We Need To Remove The ‘Micro’ From Microaggressions
Racism is immensely harmful to those it is directed towards — no matter how subtle or casual.
“Rod, I don’t know what all the fuss is about. Slavery ended over a hundred years ago. Can’t y’all just get over it already?”
“You are so well-spoken!”
“Is it true what they say about Black guys?”
“Rappers say n**ger all the time. Why can’t I say it? That’s a double standard.”
Yes, all of these are actual statements, among so, so many like them, that have been said to me by well-meaning and not-so-well-meaning white coworkers during my former career as a worker bee in corporate America.
These statements and questions are now commonly called racist “microaggressions,” and if you are Black and have worked any amount of time in this country, you have been subjected to it.
Except, I hate the term microaggressions.
Sure, it’s commonly used to categorize the ways subtle, casual racism is expressed and directed towards Black people.
But trust, there is nothing “micro” about the detrimental effects these racist acts have on the mental, emotional and even physical well-being of the Black people enduring them.
