ipl-logo

Microaggression In Citizen: An American Lyric

514 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Racial disparity in healthcare, essay

to feel unwanted. Take for instance, the prevalent use of non-traditional gender pronouns. Others acknowledge that people can identify with many genders, not just along the binary of male and female. Using a person’s preferred or desired gender pronouns (such as the gender neutral “they” instead of she or he) is not a meaningless exercise in identity politics. It is an acknowledgement of a person’s innermost identity, conferring both respect and dignity. When people are being subjected it makes them feel as though they are undesired. In the novel Citizen : An American Lyric written by Claudia Rankine, a poet and MacArthur Genius Award winner, many microaggressions were shown and one of them are : Certain moments send adrenaline to the heart, …show more content…

Which occurs when a white person is given preferential treatment as a consumer over a person of color. The example above shows that people of color are servants to whites. They could not possible occupy high status positions. It shows that just because her friend is black she is looked at like her black housekeeper. Even though she made a mistake she never acknowledged what she did. She ignored the microaggression that she had put on her friend and had hurt her. This discussion brings emotions such as grief and frustration. It brings grief because of how her black friend must feel. Being called the name of her white friend’s housekeeper whom is black made her feel like her white friend sees herself as a higher superior to her. This brings frustration since she can not figure out why her friend would call her the name of her housekeeper and not acknowledge the fact that she did. Even if she did not mean what she said, she still could have apologized. Minorities go through more than people think. Racial and ethnic minorities experience a lower quality of health care that non-minorities. Even when the patient’s insurance status and income are controlled. Understanding microaggressions are difficult to do and they are just as difficult to detect, however standing up and taking a stand can lead to a more inclusive

Show More
Related

Tatum's Theories Of Racism

846 Words | 4 Pages

Tatum uses the conflict theory to look at racism, economic and social inequalities. The power structure of the white dominant society in the United States, does not often recognize white privilege, while others do not believe this is a privilege at all. They believe that the power structure in the United States is one that if you work hard, everyone will have the same opportunity for success. This is an example of how white privilege helps racism to continue to exist. The inability to recognize white privilege helps to creates perception and ideals that racism in our society is a thing of the past.

Read More

Micro Aggression And Racism Analysis

247 Words | 1 Pages

The author presents the readers with different experiences of what occurs in her everyday life. Each example contains racist actions although not drastic it’s subtle enough to be detected by people of color that might be oblivious to white people. These daily racists actions whether intentional or not are micro aggressions meaning that they are instances of racism that are communicated to people of color on a daily basis. The term micro aggression is linked with the text since each piece of text is an example of it that the author, Rankine, has experienced through and multiple people go through.

Read More

Walk On By Brent Staples

1219 Words | 5 Pages

The Power Behind “Just Walk on By” In Brent Staples article “Just Walk on By”, Staples shares his thoughts on the way marginalized groups interact. He uses his own experiences as a young African American man to shed light on how people can have implied biases that affect the way they treat other people. Staples does this to demonstrate how society develops preconceived notions in the minds of individuals about marginalized groups, primarily African American men, which are often a flawed representation of the people within these groups. The rhetoric he uses is key to developing an understanding persona and an emotional appeal that exposes the implied biases of people without alienating or offending the audience, to whom-- among others-- he attributes these biases.

Read More

Affirmative Action By Shelby Steele: Rhetorical Analysis

1199 Words | 5 Pages

Steele begins addressing the issue by saying that “ By making black the color of preference, these mandates have re-burdened society with the very marriage of color and preference( in reverse) that we set out to eradicate.” In essence Shelby states that by allowing blacks to get a free privilege that whites do not have, the same issue that people were attempting to eradicate had just been reversed except this time in favor of African Americans. Shelby further explains that “ In integrated situations where blacks must compete with whites who may be better prepared, these explanations may quickly wear thin and expose the individual to racial as well as personal self doubt.” By using the example of college Shelby shows people that just because something is free does not mean it is beneficial in fact it may have the opposite effect it set out to achieve. At this point the audience has been made aware of a problem on several occasion and at this point in time Shelby begins to elaborate on the issue creating more intricate situations in which the free privilege will affect African Americans in the future.

Read More

Examples Of Racism In The Parable Of The Sower

1385 Words | 6 Pages

Based on their ethnicity, gender, and economic situation, the characters in the book experience prejudice and marginalization. The experiences of black women, who confront particular difficulties because of their ethnicity and gender, are highlighted in the book. Black women still experience bias and discrimination in both the job and in their personal life, which is a problem

Read More

Counter Reformation Dbq

1003 Words | 5 Pages

Martin Luther was an Augustinian monk who had a spiritual crisis. He deeply wanted to be a good person, but he saw that there was so much corruption in the church. He saw that the priests were doing many immoral things. The priests created something called indulgences where it was stated that anyone could be absolved of their sins by paying money. They would then make multiple offices and continue this scam so that they would get more money from people.

