Examples Of Microaggressions

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Microaggressions “You run like a girl”, was a phrase I heard often as a youngster. This assignment showed me how microaggressions affected me by growing up in a household with six brothers. My brother’s believed my gender determined my abilities to play sports, so they excluded me. Also, my parents restricted my activities and privileges due to my gender. For example, I was the oldest, yet had the earliest curfew; I could not date until I was sixteen, yet my brothers did at a younger age. On the positive side, my family’s attitude towards my gender compelled me to excel. For instance; I held a starting position on my high school’s state champion field hockey team, graduated college with a 4.0 GPA; and I am the only one in my family to attend graduate school. …show more content…
Prior to the assignment, I did not realize how specific questions and/or comments are offensive to others. For example, asking “where are you from” or stating “you look good for your age” is insulting to some people. I imagine individuals are unaware of how others interpret their simple statements and/or questions as passive aggressive. In fact, many microaggressions show discrimination and bias towards minority groups. For instance, “you are pretty for a black girl”. The person considers it a compliment; but, the statement is demeaning and hurtful to the black girl. The assignment taught me cognizant of my words to avoid insulting