Practicing awareness of microagressions.

• Describe at least one example of a microaggression which you detected this week or remember from another time. In what context did the microaggression happen? What did you think and feel when you observed the microaggression or when you found yourself as the target of a microaggression?

One Microagression that I noticed this week was from one of my friends who is African American.  He made a comment to his friend who is mexican that was a verbal racial microagression.  We were in Ihop and there were a lot of mexicans inside of there and it was pretty packed and my friend said to his mexican friend said "why yall people always travel in large groups."  He was referencing mexican people and saying they always travel in large groups together.  I didn't think much of it, I did look at his friend to see his reaction and it didn't seem to bother him as much because they make racial jokes like that a lot and make jokes about it.  His friend didn't really care but it someone else heard they may have taken offense to it.  

• In what ways did your observation experiences this week affect your perception of the effects of discrimination, prejudice, and/or stereotypes on people

This week with learning about microagressions and the different types of discrimination or prejudice it made me think of times when it was happening and I would really overlook it. Things like the comments people would make on race and how people treated others.  I am a pretty observant person, but this week taught me that there are a lot of things that I overlook.  With my friends they make racial jokes all the time and we all joke about it, but I wonder if it really affects them in a way even when they are laughing and joking around.  I will myself be more aware of what I say although I am not really a person to make comments about race or color, I can be more alert and not encourage it by not saying anything at all. 

Perspectives on culture and diversity.

This was a very interesting assignment for the assignment I chose to as 3 completely different people from completely different backgrounds on their definition of culture and diversity.  I asked my mother who is African American, One of my best friends who is Puerto Rican and a co worker who is Caucasian.

Definition of Culture: The definitions I got from the 3 people for this is either The background of a person and what they are and what defines them, this having to do with home life, different traditions, and something that makes the person unique.

Definition of Diversity:  The definitions I got were a persons uniqueness, special traits that make up the person, the differences of one person to the next.

Some aspects of culture and diversity that I have learned so far in the course I did receive in the answers that I got.  Such as the aspect of uniqueness in both culture and diversity.  Both culture and diversity make up a person and are individual.  The things that make you the person that you are are your own culture and diversity.

One thing that I noticed was that no one mentioned race or color when I mentioned diversity and culture.  They mostly looked outside of that although race is a huge factor in culture and diversity.  Thinking about other peoples definition of culture and diversity has only affirmed how I think of it, most of the people have similar definitions of it and that is what brings us together in that sense.

My family culture

• A description of the three items you would choose

If I were in a major catastrophe and only could bring three items the first item I would bring is my family album. This way I can keep those memories alive and be able to reminisce on old traditions and that will make me feel my connection to home and help in hard emotional times I may have. I'd also bring my journal, so I can keep track of daily life and help me to get my emotions out on paper.  Something to keep me busy and uplifted by writing and expressing myself.  The last thing I would bring is traditional home recipes so that I can keep the food traditions alive and have a taste of home with the food, your cultural food always makes you feel better.

• How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you

I would tell each person that these things describe me in a way and are close to me. They help me to be uplifted and to never forget where I came from.  It is important to have things that are dear to you near because it's hard being in a whole new place and not to have anything memorable around. 

• Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you

I feel like I would be really sad and I wouldn't be settle with it, it would also be hard to choose which one to keep and which one I would have to give up.  All of them mean so much to me so is have a very hard time giving them up because I'm already sacrificing leaving my home and being in a completely new and foreign environment.

• Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise,

I found it hard to choose what o would take with me. There are so any important things in my life I would want to take, and I realized that while doing the exercise.