Microaggressions - The New Every Day Discrimination

"My friend, I'll give you a hug!" - Creepy boda driver today, as I passed by gaze down, trying to ignore whatever his friends were calling after me.

The video that started it all...

When most people think of racism or sexism, they think of the conventional form of it, be it equal rights or derogatory statements regarding one's gender or skin color. But discrimination does not have to be all that explicit, as a matter of fact, discrimination (and now I'm speaking on my own behalf, so don't quote me on it) can be more subtle, and actually happens more often than you would like to think, probably even among your circle of friends.

This incredibly sexist vintage ad is a perfect example of a microaggression

Okay so let's back up a bit, if you haven't heard, 'microaggression' is the new word of the year, succeeding last year's 'selfie'. This the Times article sums it up pretty well: "Microaggressions... are quiet, often unintended slights — racist or sexist — that make a person feel underestimated on the basis of their color or gender". And the worst part of it is that most of us, both the aggressor and the victim, often are unaware of it and the destructive effects it has, as these microaggressions - as the name suggests - are often implicit, and find their way into every day conversation, making us more or less used to them.

 

Seriously, what is this??

So anyways, let me tell you a story, kids (imagine Ted's grown up voice saying this). First of all, re-wind 6 months, to October 2013, date unspecified...

"Okay, so, have you ever experienced anything racist?"

Truth be told, I was a bit taken aback by this question. Anything racist? Like what? I really didn't have any examples, so my reply was the following:  

"Um, no not really, I mean, luckily for me I'm Caucasian, so I've never been discriminated against based on my skin color..." 

There was silence on the other end, before the interviewer duly noted something and said:

"Hm, okay".

With the fear of making a 'bad first impression' as a priviliged, white person who's never faced any hurdles in her life, I rushed into telling stories about all the street harassment I had experienced during my stay in Bangladesh - which, as a Muslim country - you can only imagine how it was for a blonde, blue-eyed white girl roaming the streets without concealing every part of my body so guys didn't have to be tempted into raping me (yes, it was really, really bad).

Although this was all true, I still felt afterward that I had avoided the question a little bit, or at least taken it in a slightly different direction, in lack of experiences to draw from. Fast-forward 6 months till today, and oh my, I have some real good stories for you...

A typical Ugandan tabloid headline

First of all, what is up with headlines like this? Seriously, everything does not have to be reduced to race, and this does not even portray Ugandans themselves in a good light. 'New bad black', referring to yet another delinquent black person - because we all know black people are more prone to delinquent behavior than whites - conning a naive white person, or 'muzungu', as white people are often referred to as. Headlines like this only serve to amplify the stereotypes of white people and black people, and creates an artificial divide between people. After all, that's how wars and genocides get started, have we learned nothing?

Does this ring any bell, anyone?

To be honest, I had no idea how it felt to be discriminated against based on my skin color before moving to Uganda (sorry Ugandans, it doesn't go for all of you!). Obviously I wasn't completely unfamiliar with the subject, growing up I was told not to differentiate between people based on physical appearances and treat everyone equally, and in school we learned about both slavery and the Civil Rights Movement; and what all the messages had in common was how horribly 'the white man' had treated black people throughout history, and that it is something we must all carry with us and still today pay dues for - no matter if this was carried out by our ancestors, or your country didn't even have colonies in Africa - through e.g. affirmative action programs in colleges (which I by the way support, for other reasons). What I was never told, however, was how to react to racism towards myself. It was always 'us' mistreating 'them', never they other way around. I was never told the other side of the story.

The leading newspaper in Uganda

Imagine for a second the front page of any leading Western newspaper with this front page - SCANDALOUS, is what first comes to my mind. Not to mention extremely racist. Growing up in Norway and living in Berkeley, California, I've witnessed a fair share of 'racism debates' in the media, which, save for Fox News and some parts of the US, in Norway at least have centered around whether or not immigrants should be granted the same welfare priviliges as us, etc. While there are differing opinions on that matter - everyone cautious not to say anything that can be interpreted as even the tiniest bit racist - the rule in Uganda seems to be anything goes. I mean, come on, look at that newspaper, does it get any more xenophobic than that?

Baby Spice has a good point

Newspapers aside, the worst part is how 'muzungus' are being treated here. Firstly, just having a widely accepted and commonly used term like that really bothers me. Being constantly referred to and denominated by the color of your skin is something nobody deserves to experience, and ironically enough reminds me of a system on this continent that was abolished a while ago. Of course the kids running up to you calling: "Muzungu, how are you?"can't bear the blame for it all, but honestly, if I ran up to every black person I saw in my hometown calling: "Hey black person, how are you?", my parents would most definitely reconsider their parenting skills. Sure, the kids are cute enough, they are not the problem, but am I obligated to let them hold my hand, touch my hair and smile everytime they run up to me, even though I am not comfortable, and also a bit tired of doing that? The argument: "Oh, but they are just curious, they've never seen a white person before", is starting to feel alot like the: "You should take it as a compliment" argument, especially since it is not only kids who call you 'muzungu', it is literally EVERYONE - from the boda driver, to the shop keeper, to the creepy guy on the street, who occasionally whisper "Hey, girl..." instead.

Julia Stiles knows what it feels like

I guess I must have been living in quite the bubble back home, where both sexism and racism where terms I associated with the past. It's been quite the wake up call, living in Dhaka last fall and Kampala this spring, with street harrassment and racist remarks becoming 'the new normal'. A female colleague of mine, who's worked quite a bit abroad, compared the encounter with these new cultures as Alice in Wonderland's experience when she goes through the mirror and everything is backwards from what she is used to (yes, I realize that is a bit racist too).

A portion of Meg's attitude wouldn't hurt

After spending 3 months in Africa, I have become used to paying a different price than everyone else because of my skin color (all 'muzungus' are rich, you see), I've sat through comments like: "Oh but you see this is Africa, in Africa we do it like this. You wouldn't possibly understand", and "Yeah this is a typical 'muzungu' place" (referring to a nice restaurant or coffee shop), "I have a muzungu friend, you guys should meet!", "This place is owned by a muzungu, don't know where he is from though", and maybe worst of all, coming from one of our colleagues "Yes, I used to hate white people when I grew up. I didn't know anything about them". And don't even get me started on our aid policies, 'permissive/promiscous' and atheist cultures...

Maybe not giving a damn would be easier sometimes

Moreover, this disguised hatred or microaggressions towards white people seem to be something inherent in the African culture too. I never experienced anything like it in Asia, or Latin-America for that sake. In Bangladesh they would sometimes call us 'foreigner', but never by our skin color. And the kids would not dare running up to us and touch us, as that would be considered very rude. Suffice it to say, after now almost a year living in two different developing countries, it will be nice to come back home, and be recognized for who I am, called by my name - not my gender or skin color, and most of all, not be called out at all, but simply be treated equal, and mend in with everyone else. Is that too much to ask?

After growing up I finally understood what Mel C's character was all about

Check out this BuzzFeed article for more stories about every day microaggressions.