They're called "microaggressions" - small, seemingly innocuous questions or expressions that separate those speaking from those listening because of race, gender, religion or economic status.
Columbia professor, author and psychologist Derald Sue used the term to describe “brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward people of color.” A year ago, photographer Kiyun Kim asked her fellow students at Fordham University to share examples from real life - part of a digital movement to capture these commonplace slights. The results were fascinating, and also unifying in some ways: young people of many different backgrounds felt separated from the cultural norm by everyday conversation - and they shared those experiences.
Now a group of teens has created a new program about microaggressions on Hatch, a digital literacy program in which young people produce stories meant to be consumed not just by their peers, but by older people well.
We caught up with Samantha Skey, program director for Hatch and chief revenue officer for SheKnows Media, a 12-year-old media company aimed at women that counts 84 million unique visitors per month for its properties.
Tom Watson: In the nonprofit world and among social entrepreneurs, the concept of "youth voice" - actual intellectual participation by young people in creating and advising programs designed to help them - has attained some currency in recent years. What's your sense of the importance of this and how it fits into the landscape?
Samantha Skey: Kids have amazing perspectives that we sometimes struggle to access. Developing a product or service for kids without kids seems illogical to me. Likewise, developing a product to help parents to communicate with kids requires kids’ participation. We have learned more than I ever imagined from the ‘hatchlings’ with whom we collaborate.
Watson: The microaggressions video - how did that come about, how was it made? And what do you hope for in terms of outcomes?
Skey: The microagression video was conceived of by the Hatch team during our MLK Workshop in Jan. We wanted a way to talk to teens about racism in their daily lives. They are very aware of the national debate on the topic, however, the concept of language and inadvertent insults were more relevant to them personally. We do not script our Hatch content, and the video was created for authentic interviews.
We made the video in our NYC studio with our SheKnows video team. Our hope was to raise awareness of the microaggression concept through distribution of the terms and data in the video. With almost 100,000 organic views and endless commentary, we feel very satisfied that we have met our goal.
Watson: We have this idea that this generation of millennials doesn't have - or face - as much prejudice in terms of race, religion, gender, identity etc as previous generations. Does calling out microaggressions change that perception - and how does it change how young people view society?
Skey: Lots of progress has been made, but I think we are a ways from killing all prejudice and bigotry in society. This conversation is more about identity and how language informs one’s own identity- regardless of intent. This generation certainly sees race differently from their predecessors and, from our Hatch insights work we find them to be much more aware of the stereotypes that surround them. Gen STEM does seem more open on many fronts and we are wildly optimistic that they will continue to ignore, or break down, stereotypes.
Watson: Samantha, tell me about Hatch and how it works and why it's part of SheKnows media?
Skey: We created Hatch to serve parents and kids. Many of the parents we serve through SheKnows are concerned about their kids’ use of technology and digital media. They want to better collaborate with their children and to address difficult social issues with them. Hatch products and materials help parents to discuss social issues with their kids, while demystifying their use of digital media.
Our Hatch program empowers kids to use media and technology to express themselves in productive and positive ways. The content produced is for grown-ups, but it is made by kids with a social mission. Emphasizing media literacy and digital storytelling, Hatch enables kids to create content that is responsible and represents their unique perspective.
Watson: You guys are a media shop but one with a mission - are you a social enterprise, dog have a "double bottom line" based on your view of the world and social goals?
Skey: Our mission is fundamental to our work as a media company. Our double bottom line has always been implicit. With Hatch, we have the ability to begin to measure impact of our work, so that we can actually report on it and provide tools to others.
