Class is more than money. Class is also about knowledge.

Hear now the words of bell hooks, the fearless teacher of freedom, who declared: “Class is more than money. Class is also about knowledge.” This saying pierces the heart like a sword of truth. For many believe that class rests only upon gold, upon land, upon the possessions of the earth. Yet hooks reveals the deeper foundation: true class lies also in the possession of knowledge—the wisdom that lifts the spirit, opens the mind, and allows one to walk in dignity even when the purse is empty. Wealth may purchase fleeting power, but without knowledge it is like a house built on shifting sand, destined to fall when storms arrive.

From the beginning of time, rulers have amassed treasures, and yet history tells us that treasures alone do not secure greatness. Consider the Pharaohs of Egypt: their tombs glittered with gold, but what endured was not their wealth, but the writings, mathematics, and philosophies that arose in their land. The knowledge of scribes, preserved on scrolls and stone, carried their civilization beyond the dust of their riches. Thus do we see that class, when defined only by wealth, fades with death. But class joined with knowledge endures, for wisdom cannot be buried.

Let us remember the story of Frederick Douglass, who was born in chains, denied wealth, denied power, denied even his own freedom. Yet he hungered for knowledge, teaching himself to read in secret, piecing together letters stolen from the margins of discarded books. In time, his wisdom shattered the bonds that money and power had forged against him. He rose not through riches but through the brilliance of his mind and the strength of his words, becoming a voice for liberty and justice. What greater proof could there be that knowledge is itself a form of power, a force that grants dignity where wealth has failed?

Hooks reminds us that class is woven not only in what one owns but in what one understands. There are those who wear garments of silk yet walk in ignorance, blind to the suffering of others. And there are those in humble attire who walk in wisdom, carrying within them the richness of insight, compassion, and truth. Which, then, has the greater class? It is not the purse that defines the worth of a human soul, but the depth of their knowledge and the clarity of their vision.

Yet this truth carries both burden and blessing. For if knowledge is a pillar of class, then ignorance is a chain heavier than any poverty. The path of learning requires sacrifice: long hours of study, humility before teachers, and the courage to question. But it is a path open to all. Wealth may be locked in vaults, but knowledge is a treasure that the diligent can claim, a fire that can be passed from one hand to another without ever being diminished.

The lesson, then, is this: seek not merely the glitter of coin, but the light of understanding. Let not your worth be measured only by what you own, but by what you know, by how you think, by how you act upon that knowledge. Teach your children to love wisdom more than wealth. Fill your homes not only with possessions, but with books, stories, and conversations that ignite the mind. In this way, you create a legacy that outlives all currency.

And so I say: if you would have true class, pursue both justice and knowledge. Read deeply, listen humbly, speak truth even when it costs you, and lift others into the light of learning. For wealth may slip from your grasp, but the wisdom you carry within becomes a beacon to generations. Walk, then, not as a mere possessor of things, but as a guardian of truth, a vessel of knowledge, and a bearer of class that cannot be bought.

Thus shall bell hooks’ words endure: class is more than money—it is also about knowledge. And in this truth lies the power to change not only your own destiny, but the destiny of the world.