Forms of microaggressions – and how to recognise them

Race related microaggressions are discrimination against someone based on their skin colour, ethnic background or place of birth. Examples:

• Assuming where someone is from based on skin colour, accent, etc. to other them, signalling that even if born in the UK, they are still foreign in some way – like asking “where are you really from?”
• Asking invasive questions that push a personal boundary relating to natural hair or what’s under someone’s head coverings as an example
• Not taking the time to learn or remember important details about a person, such as saying their name is too hard to pronounce and choosing a western English name to call them instead
• Diminishing lived experiences and diversity by claiming that you “don’t see colour” or “we’re all one race: the human race”
• Making assumptions about someone’s skills or hobbies based on their skin colour or signalling that they’re different from their group because they act or participate in activities that are considered more western

Gender related microaggressions are a form of discrimination and sexism. Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on someone’s sex or gender. It is often linked to outdated stereotypes or gender roles and may include the belief that one sex or gender is superior to another. Examples:

• Hostile - beliefs and behaviours that are openly aggressive toward a group of people based on their sex or gender
• Benevolent – views and behaviours that frame a sex or gender in a specific way based on some positive traits such as framing femininity as weakness
• Ambivalent – a combination of hostile and benevolent sexism, ambivalent sexism results in varying attitudes about a specific gender, depending on the situation
• Institutional – entrenched in wider systems where policies, procedures, attitudes and laws create or reinforce sexism
• Interpersonal – sexism that manifests during interactions with colleagues, friends, family or strangers
• Internalised – refers to sexist beliefs that a person has about themselves, usually adopted from the actions and opinions of others

LGBTQ-related microaggressions are a form of discrimination which include homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. These terms are used to describe the fear or dislike of someone based on one’s views about people who are or are perceived to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer or asexual. An individual’s sexual orientation (or sexuality) and their gender identity are two different things. There are four main types of discrimination:

• Direct discrimination – when someone is treated less favourably than others because of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity, or the sexual orientation or gender identity of someone they’re close to
• Indirect discrimination – the existence of a rule, policy, or practice which puts someone of a particular sexual orientation or gender identity at a disadvantage
• Harassment – when someone is made to feel humiliated, offended or degraded because of their sexual orientation or gender identity
• Victimisation – when someone is treated badly because they have made a compliant or supported someone making a complaint about sexual orientation or gender identity related discrimination

Disability related microaggressions are a form of ableism. Ableism is discrimination and social prejudice against people who have disabilities or are perceived to have disabilities. It can take the form of assumptions, stereotypes, attitudes, physical barriers or larger scale oppression. Examples:

• Making casual remarks that trivialise disability such as “I’m so OCD about my office” or highlighting and making jokes about neurodivergent behaviours
• Diminishing someone’s situation by assuming all disabilities are physical or visible
• Assuming what someone’s capabilities are due to their disability or assuming someone with a physical disability also has a learning disability
• Ignoring a person’s autonomy by ‘helping’ them without asking or giving unsolicited health advice
• Not being compassionate or understanding how an individual’s health and abilities can fluctuation based on different factors and environments

Parent and carer-related microaggressions can impact those who are pregnant in the workplace, on parental leave or the carer of a young person. Additional, intersectional microaggressions may occur where women tend to have a higher instance of caring duties. Examples:

• Being intentionally excluded from a training opportunity because the individual is pregnant
• Being discouraged from applying or not being given a role because of caring responsibilities
• This also includes internal bias where an individual may not apply at all because they believe they will not be given the role for these same reasons
• An employer requiring something of or imposing a working practice that puts those parenting or caring at a disadvantage compared to those who do not have the same responsibilities
• Indirect discrimination where a rule, policy, or practice which applies to everyone but puts individuals who are pregnant, parents and carers at a disadvantage. This includes a change in working patterns that require being on shift late at night or on weekends

Age related microaggressions are a form of ageism, which is when someone is treated unfairly because of their age. Examples:

• Assuming someone is inexperienced because they are younger than the average person in that role or workplace. This can include the individual’s point of view not being taken seriously or outright ignored
• Assuming that older members of a team are incompetent, slowing the practice down or are incapable of learning new skills
• Gendered ageism is when older women may be seen as incompetent while older men are viewed as being “more experienced and wiser”. This could include making assumptions that the older or male architect in the room is automatically the person in charge
• Indirect discrimination can also occur when policies and practices put a particular age group at a disadvantage. For example, a job role specifying years of experience necessary would be discrimination