In an interview with KUOW, Seattle's NPR radio station, Derald Wing Sue, Professor of Psychology and Education, talks about microaggressions, the sometimes subtle talk or gestures which are inadvertent, everyday slights, putdowns or insults toward marginalized groups. Sue says they might seem trivial, but for the person who receives them, they can accumulate over years, especially if the recipient has been subjected to different microaggressions several times a day.

“All our research on microaggressions reveals that microaggressions take a tremendous psychological and physical toll on the marginalized group member,” which can take the form of loss of productivity at school and work or a decrease in subjective well-being, Sue says.

He argues the real responsibility for removing microaggressions rests with educational institutions. “Why is the responsibility for change always on the shoulders of people of color? And this is where I feel institutions of higher education have failed. They have failed to acknowledge the existence of bias and prejudice on the campus.”

Sue recently published "Race Talk and the Conspiracy of Silence:  Understanding and Facilitating Difficult Dialogues on Race," (John Wiley and Sons).

LINK:  To listen to the interview, go to 'You're So Articulate': Why Microaggressions Wear People Down 

Published Wednesday, Apr. 29, 2015