Read More

Tyna Steptoe's Houston Bound

542 Words | 3 Pages

This is exemplified in the case of the Creoles of color, who did not perceive themselves as black but were still viewed as black by the rest of the city (unless they were able to pass as white), meaning they could only use the

Read More

Discussion Of The Essay 'Graduation' By Maya Angelou

450 Words | 2 Pages

Which means don't judge a person without knowing what they're capable of doing. In the essay "Graduation" by Maya Angelou, a white speaker at Angelou’s graduation brought the excitement of the graduates down by saying something unbelievable. "The ugliness they left was palpable." (29) He stated how whites had more opportunities than the blacks, and couldn't have good carriers.

Read More

In The Uses Of Anger By Audre Lorde

811 Words | 4 Pages

In the 1980’s black women are faced with a lot pressure in society, Because women of color are both women and racial minorities, they face more pressure in which lower economic opportunities due to their race and their gender. This pressure is reflected both in the jobs available to them and in their lower pay. Also because they are women of color they are likely to be the giver of the house and also within the families. Through the use of anecdotes,rhetorical questions, anaphora, ethos and metaphors, "In The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism, Audre Lorde argues that women of color need to respond to racism with anger spurred from their fear and that not a bad thing depends on how anger is portrayed.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Racial Inequality Essay

738 Words | 3 Pages

Even if you are one of the poorest people in the town, if you are white, then you are still more significant in the social classes than a black person. Today, people are going through the same racial discrimination that was happening so long ago and will happen till the day our world is nonexistent anymore. In our society, people are judged for many things they can’t change. In the article, “Inequality, Race, and Remedy,” there was a study done that sent out approximately 1,300 résumés to apply for the same job.

Read More

Equality In A Lesson Before Dying

501 Words | 3 Pages

Equality is a basic right granted to everyone in the United States. Sadly, there was a point in time where specific people were not treated equally. The novel A Lesson Before Dying, written by Ernest J. Gaines, goes into detail about how African-Americans were treated in the late 1940’s. The reader is able to see the prejudice acted on the African-Americans through a black man’s eyes. Gaines believes that blacks were treated as an inferior race to whites and never received true justice or fairness.

Read More

White Privilege Research Paper

1422 Words | 6 Pages

White Privilege: Essay 1 White privilege is a systemic issue that has roots in our history as far back as the creators of our country. Searching back, we see our norms and values created into habits that have been woven into how we view and act around specific groups such as African Americans. This essay is going to explain how the average Caucasian individual experiences white privilege on a day to day basis and the solutions to insure that white privilege will stop and true equality can be handed out. This paper views the latter issues through symbolic interactionism, with supporting sub theories such as; labeling theory, looking glass self, and selective perception.

Read More

Citizen An American Lyric Analysis

1878 Words | 8 Pages

Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine is a hybrid and communal text constructed out of varying poetic form accompanied by contrasting imagery, and historical events. Rankine, although the author of this text is not necessarily its narrator. She plays with prospective, switching the fundamental meaning of “you” and pulls from the personal experiences of her friends, colleagues, and surrounding community. Rankine is able to incorporate “an emphasis on impressionism and subjectivity in [her] writing”, blur the line between various genres, and “[reject] … elaborate formal aesthetics in favor of minimalist design”, which are the pillars of postmodern works (Klages). She utilizes historical and modern events such as the Jim Crow laws, affirmative

Read More

Theme Of Racism In Toni Morrison's Sula

1194 Words | 5 Pages

The discrimination against the white race begins with a gradual distinct treatment of the African Americans who appear to have a trace of the white race. Helene proves to have a more formal dialect as she asks for “the bathroom” (23) and the black woman cannot understand until Helene finally refers to it as “the toilet” (23). The difference in word choice distinct Helene from the African Americans in the Bottom. The fact that Helene also has fairer skin than the African Americans gives the black woman a reason to believe Helene has a trace of white. Therefore, when Helene approaches the black woman on the train, “[the woman fastens her eyes]…on the thick velvet, the fair skin, [and] the high tone voice” (23), as if surprised and shocked to see an African American women appear in such a manner.

Read More

Social Stratification In The Movie The Help

610 Words | 3 Pages

Black women are treated less than because of their ascribed traits, their gender and race, and are often dehumanized and belittled throughout the movie. They are treated like slaves and are seen as easily disposable. There are several moments throughout the film that show the racial, gender, and class inequalities. These moments also show exploitation and opportunity hoarding. The Help also explains historical context of the inequality that occurred during that time period.

Read More

More about Microaggression In Citizen: An American Lyric

Related Topics

Open Document