{"id":533820,"date":"2021-05-21T13:51:12","date_gmt":"2021-05-21T17:51:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=533820"},"modified":"2021-05-21T13:51:16","modified_gmt":"2021-05-21T17:51:16","slug":"leaked-univ-utah-diversity-session-even-well-received-compliments-now-microaggressions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/leaked-univ-utah-diversity-session-even-well-received-compliments-now-microaggressions\/","title":{"rendered":"Leaked Univ. Utah Diversity Session: Even Well-Received Compliments Now Microaggressions"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fleaked-univ-utah-diversity-session-even-well-received-compliments-now-microaggressions%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=533820&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Censorship-1200x800-1.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" \/><\/div>\n<p><span>A staff member at the University of Utah <a href=\"mailto:ghowe@dailywire.com\">reached out to me<\/a> this week with a recording from a recent staff training on \u201cmicroaggressions.\u201d Immediately, I popped on my headphones, as few things delight me more than being a fly on the wall in other people\u2019s unhinged diversity sessions.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>For those still blissfully unacquainted, Merriam Webster defines \u201cmicroaggression\u201d as a \u201c<\/span><span>comment or action that subtly and often unconsciously or unintentionally expresses a prejudiced attitude toward a member of a marginalized group (such as a racial minority).\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>On its face, the concept isn\u2019t outrageous. Most people recognize that bigotry occurs in subtle interactions which often aren\u2019t readily apparent to the perpetrator. Classic examples include the white suburban mom clutching her purse more tightly when a black man walks by, or the insistence, by educated whites, that black Americans are less capable of meeting mundane societal expectations than are white Americans. The former example betrays an assumption that black men are a criminal threat, the latter a patronizing assumption about black Americans\u2019 cognitive abilities and\/or character. Small acts of bigotry add up, and they do make a difference over time.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>However, these were not the types of microaggressions that staff at the University of Utah were primarily presented with in this bizarre 90-minute session. Rather, participants were instructed that a comment or action can be considered a \u201cmicroaggression\u201d even if it is well-intended, well-received, and causes no apparent harm.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It was stressed by one facilitator that even a genuine compliment can be a microaggression, even if the recipient was flattered by it, as long as the compliment in some way \u201creinforces\u201d the \u201csystems of power\u201d (which, of course, remain perpetually nebulous and strategically undefined). For example, phrases like \u201cYou\u2019re so smart for 15!\u201d and \u201cWow, you look great for your age!\u201d were touted as two obvious examples of microaggressions (presumably because they reinforce the stodgy, outdated, and hateful notion that young people are both more beautiful and more naive than elders).&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It was at this point in the presentation that one female participant chimed in: \u201cPeople tell me I\u2019m too successful to be so young\u201d and \u201ctoo ambitious.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s like, <\/span><span>you can\u2019t be 26 years old and that well-spoken,<\/span><span>\u201d she lamented. \u201cIt\u2019s like, <\/span><i><span>thanks<\/span><\/i><span>,\u201d&nbsp; she added, sarcastically, \u201cSo that really hit home for me.\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cAnd how did that make you feel? What do you think the subtext was?\u201d the facilitator probed. It turned out that the participant was also a redhead, which was \u201chard.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I got the impression that diversity trainings might be a little blander in Utah.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Regardless, the wonder of Critical Race Theory (CRT), which is the academic theory from which all wokeness springs, is that it can train soft minds to successfully manufacture grievance from <\/span><i><span>any<\/span><\/i><span> human interaction. And that is the explicitly stated goal of all critical theories, to stir discontent with the goal of activating pawns in a revolution. Contentedness is the enemy of revolution, so people must be trained out of it.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>They also must be trained to be pathologically nervous about aggrieving others.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Phrases such as \u201cWhat is your spirit animal?\u201d and \u201cThat movie was lame\u201d flashed across the screen as participants pondered their implied complicity in silence. One slide said \u201cThose people are crazy!\u201d Another said \u201cI\u2019m having a senior moment.\u201d One image was simply a photo of a sign that said \u201cBoys\u201d and \u201cGirls\u201d with arrows pointing in opposite directions, presumably to a pair of restrooms.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>No explanations were given at any point, except for a passing reference to ableism, which allowed me to extrapolate that \u201clame\u201d and \u201ccrazy\u201d were being considered \u201cidentity groups,\u201d presumably by way of medical diagnosis.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Participants were encouraged to \u201cnot take it personally\u201d if they were guilty of these offenses in the past, but rather to use those \u201cfeelings of vulnerability\u201d as a learning opportunity. \u201cIf you catch yourself [pushing back against being corrected], remind yourself it\u2019s not about me, it\u2019s about bias and power.