Awareness of Microaggressions

I observed a racial micro-aggression that involved a micro-insult this week while I was observing an accident that had just occurred outside my house. After I heard the accident I had went outside to see what had happened and to make sure everyone was alright. After a few moments some other people had come down the block and outside of the surrounding homes to see what had happened as well. Well as I was standing there with a few other acquaintances from the block an older man (a Caucasian man) came up next to us and said… “It doesn't surprise me it was an Indian that caused the accident, they can’t drive”. I looked next to me at my friend with a stunned look on my face; I couldn't believe he had just said that. He had just implied that all Indian people can’t drive because in this particular crash an Indian person did cause the accident. He had just made the assumption, he didn't even know if it could have been a malfunction to his car that caused the crash. Why was he making this assumption? How did he come to this conclusion? Does he just have something against Indian people? If so, why? These were the questions that were running through my head. I probably would have asked him if he hadn't walked away by the time I had turned around from looking at my friend.

This situation really made me wonder where people get these stereotypes they blurt out. How did all these assumptions and stereotypes of other people of different cultures, meaning different from the dominant culture, come about? It just makes me mad to hear people talk of others in a negative way when they don’t know the person at all. How can they make these sorts of judgments when they don’t even know these individuals on any sort of level? As you can see I have many questions and get upset when I hear individuals make negative remarks against others. I am not racists nor do I judge others for being different than myself. I often wonder how others come to believe these negative assumptions of others. If others choose to believe these stereotypes and see others as below them then we will never end this cycle of micro-aggressions and biases of others. 

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

With everything that I have learned so far in this course about culture and diversity, I was very curious to hear what others would have to say about these topics. Honestly, before I took this course this is something that would take me a minute to talk about so I could gather my thoughts. I think culture and diversity is something we come in contact with on a daily basis but not topics we tend to talk about all the time. Or maybe I should say they are topics that hit us in the face but not something we think deeply about. Each one of the people I contacted was different in their age, religion, and ethnicity. One of my friends I had to email and when I received her response I really enjoyed reading it and how she viewed culture and diversity. I wanted to share the email and her response to everyone. Here it is:

“When I think of "culture" I visualize different races, their customs and beliefs.  My family is of Italian descent and examples of our culture are large Sunday family dinners consisting of macaroni and gravy, loud conversations that may appear to others as arguing, and a lot of affection and love.  I live in a neighborhood which is primarily occupied by those of Indian descent.  I enjoy observing their culture.  I see women who are attentive mothers and wives. Women who seem to be more passive than American women and men who work hard to provide for their families. Their dress, their cooking, religion and their language are all part of their culture. “

“Diversity is the differences in our cultures.  Diversity, in the recent years, has become a word synonymous with "tolerance for differences in people."  I am a strong proponent of loving people for who they are, and not judging on cultural differences.  I believe that you can learn from, teach and love people from all walks of life.”

I love the example she gave of her loud conversations with her family and how it could be seen by others as arguing. Without knowing her family and her culture it is impossible to know that is normal conversation to them and nothing is wrong. This is why I feel it is so important to take the time to get to know others that are different, inquire about their culture and ask questions. We will never know anything unless questions are asked. Someone could go their whole life thinking this family hated one another because they assumed what they heard was arguing.

The other two people involved in this assignment gave an answer about culture and diversity that were very similar. They defined culture as the traditions people hold, how they celebrate holidays and which ones they do, where they come from, meaning race and ethnicity and the language they speak. They spoke about diversity as the differences between people and how we come together and accept everyone. I received the old saying “we all put our pants on one leg at a time” which I think fits pretty well. They both also said they wouldn’t live their lives as certain people chose to, but they respect them and accept them for who they are.  

I got the impression that we still think a lot about surface culture when asked how you define culture. We instantly think about the holidays people celebrate and the language they speak, as did two of the people I spoke to instantly said. We don’t tend to see deep culture because we don’t take the time to see that far into people’s lives and families.  I agree with the last sentence written by my friend in her email, “I believe that you can learn from, teach and love people from all walks of life”. I just don’t think we take the time to learn from others and dig deeper into the lives of others to expand our knowledge of the diversity and cultures around us. 

My Family Culture

There are so many items from my childhood growing up that I keep dear to my heart and are a part of my German heritage. Three small items that I treasure are my Christkind ornament, a Hummel, and a harmonica. The Christkind ornament is a Christmas ornament that my family has always included on their tree. She is a fairy like being dressed in gold and white robes and wears a crown upon her golden hair. In most German speaking countries she is the bearer of gifts, just like Santa Clause is to the children here in the United States. Gifts are exchanged on December 24^th, delivered by the Christkind who leaves gifts under the Christmas tree and disappears before the children can see her. Hummels are porcelain figurines originated in Germany in the 1930’s based on the sketch art of Sister Maria. The hummel that I have is a little girl holding a basket of flowers that was passed down to me from my mother, which was given to her by my Oma from Germany. My harmonica is pretty self explanatory; its silver, very old, made in Germany, and was my fathers.

Growing up I never usually saw my extended family but on holidays, such as Christmas. Christmas was always a time that brought me great happiness and I always treasured the traditions we had growing up. As I stated in the previous description of the Christkind, gifts come on Christmas Eve as did our tree in my house. We very much followed my father’s German tradition for Christmas as my mother celebrated the same way. My fondest memories as a child was going to bed on Christmas Eve evening and being wakened by my mother later that night to walk down the stairs and be amazed by what I saw in front of me, an amazingly decorated Christmas tree and presents galore. Of course I knew about Santa Clause and even left him milk and cookies, but I always knew of the Christkind and somehow believed in both as a child. The Christkind ornament brings me back to great memories I had during Christmas and the wonderful stories and traditions my father brought into the house.

My mother had started collecting Hummels after she visited my father’s family in Germany for the first time. My Oma was a huge collector, and on my parent’s last trip before I was born she gave my mom one to take home. Up to this point my mom had my two brothers and had always wished for a girl. The hummel, which was a little girl was supposed to be a symbol of what was to come. When my parent’s got back from that trip to Germany my mom found out she was pregnant with me, 12 years after she had had my younger brother. My mother always treasured the hummel, and a few years ago she gave it to me in hopes that one day I will have a girl of my own.

My father and I always had a connection to music when I was younger. He hardly ever spoke to me in German, but he would sing to me in German to teach me certain words and phrases. My father plays many instruments, such as the guitar and accordion, but the one that intrigued me the most was his harmonica. He had so many that he brought with him to Germany, but one shiny silver one always stood out to me. This was the one he would let me use when I was little and wanted to try. Two years ago for Christmas he gave me that very shiny silver harmonica. I have it displayed in my house and every time I look at it I remember the great times I had with my father listening to him play.

I would be crushed if I was only allowed one of these items to come with me. It was hard enough to just choose these three. It would have to think even deeper into my thoughts about my culture and what is most dear to me. I would try to think about what would give me the happiest memories about my childhood and that shows my pride regarding my culture.

This assignment has brought me back to my childhood and the ways in which my culture has shaped the way I live my life and the thoughts about diversity. I would not consider my life as to be part of the dominant culture and I know what it is like to be looked at differently. I hope my work so far and the work I tend to do in the field of early childhood shows children just how special they are even if they are not like everyone else. Our differences make us unique and showed be something to be proud of.