Practicing
Awareness on Microaggression
One story that came to my mind that I remember that
demonstrated Microaggression was about a NFL foot player. Tim Tebow was a very
popular quarterback who played in the NFL. His career began when he played college
football for the University of Florida, and he also won the Heisman Trophy in 2007 and appearing on BCS National Championship-winning teams in
the 2006 and 2008 seasons. Tebow was selected to join the Denver
Broncos in the first round of the 2010 NFL
Draft. This is where his problems began after he was chosen to be a
part of the NFL. Tebow received a lot of public criticize because of his strong
religious beliefs in which he display off and on the field. In which I find to be distributing here again
because we as a society doesn’t have the ability to understand and accept
others differences. This young man who had a promising career was made to
resign or give up his passion because of his culture beliefs. What is most amazing about this young inspiring NFL player was he chose his culture belief over his passion to play
NFL football. Even though he is not actively playing football in the NFL, he was
hired by ESPN as a college football analyst. One
of Tebow teammate stated, he doesn’t have a problem with his religious belief
but maybe he shouldn’t display it so publicly. I knew his teammate might have
thought he was supporting him but he really was making discriminating remarks.
I belief if he choose to display his religious belief before and after a game
it should be his choice but in today’s world once an again if the dominant
culture doesn’t agree with it then it will not be accepted by the majority. Here are some pictures of Tim Tebow doing what
he does best!!
Hi Yalanda,
ReplyDeleteGreat example of a microaggression and religion-ism. I think it is terrible that his career is basically no more because of his religious beliefs. It is amazing to me how he was picked apart for this. In my opinion, the NFL, and other sports organizations, demonstrate a lot of the "-isms" we discussed this week. I mentioned Michael Sams, a openly gay NFL player, in my blog post. I read a story this week about a football coach who said he would never recruit Sams because he didn't want that kind of attention on his team. It's really sad how close minded and prejudiced some people are. I personally am a big fan of Tim Tebow and I hope he finds himself playing again one day!
What a great example of microaggressions against religion. I am a devout Christian, but I find the debate on public displays of faith really interesting. What is interesting about this case is that Tebow was Christian which is the dominant religion in the United States. Many teams still pray before games. In some cases even when they claim that the prayer is non-denominational it still leans toward Christian ideology. I think I am somewhere in between because I feel that people should be able to pray openly in any manner they wish. However, I do not feel that teams, teachers, and leaders should assume that we all pray in the same way and thus lead group prayers or include faith in their instruction. Great topic!
ReplyDeleteReference
Seifert, T. (2007). Understanding Christian privilege: Managing the tensions of spiritual plurality. About Campus, 12(2), 10--17.
Hi Yalanda,
ReplyDeleteOnce again people in society display mircoaggressions through assaulting this young man’s Christian beliefs. I believe this is why it is so many people taking legal action against large organizations. Just think about it, the first thing we hear when something terrible happens on the news is, God bless American. Or when one of the players make a touchdown I have heard them say, someone upstairs is really on their side. But when an individual take their personal religion serious, and pray before and after a game, it’s a big thing. Nonetheless I am glad he stood up for what he believes in because I feel they were trying to make him feel as though he had done something wrong through public humiliation. However, it would have still been an assault on his integrity by society if he had chosen the money over his Christian beliefs.
Very Nice Post!
I think that it is a shame that our society, which is "supposed" to be so accepting of differences and such, can be so critical of a public figure displaying his beliefs. Additionally, who is anybody to say how one would display their beliefs when it is not hurting anyone. This is merely a personal display of his beliefs which I cannot see, infringing upon anyone. Many believe that these people who are in the media spotlight should be of cookie cutter nature and conduct themselves according to the accepted norm. We need to all gain a little more acceptance of people and try and rid our minds and mouths of these microaggressions which still find its way into our lives.
ReplyDelete