Microaggressions can be described as and often refer to “brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward people of color.” The term was coined in the 70s by Dr. Chester Pierce but has since then been skewed in a sense of discernment.
A great deal of people hear ´microaggressions´ and think ¨Oh its just the little things that hurt peoples feelings.¨ This statement really could not be farther from the truth. They are less about getting your feelings hurt and rather focus more on ¨being repeatedly dismissed and alienated and insulted and invalidated reinforces the differences in power and privilege, and how this perpetuates racism and discrimination.” Though they are often not meant to hurt and are done with ¨little conscious awareness of their meanings and effects¨, their brutal effects should not be dismissed.
