So many children give up on education and resort to other means of making money like selling drugs and stealing.

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