By Shravya
This blog was written as part of Aid with Perspective, a student initiative led by Ambassador Payton Johnson.
“Your English is really good!”
“I’m sure they didn’t mean anything by it…”
“You’re Asian, how come you’re not good at math?”
“You’re being oversensitive.”
In modern media, the experience of microaggressions in the workplace dominates attention, yet a more subtle version of the unfair treatment exists. What often goes overlooked is the place where microaggressions start and the unfortunate truth for many people of color; microaggressions start young. Hidden prejudice often begins in the early years of school; yet not only do children face unwarranted behaviour, their age or absence of knowledge fails in allowing them to identify the behaviour for what it is. This lack of comprehension can apply both ways: to those who encounter and to those who communicate microaggressions. All microaggressions, however, remain microaggressions regardless of the intent behind them.
Kids of color are burdened with the invisible fight against microaggressions all the time. Stereotypes and ideas about them exist and taint the impressions they want to make, often before they even have a chance to speak. Adolescent years are burdened with the struggle to fit in and conform to others for everyone; yet children of color face another obstacle as they battle preconceived notions about themselves that suppress and overshadow their actual identity. One survey response from a student in Edinburgh explains how microaggressions halt room for their growth “because [when people] see Africans, [for example,] as poor [or] dirty…they will always kind of see themselves that way”. The impressions others have of us reflect on how we feel comfortable expressing ourselves and on who we become. When children are constrained from being themselves and feel as if their identities have already been established for them, finding a way out can seem impossibly complex.
Not only do microaggressions hinder people from experiencing growth, they limit social interactions in a way that impacts everyone. Another student describes how resorting to bonding with “people who fit in that same box as you” makes it even harder to “fit in with other groups”. Being forced to create relationships with a certain group of people because of a lack of acceptance from others is difficult. The possibility of friendships that blossom from shared experiences and empathy emerges, yet rejection from peers still harms people. It can cause kids to hide or reject their culture and other, specific parts of their identity because of the disheartening responses they receive from others. Countless children of color have lived through the unfortunately common occurrence of bringing food from their culture to school and being ridiculed or shamed for the way it looked, tasted, or smelled. They can also suffer anxiety from feeling the need to prove themselves in a certain way or pick a side of their identity to live by.
Research suggests that anxiety isn’t the only harmful effect of microaggressions on children. Students who experience microaggressions also have elevated levels of anger and stress, and they are more likely to engage in risky behaviour. While students’ peers are commonly the perpetrators of microaggressions against them, teachers can also be participants in the damaging behaviour. When students are underestimated by their teachers, an unfortunate consequence of prejudice, studies have shown that they tend to internalize low expectations and earn lower achievements.
The presence of microaggressions in the lives of young people is dismaying, yet it serves as a reminder that other people don’t define you. No lack of validation or acceptance from others should change who you are, and culture is only something to be proud of. And although children of color experience microaggressions all too often, they shouldn’t be accepted as a part of life. It may seem daunting to acknowledge microaggressions, but change begins with awareness. Every time you stand up for yourself or someone else, educate someone, or choose to walk away, you make an impact on spreading fortitude and resilience. By challenging the subtle behaviours and words that are often permitted in our society, we get one step closer to disassembling microaggressions.
Mental Health Resource:
How to Respond to Microaggressions
Works Cited
“Common Racial Microaggressions | Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.” Equality, Diversity & Inclusion, 6 March 2024, https://equality-diversity.ed.ac.uk/students/microaggressions/racial-microaggressions/common-racial-micro-agressions. Accessed 11 December 2024.
“Effects of Microaggressions | Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.” Equality, Diversity & Inclusion, 6 March 2024, https://equality-diversity.ed.ac.uk/students/microaggressions/effects-of-microaggressions. Accessed 11 December 2024.
