Pre-work
Consider having participants read this article, “What Exactly is a Microaggression?”or “A Guide to Responding to Microaggressions“
Quiet room with enough chairs/space for all participants. If you have a group larger than ~6 people, chairs should ideally be mobile so people can break into small groups and then join the large group again.
Print list of microaggressions and cut into individual slips. Consider creating your own “microaggression slips” based on local examples.
Print the strategies for addressing microaggressions and cut them into individual slips - adapted from Witnessing Whiteness. Alternatively, you could print “Responding to Microaggressions and Bias” and cut into slips that include 2-3 strategies to give participants more options.
Supplies
Activity
Read “caucusing guidelines” to the group
If you have a group that includes multiple levels of medical hierarchy (medical students, residents, attendings, nurses, MAs…) consider explicitly pointing out that expertise in medicine does not equate to expertise on issues of race and equity. For example, “For this exercise, experience and expertise may flip from how they are in clinic or on the wards. The attendings in the room may be the learners today and an MA may be the expert. Let’s recognize that we are all here to learn, share, and challenge each other.”
Introduction
People of color are often inundated by microaggressions in their daily lives. Putting the onus of responding to microaggressions on people of color adds to the “diversity tax” they experience. Additionally, when white people say nothing in the face of microaggressions, people of color often feel that this indicates agreement with the statement. (Think about how it feels when someone insults you and your friends or companions say nothing.)
Break into small groups.
Group size may depend on the size of your large group. We have found that groups of 3-4 work well. Breaking into small groups allows people to be more vulnerable than they might be in a large group. It also makes it challenging to not participate.
Consider the make up of your group and how you might do this. Do you want mixed groups that include all levels (ex. student, intern, attending) or would it be helpful to break into groups that might be more comfortable for challenging discussions (ex. group attendings, students, residents separately)? Are the groups assigned in advance or do you have your group “count off” and then group by number (all the “1s” together, “2s” together, etc.)?
Activity
Pass out “microaggression slips” and “strategy slips” so that each person in the small group has a different “microaggression” and “strategy.”
Have each person silently read their slips and develop a possible response to the microaggression using the strategy provided.
Ask participants to:
Read their microaggression aloud
Summarize their strategy
Share the possible response to the microaggression using the strategy provided. Focus on the words you would use in that situation (rather than just discussing.)
Discuss:
How did that strategy work?
Is there a different strategy that might be more effective in that situation?
What feedback does the group have for that response?
What other ideas does the group have for how to respond to that scenario?
Report back
Ask each small group to share some highlights of what they discussed with the large group.