I grew up dirt poor, and then became a single mother trying to scratch out a living. The only people I know who think we live in a meritocracy are the privileged.

For what it’s worth, I don’t think of myself as a “high masthead” writer. People with 100K followers are the high masthead writers. Most of them are privileged white men. Did you know 85% of the top writers here are men?

Last — I don’t think “the majority” of men are rapists either. But there are too many. And there is little being done about it. Still. In 2021. It’s shameful.