When I think about microaggressions it makes me think back to a couple of weeks ago I was out doing some grocery shopping. My basket was full of food and the cashier asked me “Is this going to be food stamps or what”, I was offended by the statement. That was a stereotype at its best. Just because I had a cart full of groceries, am black and my grocery bill was well over $100.00 she assumed that I had food stamps. The customer who was in front of me was a white woman who had just as many groceries and the cashier asked that customer is this going to be debit or credit. What made it even more offensive was that the cashier was a black woman as well. This just goes to show that even those who belong to the same group as you (ethnicity) you are still stereotyped. Many times people will say it’s those who belong to other groups but I have experienced stereotypes more often from those who I have more in common with than those I don’t.
In this particular situation I am not sure if it was intentional or unintentional but I do know that it contained an insulting message (Laureate, 2013) and I was very offended by it. This goes to show that microaggressions can can come from anyone; people in the same groups or people who are from different groups. As Crissy stated in her blog, people should thing before they speak or at least be educated on microaggressions so that they can be prevented.
References
Course Media: Laureate (2013). "Microaggressions in
Everyday Life" .
Hi Latasha,
ReplyDeleteYou made a valid point about people in the same group being 'hostile' to one another. This could be because the dominant culture has overtaken them that they forget a part of their identities.
Hi Latasha, Good point I was stereotype the same way you was twice in one day with a friend and I was alone. I did get offended by it because when it hits home, I was so angry I gave the cashier a $5.00 bill she took me to the cleaners with my $5.00 bill, the customer before me paid with a $20.00 dollar bill, she did not say nothing.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry that happened to you. I had a situation a while ago with food stamps. As a foster parent we get food stamps to help with some of the food for the foster children we take care of. I went to the store separated my groceries to go with each food stamp and the cashier got rather rude with me. I looked at her and said food stamps are one of the perks of being a foster parent. Her whole attitude toward me changed and all of a sudden she was smiling and talking to me in a friendly tone.
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