Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

One microaggression I have recently observed was one that was intentional racism.  My children and I were in the local supermarket.  All of the workers in the market are black Africans. To put this statement into context, there are black Africans and white Africans. The white Africans are aware that black Africans are able to speak many languages.  However, white Africans either speak English or Afrikaans. There was some miscommunication between the cashier and the person (white African) in front of us. The white African pretended to speak another language.  However, this language was made up.  The white African spoke in a loud, aggressive and condescending tone as to embarrass the cashier. The cashier simply lowered her eyes in a subservient manner and raised her hand to call the manager. It was obvious the white African was attempting to degrade the cashier by mocking her language and showing no respect for her.

Experiencing this microaggression made me angry.  At the same time, I felt sad for the cashier.  I could not understand why someone would intentionally hurt someone else’s feelings. I could tell my children were uncomfortable as well.  

I can easily understand how the effects of microaggressions can have a lasting, detrimental effect on someone.  Practicing awareness of microaggressions has become a priority for me. Understanding the reason for my emotions of my observation made it easy to have compassion for the cashier.  Additionally, I have been in situations where I was the one not being understood so I can genuinely understand how the cashier felt.

After we left the supermarket, I was proud to hear that my children knew this behavior was wrong.  It was a proud moment when I was able to explain to them why it was wrong and how important it is to treat people with respect.

Having experienced and observed microaggressions, along with having some understanding of what they are, will assist me in being a proficient early childhood professional.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

When asking various people about their perspectives on diversity and culture, I received a variety of answers and examples.  Some descriptions of culture and diversity that were mentioned that I have studied in this course are:  race, religion, where they are from and language.  For example, the South Africans I spoke with about culture, felt a strong connection to which province (region) they were from and their native tongue.  There are 11 official languages in South Africa.  Most Black South Africans can speak all the languages due to living in Johannesburg which is considered the “melting pot.”  They have accepted others despite their differences.

One aspect of culture and diversity which we have not studied is caste.  I learned you are born into this status and can only marry someone from the same background.  Furthermore, there are many biases related to this system that are accepted by people.

During this exercise I learned even though people may share some of the same traits in their cultures, no assumptions should be made.  It is important to get to know people and their views regarding their way of life. Additionally, the same characteristics such as religion, can mean different things to different people.

Establishing good relationships and maintaining open communication is key to learning about culture and diversity in the families we serve.  Also, no matter where you are from, we all want the same thing, respect for who we are.

My Family Culture

The three most important things I would take with me after a major catastrophe would be my bible, a family portrait and my phone. 

I would explain to the others what my items meant by telling them my bible serves as a source of inspiration and instruction in good and bad times.  My family is my support system and I would like to keep them close thus the photograph. I would take my phone to call other relatives to let them know them know we were alright.  I could possibly use some of my apps to help with any language differences.

If I were told I had to give up 2 of the 3 items, I would be OK with that.  My family is most important to me and the other things are simply extra.

I have experience with adapting to new and different environments.  By currently living in a developing country, you quickly learn what is important and what is not.  What I learned from this assignment is I had a reaction to the part of the assignment that mentioned might having to stay in this location permanently.  Since I am accustomed to moving on a fairly regular basis, the prospect of permanency is unknown and makes me a bit apprehensive.  This apprehension is something I may need to explore further.