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MICROAGGRESSIONS DEFINED 
Microaggressions are the brief and everyday slights, insults, indignities and 
denigrating messages sent to people of color. They can be sent verbally ("You speak 
good English."), nonverbally (clutching one's purse more tightly) or 
environmentally (displaying symbols like the confederate flag or using American 
Indian mascots). They are usually outside the level of conscious awareness of 
perpetrators. 
THREE TYPES OF MICROAGGRESSIONS 
1. Microassaults 
Microassaults are the most conscious and intentional form of 
microaggressions, These may be what we think of as "old-fashioned" racism. 
Some common examples are using racial epithets (or abusive, derogatory 
language or names), displaying confederate flags or swastikas, mocking another 
language, telling racist jokes, and serving White customers first. 
2. Microinsults 
Microinsults communicate rudeness and insensitivity towards someone based 
on their racial identity or heritage. These acts take away a person's dignity or 
sense of self-worth, but they do so indirectly. 
Some microinsults can seem like compliments to the person saying them. 
Examples might be: "You are cute for an Asian." "You are a credit to your race" 
or "You are so articulate." 

3. Microinvalidations 
Microinvalidations exclude or negate the experiences, feelings, and experiential 
reality of a POc. A common micro invalidation is the notion of "color blindness" 
or the assertion that we now live in "post-racial" times. It is also invalidating to 
downplay occurrences of racism. 
An example of this is asking a person of color, "Where are you from?" or "How do 
you say _ in your language?" or "Stop being so sensitive." Or "Not everything's 
about race!" 
ADDRESSING MICROAGGRESSIONS 
ADDRESS IT: 
1.	Pause - stop and think before reacting 
2.	Think - How can I control this situation? 
•	DON'T spur an aggressive response or attack 
•	DO encourage a listening response 
•	Is this the time and place for this conversation? 
MODEL THE BEHAVIOR: 
1.	Always model the behavior you want from the person or people you are 
confronting. 
2.	It is also a good idea to stay away from being sarcastic, snide, mocking or 
arrogant (even though this can be very tempting). 
3.	Use yourself as a model - Share how you unlearned a bias and become more 
informed. 
4.	Again, the goal here is education. 
a.	It's not about winning a point or making someone feel bad or wrong. 
b.	It's about helping them understand something from a different 
perspective. 
5. Ask questions or probe for understanding: 
a.	"Tell me more about that..." 
b.	Keep questions open-ended to encourage a response 
FOCUS ON THE PERSON NOT THE EVENT: 
1.	Remember, microaggressions are often unintentional based on a lack of or 
misinformation. 
2.	Focusing on the person decreases the likelihood of a defensive response. 
REFRAME: 
1.	Help someone understand a particular topic or issue using a different frame - with 
different assumptions and different conclusions. 
2.	There has always been preferential treatment, what's new is WHO is benefitting. 
Example -- Affirmative action as a social promotion policy is no different than 
benefits to a student being accepted to a college because their parents previously 
attended the same college.