Practicing awareness of microaggressions

Describe at least one example of a microaggression which you detected this week or remember from another time. In what context did the microaggression happen?

In today’s time there is a lot of talk about politics.  People are trying to decide who to vote for and why.  There is so much controversy on every topic that it begins to heat up whenever people gather to discuss it.  This was the case for my observation.  I observed people in my school during lunch breaks.  The topic of politics came up between 3 teachers.  They were discussing the Marriage Amendment. Two ladies said that they were devote Christians and that they didn’t believe that two people of the same gender should be married.  One stated that she felt that all people should have the same benefits but just not change the word “marriage”.  The third lady said that she felt like it was fine to change the definition of marriage but that she didn’t like the fact that the government had been given the right to decide which people should get what.  As the conversation progressed the first lady became frustrated because she said that it was just wrong for “those people” to want to change everything to fit their needs.  The third lady asked her what she meant by “those people” and she said gay people.  She asked why they couldn’t just live the way they wanted to without wanting to change everything to fit their lifestyles. 

I found that this conversation showed examples of micro aggressions from the sexual orientation level.  It should feelings of anger and resentment as well as concern.  People didn’t want to see their lives changed and didn’t understand the lives of others.

 What did you think and feel when you observed the microaggression or when you found yourself as the target of a microaggression?

During this conversation I wanted to remain unbiased so I stayed quite even though I have taken part of this same type of dialogue before.  I felt awkward listening to people discuss the fate of others as though they had the right to.  I also felt defensive because I could see how the conversation could easily change into something involving race or religion.  I understood the arguments of all the parties but it is hard to remain positive when you are so passionate about any topic.  I think this is what happened with these ladies.  They all had strong opinions and they wanted to share and maybe even get the other person to agree with their point of view.

In what ways did your observation experiences this week affect your perception of the effects of discrimination, prejudice, and/or stereotypes on people.

This observation allowed me to see how passionate and forceful people are about topics that they believe in.  People are not willing to change their opinions unless they see a strong reason to do so.  They are willing to fight, yell, and scream in order to get their points of view across.  I also see how the perceptions of which you were taught can influence your way of thinking.  The “Christian” women were strong in their feelings because this is what they had been taught their entire Christian lives.  The other woman may have been just as religious but was somewhat more laid back and willing to explore other options.

Perspectives on diversity and culture

It seems that my friends have similar views on what is culture and what is diversity as you will see when you read their definitions.  After discussing this issue with them I can say that we all need to recognize and respect the differences in culture so that each person can feel appreciated and embraced.

Tasha-

Her definition of culture is traditions, race traditions, heritage and your ancestry, and the environment in which we live.

Her definition of diversity is to be an individual and to be different.

   

Nia-

Her definition of culture is the language, food you eat, your family background, and your environment.

Her definition of diversity is multiple ethnicities, and cultures.

 

Tabitha

Her definition of culture is that it’s a way of living, different ways of thinking.

Her definition of diversity is mixture of cultures and different backgrounds.

 

Some of the aspects that I received and that we discussed in class are: background, families and their traditions, differences, and different ethnicities.

 

 

Talking to these friends allowed me to see how similar we are in our thinking.  We all felt that our backgrounds and families were important.  We also felt that our environments encouraged the way we think about ourselves and how we think about others.

 

Some of the aspects of culture and diversity that I feel came have been acknowledged in this course and by my friends are:

-Culture is a heritage

-Culture is a way of living

-We have to be accepting of diversity

-We have to be accepting of differences

One main aspect that I think we all struggle with that has been left out is our need to be knowledgeable of others and their beliefs.  We say that we are accepting until we have to deal with it directly.  I think that by looking at ourselves and finding the issues that we might have prejudices against, we can begin to change our way of thinking and therefore change the way that we act towards others.

I think that looking at the way other people think has helped me to better understand how important culture and heritage is.  Sometimes I think that I take for granted the traditions that my family has.  I feel that it’s just “supposed” to be that way.  Truth is after my mom passed away I saw a lot of changes in our family.  My mom was only 53 when she died but she affected the way our family did things.  It is sad to see traditions change but it makes me fight harder to keep them going.

My family culture

A description of the three items you would choose

If I had to uproot my family and move with only 3 necessities I would take:

-Birth certificates

-Pictures

-Cuddle item that means something to my kids.

How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you

I would take the birth certificates so that my children and I could prove where we were born and revisit our birth places when given the chance.  I would take pictures so that the children could remember where they had lived and feel close to something that is familiar.  I would also take a cuddle item for them so they wouldn’t feel entirely lost in a new world and in a new environment.

Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you

If I was told that I had to give up 2 of the items I would be disappointed and hurt.  I think that these items would help us to be able to reestablish ourselves in a new world.  If I had to give up 2 items they would be the pictures and cuddle items. I think that it would be more important for us to be able to prove where we had come from and where we need to be.

Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise,

An insight that I gained about myself is that I am focused on my children and their comfort zone.  I want only what’s best for them and would absolutely put them and my husband first.  I do think that as long as we were able to stick together as a family would could make it through anything.