I have no control over who my parents are.

I have no control over how much money my parents make.

I have no control over my skin color.

I have no control over the life I was born into.

Nobody does. Yet society wholeheartedly believes that we can judge the success of others based off these uncontrollable facts. That society can tell me, a white woman who comes from a middle-class family, that I only got where I am in life because it was all handed to me because of my “privilege.”

I worked and continue to work hard for every single accomplishment in my life. I have never had anything handed to me. There was always someone better than me, more qualified than me, smarter than me. Just because my struggles differ from others does not mean that they are irrelevant or do not matter. You cannot tell me that my “white privilege” got me to where I am today.

Everyone of every race, culture, and religion each have their own difficulties and struggles. Each person in this world is treated unfairly in some way. That is the way of our world. It is not right by any standards but we each have our own unique stories.

We all have generations of difficulties and hardships, some more than others. However, most of the dividing issues in the world come from a multitude of places past and present. There are so many influences out there more so than the color of our skin, or the neighborhood we live in.

I was born into a loving and caring family and I am constantly aware of how blessed I am. Yet, this is where God decided to place me, and I have no control over that. Just like that child who was born into poverty had no control.

We cannot simply blame people’s success or failure over elements that are out of our hands. We do not know who is struggling with what and therefore have no right to cast any judgments against anyone. Just because your struggles are different than others do not mean that other persons struggles are irrelevant. How is that fair?

We are putting so much emphasis on what makes us different and blaming other people that we are only succeeding in dividing ourselves further. I am not going to apologize for the life God has granted me. Nor should anyone. No one should be ashamed of their success. More importantly, no one should make other people feel ashamed of it over factors they cannot control.