Last night I was reflecting if I
ever had ever experienced bias, prejudice and or oppression in my life when I came
here in America. I also talked to other people about this issue. I was surprised
to hear that majority of the people from my culture mentioned that they
actually experienced bias, prejudice and or oppression from people of the same
culture as ours. My brother-in-law shared his experienced saying that when he
is at work, he always request to be moved or moved the other person to another
work station because they are the ones who makes him feel uncomfortable. He
said he experienced being insulted and being judged by the way he look and the
way he speaks the English language. They correct him all the time when he makes
mistake in grammar and his accent. Unlike with Americans, they appreciate his
work and give positive remark which makes him feel good about himself.
This incident diminished equity
because my brother-in-law is being excluded because he cannot speak the
language well. He would rather avoid the situation than face it because he
thinks that other people do not make a big deal out of it, although for him, it
is insulting and embarrassing. He ends up excluding himself from others and vice
versa.
It is saddening to hear that the
people whom you expect to support and help you are the same people who put you
down. Microaggression happens every day. In my brother-in-law case, it is not
the dominant culture or other culture is causing it but the same group of
people where he belongs. Since we grew up being submissive and resilient,
sometimes we tend to just walk away or not mind at all.
I think the only way to stop people from
oppressing other people is to start believing in ourselves, speak up and stand
up for our rights. We need to let other people know us and understand who we
are as a person of different culture, color, race and religion but just a
person ourselves. For our part, we need to understand them too, find a common
ground and accept each other for who they are only then can we achieve greater
equity.
Anabel,
ReplyDeleteI empathize for your brother-in-law as light skin light eyed African American I face prejudice from my race as well. I am sure it is frustrating to constantly be corrected and made to feel less than when compared to others. As a mother raising an African American male child (my son is 13), many people tell me and him that he "sounds white" and that bothers me because he is simply speaking correct/proper English which has no color. So I understand from the other end of the spectrum how it feels to constantly be judged by the way one speaks.
Nicky
Anabel,
ReplyDeleteI think it is even worse when the prejudice comes from your own race because, like you stated, you expect more support from someone who comes from the same ethnicity as you. I wonder if those particular people are trying to fit into the dominant culture, although judging off what you said, it seems as if they are not even doing that.
Shannon