Page 52 - Microaggressions in Everyday Live Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation

26 taxonomy of microaggressions

were also underrepresented. As I stood before the group, I made the following
observation: “ As I look around the room and at the sea of faces before me,
I am struck by the fact that not a single one of you seems to be a visible racial
ethnic minority. Do you know the message you are sending to me and people
of color on this campus? ” Several participants shifted in their seats, looked at
one another, but remained silent.
Microaggressions hold their power because they often send hidden, invali-
dating, demeaning, or insulting messages (Sue, Capodilupo, et al., 2007). From
the perspective of students and faculty of color, the absence of administrators
of color sent a series of loud and clear messages:

1. “ You and your kind are not welcome here. ”

2. “ If you choose to come to our campus, you will not feel comfortable
here. ”

3. “ If you choose to stay, there is only so far you can advance. You may not

graduate (students of color) or get tenured/promoted (faculty of color). ”
When people of color see an institution or organization that is primarily
White or when they see that people at the upper levels of the administration or
management team are primarily White and male, the message taken away by
people of color and women is quite unmistakable and profound; the chances
of doing well at this institution are stacked against them (Bonilla - Silva, 2006;
Inzlicht & Good, 2006). When women in the workplace enter a conference
room where portraits of all the past male CEOs or directors are displayed, the
microaggressive message is that women are not capable of doing well in leader-
ship positions and the “ glass ceiling ” is powerful. When a male colleague ’ s

office wall is filled with nude pictures of women or when Playboy magazines
are present on desks at a place of employment, women employees may feel
demeaned, insulted, and unwelcomed.
Environmental microaggressions often are packaged in symbols and even
mascots. From 1926 to February 21, 2007, Chief Illiniwek was the mascot

and official symbol of the University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign sports
teams. During university sporting events, Chief Illiniwek would perform a
dancing routine before fans during games, at halftimes, and after victories.
For two decades, Native American groups and allies deplored the choice of
mascot as being demeaning, hostile, and abusive toward them, their culture,
and their lifestyle. They claimed that the symbol/mascot of Chief Illiniwek
misappropriated their indigenous fi gures and rituals and that it perpetuated
harmful racial and ethnic stereotypes (Wikipedia, 2009).

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