Page 46 - Microaggressions in Everyday Live Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation

20 racial, gender, and sexual-orientation microaggressions

Exum, Keller, & Shircliffe, 2007). Indeed, avoidance of race topics has been
likened to “ a conspiracy of silence ” (Sue, 2005).
Making the “ invisible ” visible is the fi rst step toward combating uncon-
scious and unintentional racism, sexism, heterosexism, and other forms of
bigotry. That is the primary purpose and goal of this book:
• to describe and make visible microaggressions
• to describe the dynamic psychological interplay between perpetrator
and recipient
• to describe the individual and societal consequences of microaggressions
• to reveal how microaggressions create maximal harm
• to recommend individual, institutional, and societal strategies that will
ameliorate the harms aimed toward marginalized groups in this nation

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