This
week’s lesson was focused on microaggressions and this week I had the
unfortunate experience to witness a microaggression take place. My girlfriend
and I were driving on the road and her tire blew out, luckily we had a spare
but we decided to check with local tire centers to try and purchase a new one.
After some searching we found a place and so we preceded to tell the man what
exactly happened and give him the information about the car/tire, when the man
stops us mid-sentence and says, “Are ya’ll gay?” We turned and looked at each
other and replied, “Umm…yes we are lesbians, why do you ask?” The man replies
by saying, “Why would ya’ll want to be that, did something happen to ya’ll? Do
ya’ll sleep with men, give me a try I won’t disappoint ya’ll?” Now while this
man was babbling on asking all personal questions, my girlfriend and I stood
there feet frozen shocked that some human being would have the audacity to ask
those questions to our face. I was able to gather from this week’s lesson and
from the articles provided that the microaggressions taking place in this
incident were microinsult and microinvalidation. The man made an assumption
that not only was rude but was very hurtful, that somehow the reason why we
were lesbians was due to something horrific taking place and I have found that
many individuals often believe that homosexuals are raped or molested which
makes them choose the same sex. It is my opinion that those individuals have a
cloudy since of imagination and just do not understand the LGBT culture. I
believe that once people break down that barrier of ignorance or hate that they
would be able to really get to know the LGBT community and realize that we are
all human, just with various preferences.
Wow, OMG. Sha'Keema.
ReplyDeleteSha'Keema. Just how you are reading this post is just how I am saying your name. Over and over again. What a terrible experience for you and your partner. I cannot believe how ignorant and crude that man was. You're being kind. That was clearly a microassault. That man purposely insulted you both and made sure you knew where he was coming from.
I'm sure you were frozen in the moment. I would have been, too.
It is hard to imagine the blatancy of discrimination and when it happens it has to sink in. You had a "catch 22" moment just like what was described in our course media.
I read your post twice because the first time I went, "What the hell?" Did I read that right?
Thank you for sharing such a powerful experience. Although humiliating, I'm sure, it was a true definition of how close minded and stupid people can be.
After reading your post I sat back in my chair and said, OMG! You are so right that once closed minded people open their minds to understand others then maybe we will have less stupid people out their in the world. I have several gay/lesbian friends and I would never in my life treat them different from any other friends because I live by this, "you treat others the way you want to be treated." I can't believe this happened but do believe it does happen more than we know.
ReplyDeleteOk, I had read your response to my post and was like "I wow I really liked that" and I was going to comment on that but after I read your post I cannot even remember what you said to me. LOL I cannot say I am shocked because one of my parents had told me a situation almost just like that, but it was her ex-boyfriend that told her to give guys (or him) another chance and he could help her. Now this may not be right either, but I would have said "what makes you think I would choose your sorry *** over her"
ReplyDeleteWoW, I can't believe someone would be so ignorant to ask another person a question like that!!!Not that I'm trying to make an excuse for him but it seems to me that he was so ignorant he had no clue he was insulting. I can't believe were in 2013 and someone still has no intelligence, respect, or consideration. I"m sorry that someone would be so rude to you.
ReplyDelete