But I can speak from my own experience. Being Hispanic/Native American in descent...I came from a "salt of the earth" type of family. I know stories from my grandparents who's own parents were raised either in Mexico or on reservations here in the States. My grandparents were very proud of being American (over anything else)...and took a great deal of pride in being able to read and "do their numbers". They even finished High School. Next generation down, my grandparents insisted that all of their kids (so my parents) finish high school and get jobs that paid bills.

It was made very clear that getting a job "in what you enjoy" was completely secondary to providing for yourself and your family. So it was labor...agricultural, contracting, electrical, etc...

Now you get to my generation. I was the first, and currently only, person in my (very large) family who had an inclination towards science. My dad was total blue collar (power plant worker)...my mom was an admin/secretary....and they had me, who wanted to be a scientist. Although my parents didn't directly discourage me, they made it clear that providing for myself was far more important. My extended family was more direct with pointed questions of "Can you do your science studies to get a job? What if people hold you back? What will you do?"

So I went to college. First in my family to graduate from college. Still the only one in a STEM field. I was the only Hispanic/NA in my class. The only one. Why? I'd say that the reasons are as varied as the number of individuals. I find it difficult to say that the reason I was the only Hispanic/NA was because of racism. If anything, I had generations of family history that I had to push through. It wasn't some white man holding me back....or not wanting me to succeed. Did I have to work harder than others? Maybe...I'm not in a place to determine that.

All I know is that if I was going to wait for life to be fair, I'd still be waiting. I wonder how many kids out there didn't go against the tide, and went with what was familiar. Maybe that ball player could have been an engineer, but where he grew up, the only way you get out is music or sports...so he took that path. Maybe that hair stylist could have been an organic chemist in research, but where she grew up, the only way to succeed was through the beauty industry...so she took that path.

We could debate all day long about having fair opportunities and the shadow of racism, but after a while, it just seems like excuses. Lack of fair opportunities and racism used to be explanations, but lately they have turned into excuses. The former was a reason for why success was difficult to come by, while the latter is a reason for why one doesn't even try.

~Jeordam