THE FEEL GOOD STORY There’s a “feel good story” we often see in the media: Individual Overcomes Huge Odds To Achieve Success. The narrative is intended to be both heartwarming and life affirming and it may appear to be just that, until you examine the details. When you learn of the struggles faced by economically disadvantaged people to access quality education, secure housing, employment and capital to fund their ventures, the fuzzy glow begins to fade. The reality that many of the obstacles encountered by a person attempting to fulfill their potential are a direct result of the failure of our society to identify and elevate talent should inspire us to seriously re-examine our culture, not celebrate the rare positive outcome. Social mobility has stagnated; why do we make it so hard for the vast majority of the population to excel? Do we genuinely believe that only those who already have access to resources and social connections can be exceptional? We live in a time of remarkable scientific innovation, yet we fail to match the speed of cultural evolution with the acceleration of our technological advancement. Social problems that stunt and impede the progress of future generations remain firmly in place. Is it logical to deny the world a great mind simply because poverty denies a young person education? The uncomfortable truth is that humanity is squandering the greatest resource we have, our own ingenuity, due to sustained prejudice and lack of foresight. #equity #class #classsystem #education #opportunity #feelgoodstory #disadvantagedchildren #humanpotential #access #barriers #socialsupport #predjudice #overcomingobstacles #inequality #socialcommentary #selfadvancement #fairness #politicalchange #culturaldiversity #upliftinghumanity #socialmobility