I've spent the last twelve hours at the library researching micro-aggressions. This concept is going to be bigger than second hand smoke.
Follow closely and remember that micro-aggression is, by its very definition, a very subtle and nuanced concept. Perhaps a few examples from an article, linked below, in Psychology Today will help:
1. The Wine List: A black man and his white friend dine at a restaurant. The waiter hands the wine list to whitey. Therefore, the waiter, the restaurant, and I are racist.
[I have a better example. Everytime I go out to eat with my girlfriend the waitress brings me the check. This is sexist. The check needs to go to my girlfriend.]
2. Micro-Bullying. Not all bullies are jerks or violent. Some are charismatic, charming, and nice. But here's how these mini-bastards work:
3. Neutrality can be Micro-Aggression: A school district in Wisconsin adopted a sexual orientation neutrality policy. The policy simply instructed teachers to leave the issue be - let the parents deal with it. But, according to micro-aggression theorists the "policy is implicitly targeting the issue of non-heterosexuality. So, remaining neutral on the issue of sexual orientation is by default supporting heterosexism, the notion that heterosexuality is the gold standard. Mandating such a policy is in essence taking a side, which is not remaining neutral."
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blo.../when-neutrality-hurts-the-sexual-orientation
Follow closely and remember that micro-aggression is, by its very definition, a very subtle and nuanced concept. Perhaps a few examples from an article, linked below, in Psychology Today will help:
1. The Wine List: A black man and his white friend dine at a restaurant. The waiter hands the wine list to whitey. Therefore, the waiter, the restaurant, and I are racist.
[I have a better example. Everytime I go out to eat with my girlfriend the waitress brings me the check. This is sexist. The check needs to go to my girlfriend.]
2. Micro-Bullying. Not all bullies are jerks or violent. Some are charismatic, charming, and nice. But here's how these mini-bastards work:
The micro-bully boss will not solicit the imput of "others". He will not "mentor and nurture the talent of those who come from diverse backgrounds, thus maintaining a mono-cultural organizational climate.These types of microaggressive behaviors help to maintain an imbalanced power structure in the vast majority of American institutions."
3. Neutrality can be Micro-Aggression: A school district in Wisconsin adopted a sexual orientation neutrality policy. The policy simply instructed teachers to leave the issue be - let the parents deal with it. But, according to micro-aggression theorists the "policy is implicitly targeting the issue of non-heterosexuality. So, remaining neutral on the issue of sexual orientation is by default supporting heterosexism, the notion that heterosexuality is the gold standard. Mandating such a policy is in essence taking a side, which is not remaining neutral."
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blo.../when-neutrality-hurts-the-sexual-orientation
