Sounds like the typical case of people who after having "made it" try to make it all about character and personal effort, ignoring the systemic issues poor people have to overcome that rich don't which give them a big advantage.

In other words, ignoring that while some poor kids may win in "hard mode" doesn't change the fact that rich kids play life in "easy mode", and as such, it's much easier for them to win, and much more of them will win, any merit and hard work put into it being equal.

It's like showing some succesful despite the odds black man in 1960 to show that "see, Jim Crow and racism doesn't matter, it's all a matter of will".