Interpersonal Racism
Interpersonal Racism is racism that occurs between individuals. The organization Showing up for Racial Justice explains it as follows:
When a white person can take their misinformation and stereotypes towards another group and perform an act of harassment, exclusion, marginalization, discrimination, hate or violence they are committing an act of interpersonal racism towards an individual or group. When we move beyond talking about prejudice and stereotypes in our society we generally focus on acts of interpersonal racism. These are the kinds of acts that we hear about in the media—a hate crime, an act of job or housing discrimination, negative racial comments about People of Color, racial profiling or violence by a police officer towards a Person of Color.
While we do sometimes hear about these types of acts in the media, there are many blatant incidents of interpersonal racism throughout American history that our education system and media did not tell us about. Now, we must make it our personal responsibility to learn about these acts and use our knowledge to dismantle systemic racism. And the scariest part is that these acts are still happening today. In 2021, top law enforcement officials said the biggest domestic terror threat comes from white supremacists.
However, keep in mind that not every act of Interpersonal Racism is so visible. Harassment, discrimination, and microaggressions, defined as “indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of a marginalized group,” also have lasting impacts on African Americans’ lives. Keep reading to learn more about microaggressions below.
Read More: At 88, he is a historical rarity — the living son of a slave
A History of Violence Against African-American Communities
Prior to the Civil Rights Movement, there were several major instances of violent interpersonal racism that had long-term impacts in their respective communities - and nationwide. Here are some of those:
READ MORE: The Ocoee Massacre of 1920
Source: Anti-Black Violence (Smithsonian Magazine)
Learn More about Interpersonal Racism
What is a Microaggression?
Again, interpersonal racism is not always as clear as violence or blatant discrimination. African Americans face microaggressions, both verbal and nonverbal, almost daily. In an article titled “Racial Microaggressions in Everyday Life,” psychologist Derald Wing Sue, Ph.D., explains microaggressions as follows:
Racial microaggressions are the brief and everyday slights, insults, indignities and denigrating messages sent to people of color by well-intentioned white people who are unaware of the hidden messages being communicated…Our research and those of many social psychologists suggest that most people…harbor unconscious biases and prejudices that leak out in many interpersonal situations and decision points.
Dr. Sue explains that through his and his team’s research, he believes microaggressions fall into three categories:
Microassaults: Conscious and intentional discriminatory actions: using racial epithets, displaying white supremacist symbols—swastikas, or preventing one's son or daughter from dating outside of their race.
Microinsults: Verbal, nonverbal, and environmental communications that subtly convey rudeness and insensitivity that demean a person's racial heritage or identity. An example is an employee who asks a co-worker of color how he/she got his/her job, implying he/she may have landed it through an affirmative action or quota system.
Microinvalidations: Communications that subtly exclude negate or nullify the thoughts, feelings or experiential reality of a person of color. For instance, white people often ask Latinos where they were born, conveying the message that they are perpetual foreigners in their own land.
Read More: Unmasking Microaggressions
Read More: You’ve Been Called Out for a Microaggression. What Do You Do?
Read More: Women of color in the workplace: The persistent obstacles and how you can rise to meet them
All Resources in this Article:
The Deadliest Massacre in Reconstruction-Era Louisiana Happened 150 Years Ago
In Land of Lincoln, Long-Buried Traces of a Race Riot Come to the Surface
Red Summer of 1919: How Black WWI Vets Fought Back Against Racist Mobs
How the Blinding of Sergeant Isaac Woodard Changed the Course of America’s Civil Rights History
You’ve Been Called Out for a Microaggression. What Do You Do?