Page 77 - Microaggressions in Everyday Live Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation

Perceived Minimal Harm of Microaggressions 51

“ invisible ” visible for well - intentioned people who harbor unconscious racist,
sexist, or heterosexist attitudes and beliefs? That is not only a psychological
dilemma for Whites and people of color, but it is a major challenge that is
addressed in later chapters.

PERCEIVED MINIMAL HARM OF MICROAGGRESSIONS

When discussing the plane incident with White colleagues, some have
encouraged me to “ let go of the incident, ” “ forgive the flight attendant, ”

“ don ’ t make a big deal out of it, ” “ it ’ s not worth the time or effort to rumi-

nate about it, ” “ it was an innocent act, ” and “ it ’ s such a small thing, why

are you so bothered? ” The flight attendant, they contend, may indeed have
engaged in a racial microaggression, but it was a “ harmless and innocent ” act.
Even several brothers and sisters of color have encouraged me to “ drop the

matter. ” Yet I can recall sitting on the plane, deeply disturbed and bothered,
ruminating about my actions, about what I should or should not have done,
and feeling my blood pressure rise. Yes, the incident alone might appear to be
a “ small thing, ” harmless and trivial, but it had a major psychological impact
upon me. Why should this one incident, however, have such a strong effect on
my emotional state? Are people of color, women, and LGBTs “ oversensitive ”

to small slights? I am sure that the flight attendant probably drew such a conclu-
sion about my colleague and me.
While most of us are willing to acknowledge the harmful impact of overt
racism and hate crimes on the psychological and physical well - being of
persons of color (Jones, 1997), racial microaggressions are usually considered
banal or small offenses (Pierce, 1978, 1988). Trivializing and minimizing
racial microaggressions by some Whites often appear to be a defensive reac-
tion to feeling blamed and guilty (Sue, Capodilupo, Nadal, & Torino, 2008).
Studies reveal that racial microaggressions, while seemingly trivial in nature,
have major consequences for persons of color and women. They have been
found to (1) assail the mental health of recipients, causing anger, frustration,
low self - esteem, and emotional turmoil (Brondolo et al., 2008; Crocker & Major,
1989; Sue, Capodilupo, & Holder, 2008; Swim et al., 2001), (2) create a hostile
and invalidating campus or work climate (Rowe, 1990; Sol ó rzano et al., 2000),
(3) perpetuate stereotype threat (Cadinu, Maass, Rosabianca, & Kiesner,

2005; Steele, Spencer, & Aronson, 2002), (4) create physical health problems
(Brondolo, Rieppi, Kelly, & Gerin, 2003; Clark, Anderson, Clark, & Williams,
1999; Sinclair, 2006), (5) saturate the broader society with cues that signal

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