In the Trauma of Racism, Dr. Jennifer Carey used the phrase “death by a thousand papercuts” (Hurley 2012). She was talking about those brief interpersonal interactions that seem inconsequential but leave you emotionally bloody. Those papercuts are known as microaggressions. If you have any identity that is marginalized- race, gender expression, religion, sexual orientation, or disability, you have experienced the pain. If you haven’t, you may have unknowingly caused the pain. Either way, you have been impacted. If we want to build trauma informed environments where everyone can thrive, we need to understand what gets in the way.
Dr. Joyce McNickles, is a social justice educator and consultant with over thirty years of experience developing and executing comprehensive cultural competency, racial equity, and inclusion initiatives in academic, corporate, and non- profit settings. She is the founder of McNickles & Associates, a consulting practice which provides individualized coaching and mentoring for executive leadership, conducts staff trainings, and helps organizations facilitate difficult dialogues related to race, gender, sexual orientation, and other aspects of diversity. She is Visiting Professor of Politics and Social Justice at Regis College. Formerly, she was Professor of Human Development and Human Services at Anna Maria College where she taught courses on diversity in the workplace, social inequality, and sociology. She will support us all in navigating and mitigating the harm done by microaggressions.