26 October, 2021

Ava DuVernay on Microaggressions

Netflix is out with a new show on Colin Kaepernick’s early life, produced and directed by award-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay. She explains what motivated her to do a story about a famous person, which is, in her own words, “not my thing”. She discusses how she got interested – “But as I start to hear his stories, and all the microaggressions, and all the little things that make up someone who had eventually become an American icon, a singular figure in American culture, it became really fascinating me to use his life as a springboard into larger conversations about race, caste, class, identity, representation, all that good stuff. And so, we collaborated in that way. And through that, he was able to speak and express himself.” Kaepernick was raised by his adoptive white parents and grew up in predominantly white societies in Wisconsin and then California dairy country. The show is worth a watch to expand your awareness of what it is like for a biracial teenager to grow up inside a white majority world of sports. DuVernay continues to share why it was important to her. “For many people of color, people who are outside of the box or outside the dominant culture, these little microaggressions, these little things that just feel like paper cuts are looms large in the — in the formation and construction of who we are as, you know, larger societal institutional issues. And so, I think for me, it`s someone who`s often you know, analyzing and interrogating race in class and my work, the idea that we can look at the small infractions, right, and to see how much that is molding us to become who we are, became really interesting to me.” This is such an important point about microaggressions and what we’ve been exploring here at SunShower in our work with Dr. Derald Wing Sue to educate people about the harmful impact of microaggressions. The longterm effect of receiving microaggressions on a person’s physical, psychological and emotional health is well documented. This is why workplaces need to not only raise awareness but also give people skills to speak up to interrupt microaggressions when they happen. His microintervention strategies, outlined in our course Disarming Microaggressions, are important to learn. (Review) [link to our page for Disarming Microaggressions] In a recent call with Dr. Sue, he spoke to me about how microaggressions are unintentional expressions of bias. He encouraged me to think of them as reflections of internal superiority that is outside the conscious awareness of a person. This means it’s incumbent on all of us to become more aware how we were each conditioned to raise our awareness of assumptions about people and situations so that we can be more intentional to monitor and take different actions. I highly recommend “Colin in Black & White” on Netflix.

Courses

Ouch! That Stereotype Hurts
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Ouch! That Stereotype Hurts

Learn how to speak up when you hear stereotypes without blaming or shaming. The six Ouch techniques give you the skills to be an ally and upstander. This award-winning course has a seat time of about 20 minutes and you'll have access for 2 weeks. Upon completion, you'll receive a Certificate of Completion and a badge you can display on LinkedIn and in your email signature.
GenShift: From Tension to Teamwork
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GenShift: From Tension to Teamwork

GenShift is an award-winning course that will be your bridge across the generational divide. Join Dr. Katherine Jeffery for a three hour masterclass on the five generations in the workplace and how to communicate and thrive. Your purchase provides access for 4 weeks.
The Inclusive Leader in You
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The Inclusive Leader in You

This transformative course will empower you to build trust, strengthen relationships and recover from missteps with confidence. Join Greg Gale, a seasoned expert with over 25 years of experience, for a masterclass in building authentic connections, embracing inclusion and leading in today’s diverse world.
Defeating Unconscious Bias: 5 Strategies
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Defeating Unconscious Bias: 5 Strategies

What is unconscious bias? If a bias is unconscious, what can we do about it? Learn 5 concrete actions that you can practice to identify and disrupt biases. We all have bias. We’re not bad people for having it. What we do next is what’s important. This course describes how to identify and counter your unconscious bias. It’s designed to address the hidden biases that can affect hiring, promoting and team building.
DEI Leap with Lisette Martinez
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DEI Leap with Lisette Martinez

This master class comes out of Lisette Martinez’s experiences, lessons learned and vision for what today’s employees and organizations need and want – diverse and truly inclusive workplaces where everyone can feel like they belong. You'll have access to this beautiful course for 2 weeks.
Ouch! Your Silence Hurts
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Ouch! Your Silence Hurts

Ouch! Your Silence Hurts explains the pivotal role of the bystander and how you can become an active ally. This award-winning course will take about 14 minutes and has quite an emotional impact. You will have access for 1 week.
Disarming Microaggressions with Dr. Derald Wing Sue
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Disarming Microaggressions with Dr. Derald Wing Sue

This award-winning course was produced in partnership with Dr. Derald Wing Sue, Columbia University, one of the leading researchers on the topic of microaggressions. Dr. Sue has written dozens of books and he generously gave us access to all of his work to create Disarming Microaggressions.
Unconscious Bias: Real Stories
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Unconscious Bias: Real Stories

Watch powerful scenarios to learn about unconscious bias and feel the impact on individuals and the workplace. Unfortunately, many say, "yes, I've seen that / had that happen / done that". Gain skills that you can practice to identify and disrupt your own biases before they cause harm, and also to speak up and interrupt when you encounter biased statements. This award-winning course, which meets high standards of accessibility, includes an engaging combination of video scenarios, activities and exercises to ground learners' understanding; the lessons are reinforced through a 10-question quiz.
Understanding the Complexity of the Asian American Pacific Islander Experience
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Understanding the Complexity of the Asian American Pacific Islander Experience

This course will help you gain awareness and understanding of the challenges and resilience within the AAPI community and inspire you to promote greater inclusion and empathy in your workplace and society.

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