Racial microaggressions in the life experience of Black Americans

Racial microaggressions cause considerable psychological distress among Black Americans and are manifested in nearly all interracial encounters. They set in motion energy-depleting attempts to determine whether incidents were racially motivated. Reactions can be classified into 4 major themes: healthy paranoia, sanity check, empowering and validating self, and rescuing offenders. Microaggressions result in high degrees of stress for Blacks because of denigrating messages: "You do not belong," "You are abnormal," "You are intellectually inferior," "You cannot be trusted," and "You are all the same." Feelings of powerlessness, invisibility, forced compliance and loss of integrity, and pressure to represent one's group are some of the consequences.