Don’t get me wrong, I also think the incidents are horrific, and I’m far from condoning those responsible. I’m just saying that expecting an environment that’s completely pristine and free of any kind of tension is entirely unrealistic, and we should not be assuming that as a sensible short-term goal. If there’s anything that can be done to help this situation, it’s expanding our notion of “cross-cultural competency and communication” to include personal strategies for being more resilient and assertive in the face of perceived slights to one’s status (what “microaggressions” seems to unpack to, AIUI). Because I don’t think you can have one without the other.
Don’t get me wrong, I also think the incidents are horrific, and I’m far from condoning those responsible. I’m just saying that expecting an environment that’s completely pristine and free of any kind of tension is entirely unrealistic, and we should not be assuming that as a sensible short-term goal. If there’s anything that can be done to help this situation, it’s expanding our notion of “cross-cultural competency and communication” to include personal strategies for being more resilient and assertive in the face of perceived slights to one’s status (what “microaggressions” seems to unpack to, AIUI). Because I don’t think you can have one without the other.
I totally agree that we need that.