Microaggressions
More than any other country, America defines itself by a collective dream: the dream of economic opportunity and upward mobility. Its proudest boast is that it offers a chance of the good life to everybody who is willing to work hard and play by the rules.
Inequality and the American Dream, The Economist
How to Show Up
- Make the invisible, visible. Speak up immediately and educate the perpetrator of their impact, shifting focus away from their intention
- Listen to your BIPOC colleagues. Seek to understand their experiences without getting defensive or playing devil’s advocate.
- Accept that you have likely been complicit in producing inequity. This acknowledgement will allow you to move from defensive to solutions-oriented.
Getting Started
There’s a lot to learn! Here are 3 resources you can use to start your journey. Browse even more resources below.
- Watch: Eliminating Microaggressions by Tiffany Alvoid
- Read: When and How to Respond to Microaggressions
- For Directors: Provide regular trainings to white staff and leadership. Reflect and share times when you’ve been complicit yourself to foster a culture of understanding.
More Resources
Examples of microaggressions from from When and How to Respond to Microaggressions
- “When I see you, I don’t see color.” (signaling that the person doesn’t acknowledge your Blackness or won’t hold it against you)
- “We are all one race: the human race.” (signaling that your experience as a Black person is no different from the experience of people of other races)
- “You are so articulate.” (signaling that Black people are not usually capable of competent intellectual conversation)
- “I see your hair is big today! Are you planning to wear it like that to the client meeting?” (signaling that natural Black hairstyles are not professional)
- “Everyone can succeed in society if they work hard enough.” (signaling that disparate outcomes for Black people result from laziness)
More examples from Dear anti-racist allies: Here’s how to respond to microaggressions
‘You’re so articulate’ or ‘You don’t sound black.’
- Why it’s offensive: This remark seems like a compliment, but it’s offensive to a lot of black people. They usually don’t have to be that articulate for someone to say that to them, Tatum previously told CNN.
- When a white person says it, it usually implies they didn’t expect to hear intelligence from a black person. The black person didn’t fit the white person’s offensive stereotype, so the white person complimented them for surprising them.
- What to say: “I know you meant that as a compliment, but unfortunately that connects to a larger history of people being surprised that black people can speak so well,” suggested Rev. Carolyn Helsel, an assistant professor of homiletics (the art of preaching or writing sermons) at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and author of “Preaching about Racism: A Guide for Faith Leaders” and “Anxious to Talk About It.”
- “It’s better to make your compliment something more specific about the content of someone’s speech rather than commenting more generally on people being articulate,” she added.
‘I’m colorblind.’ or ‘When I look at you, I don’t see color.’
- Why it’s offensive: The intention is inclusive, but people of color are saying their color and identity matter and impact how they experience the world. But the statement is offensive because it could indicate that you aren’t listening to or are dismissing what people of other races are telling you.
- Sometimes this remark comes from people who lived during a time when recognizing race meant segregation and discrimination, Helsel said.
- What to say: “We need to try different tactics because saying we’re colorblind doesn’t acknowledge the implicit bias that still goes on and the systemic laws and policies that have made life harder for African Americans and other people of color to feel like they’re able to fully survive and thrive. To say, ‘I’m colorblind’ is to dismiss, ignore and make invisible the pain and suffering of people of color.”
‘I’m not racist. I have a black friend.’
- Why it’s offensive: This statement equates racism with prejudice. Prejudice is an attitude based on stereotypes. Racism entails the policies and practices that uphold ideas of white people as superior and black people as inferior.
- You may not be racially prejudiced, but knowing black people doesn’t keep you from engaging in discriminatory behavior or failing to challenge racist practices.
- What to say: “Saying I can’t be racist is denying the larger social context in which all of us are living. It’s not about our individual intentions [or biases]. It’s about our collective work,” Helsel said. “So even if we have the best of intentions, as long as we’re supporting racist policies and ideas that undergird those policies, all of us can be racist.”
Watch: TEDx Eliminating Microaggressions: The Next Level of Inclusion | Tiffany Alvoid
