Observing microaggressions this week has been tough since I have been on at home all week. However, we decided to go Black Friday shopping and that changed everything. I went with my mom and took my oldest daughter who is 13 for the first time. We waited in line at Game Stop for over an hour, and as we got ready to leave, a lady came in and asked about one of the consoles they had on sale to a young man who was working. The boy looked to be in his late teens and already overwhelmed by everything going on. The lady was in her late 30's early 40's with three preteen kids with her. She wanted him to hold a console for her. He told her that he could not do that and he could not guarantee that they would have any left when she returned. She called him a "dumb kid" and threaten to punch him in the face and asked to talk to someone older. The manager came out and told her the same thing. She left at that point.
I felt sorry for this young man and I thought about getting in between him and her and telling her that he was only doing his job. He was not rude or disrespectful in any way and told her the same script that he told everyone else, but she felt that she could disrespect him because he was younger than her. I think this is an example of micro assault, micro insult, and micro invalidation. I love that the manager told her the exact same thing that the young man said. I used this as a teachable moment for my daughter, who says she is never working retail.
Before this experience, I never really thought about younger people being the target of micro aggression just because of their age. It is something to be aware of and watch for.
Hello Kaleena,
ReplyDeleteI too went to black Friday and say kinda the same thing. The little girl was waiting for a toy when some adults were giving the works a hard time. The girl could not have been more then 12 years old and she was the first one in line. The works had to call over the managers to help them out. People got loud and the young girl just stud there. I am glade that your daughter got do black friday with you . I got to it with my dad one year and it was fun but he will not do it again with me. You did a great job on this and it was great to know that someone else does the black friday and see what other people are like when it comes to that day.
Hi Melissa, People get absolutely ridiculous on Black Friday just to get something check. Thank you for your feedback.
DeleteKaleena
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed your post. I can totally relate to this situation. I started teaching at the age of 19. Although I was told by some, that I was born to teach, many parents and students did not respect me because they felt that I was too 'young' to be in the profession. One parent even discontinued her son's enrollment in my class because of this. 12 years later i am still in the profession and an even better teacher as the years go by. People are certainly targeted in situations because of their age. This can either 'make' or 'break' an individual. It made me more determined to become better! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Janelle, Thanks for sharing your story. I worked in an after school program when I was 19 and parents often thought I was one of the kids. It use to make me so mad and then a parent told me that I will be thankful for looking so young later in life. Thank you for sharing
DeleteKaleena,
ReplyDeleteI feel awful for this young man working on one of the busiest shopping days of the year! Not only is he dealing with the stress of so many shoppers but adding in a shopper that not only threatened him but also did not want to speak to him because he is young is ridiculous! As a teenager I was in a management position for a summer job and I had similar experiences as I was young and also female. It is unfortunate that some can be so rude to people who are working hard, no matter their age.