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Participants were also coached on how to react when they do offend someone.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cOne thing I\u2019ve learned,\u201d advised a facilitator, \u201cis to avoid over-apologizing\u2026Who am I doing that for? I\u2019m wanting to make <\/span><i><span>myself<\/span><\/i><span> feel better\u2026at their expense, I want them to tell me oh \u2018it\u2019s ok no big deal.\u2019\u201d Rather, \u201cIt\u2019s important to just listen, don\u2019t expect them to educate us.\u201d The appropriate length of apology for a microaggression is approximately \u201c30 seconds,\u201d according to this diversity expert.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>After the slide show, participants discussed words and phrases they no longer use due to problematic etymology.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI used to use the phrase \u2018gyp\u2019 all the time\u2026I didn\u2019t realize it was about gypsies!\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cOh yeah, I used to say gyp too.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The group bonded over their guilt about using the word \u201cgyp,\u201d which they agreed reinforced the marginalization of gypsies.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cOne strategy I use now,\u201d added the facilitator, who also confessed to marginalizing gypsies in the past, \u201cif there\u2019s a phrase [that] I\u2019ve been using forever, that I\u2019ve never stopped to think about\u2026that\u2019s gonna be a red flag.\u201d She continued, \u201cI\u2019m going to stop to think about it, and I\u2019m going to look it up.\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>This level of paranoia is justified, she argued, because \u201csometimes when I look it up, I realize there\u2019s this whole history, and it\u2019s reinforcing stereotypes, and when we\u2019re reinforcing stereotypes, that has an impact on things like systemic power.\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I\u2019m reminded of a classic quote by Ibram X. Kendi in \u201cHow to Be an Antiracist\u201d: \u201c<\/span><span>Like fighting an addiction, being an antiracist requires persistent self-awareness, constant self-criticism, and regular self-examination.\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>As I\u2019ve discussed in past <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/leaked-teacher-training-video-shows-how-cultish-critical-race-theory-is-being-pushed-on-virginia-teachers\"><span>articles<\/span><\/a><span> about woke indoctrination, when you\u2019re caught up in constant self-examination and self-criticism, you\u2019re not able to critically evaluate the truth of what you\u2019re being told. That is by design.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Lastly, a handout about microaggressions distributed to the group revealed another, and more insidious, meaning to \u201cmicroaggression\u201d that wasn\u2019t accounted for by either Merriam Webster or the diversity facilitator. Apparently, it is actively microaggressive to affirm traditional American values and beliefs, especially those which directly undermine Critical Theory.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>For example, \u201cAmerica is a melting pot,\u201d \u201cthere is only one race, the human race,\u201d and \u201cI believe the most qualified person should get the job\u201d were listed as common microaggressions. A column on the far right of the document explained the <\/span><i><span>real<\/span><\/i><span> coded messages behind each of these microaggressive phrases, which included wildly presumptuous phrases like \u201cpeople of color are lazy or incompetent and need to work harder\u201d and a presumed directive to \u201cassimilate to the dominant culture.\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Through courses like these, diversity instructors are training soft minds to associate almost all aspects of language, as well as affirmations about foundational american ideals, with bigotry. Worse, the thought leaders behind it are making millions off the charade. It\u2019s a sham, and does nothing to address the actual racism permeating society, often making it worse, all while under the guise of so-called \u201cdiversity\u201d and \u201cinclusion\u201d. It\u2019s past time for us to wake up and tell the Emperor he has no clothes.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>***<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>This article is part of my ongoing effort to expose radical ideology in education and other institutions. Please send me stories from your community to <\/span><span>ghowe@dailywire.com<\/span><span> or find me on IG <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/georgiamaehowe\/\"><span>@georgiamaehowe<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><i><span>The views expressed in this piece are the author\u2019s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span>The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/subscribe\"><i><span>member<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A staff member at the University of Utah reached out to me this week with a recording from a recent staff training on \u201cmicroaggressions.\u201d Immediately, I popped on my headphones, &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2312607,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Censorship-1200x800-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"Leaked Univ. Utah Diversity Session: Even Well-Received Compliments Now Microaggressions","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-533820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Censorship-1200x800-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"Leaked Univ. 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