Implicit Bias and Microaggressions
We all bring experiences and assumptions that shape how we view the world. Implicit bias refers to unconscious attitudes that can influence our perceptions, decisions, and actions. Microaggressions are everyday comments, behaviors, or environmental cues that may communicate exclusionary or negative messages, often unintentionally. These resources help readers understand implicit bias and microaggressions, examine their impact on libraries, workplaces, and society, and develop strategies for promoting inclusion, equity, and self-awareness.
Books
1. Ibram X. Kendi, How To Be an Antiracist (2019).
This book discusses and deconstructs racism and introduces antiracism as a concept. “Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society.” - Publisher
2. Tsedale M. Melaku, You don't look like a lawyer: black women and systemic gendered racism (2019).
This book "highlights how race and gender create barriers to recruitment, professional development, and advancement to partnership for black women in elite corporate law firms. Utilizing narratives of black female lawyers, this book offers a blend of accessible theory to benefit any reader willing to learn about the underlying challenges that lead to their high attrition rates.”
3. Justin D. Levinson and Robert J. Smith, Implicit Racial Bias Across the Law (2012).
“Despite cultural progress in reducing overt acts of racism, stark racial disparities continue to define American life. This book is for anyone who wonders why race still matters and is interested in what emerging social science can contribute to the discussion. The book explores how scientific evidence on the human mind might help to explain why racial equality is so elusive. This new evidence reveals how human mental machinery can be skewed by lurking stereotypes, often bending to accommodate hidden biases reinforced by years of social learning. Through the lens of these powerful and pervasive implicit racial attitudes and stereotypes, Implicit Racial Bias across the Law examines both the continued subordination of historically disadvantaged groups and the legal system's complicity in the subordination.”
4. Jennifer L. Eberhardt, Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, and Do (2019).
This book explores bias through psychological and personal lenses. Bias has sociological impacts and some of these are discussed including education and criminal justice issues. The author also offers a path forward.
5. Robin DiAngelo, White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism (2018).
This book discusses and defines white fragility as a concept and the socially constructed nature of race. DiAngelo shares how prejudice feeds into discrimination and ultimately into racism, and recognizes the import of examining white baises, white people’s discomfort around racial discussions, and how this avoidance works to keep white power structures intact.
Articles
1. Shamika Dalton and Michele A.L. Villagran, Minimizing and Addressing Implicit Bias in the Workplace: Be Proactive, Part One, 79 C&RL News 478 (2018).
This article (part 1 of 2) defines implicit bias, identifies its effects on the work environment, and shares best practices for reducing these effects in the workplace.
2. Shamika Dalton and Michele A.L. Villagran, Minimizing and Addressing Microaggressions in the Workplace: Be Proactive, Part Two, 79 C&RL News 538 (2018).
This article (part 2 of 2) discusses microaggressions, how they appear in the workplace, and what managers and employees might do to respond to and cope with microaggressions.
3. Tarica LaBossiere and Abby Deese, Keeping Up With...Microaggressions, American Library Association (March 17, 2020).
This short article defines microaggressions, discusses how they impact libraries, and shares strategies to potentially mitigate microaggressions.
Websites
1. STANFORD ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PHILOSOPHY: IMPLICIT BIAS
This page gives introductory and more in-depth information about implicit bias including a basic definition, a history of the fields of study, findings and critiques from within and external to these fields, and potential future research on implicit bias.
2. HARVARD LAW SCHOOL LIBRARY, SELECTED OPEN-ACCESS READINGS: BIAS, NEUTRALITY, AND LIBRARIES
This one-page research guide from Harvard Law School Library shares articles about bias and libraries.
3. AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION, IMPLICIT BIAS VIDEOS AND TOOLKIT
This page includes several short videos on implicit bias at work in the justice system, from the perspectives of prosecution, defense, and the bench. It also contains a bibliography as well as links to other ABA resources on the issue.
Blogs
1. Brene Brown, Unlocking Us Podcast: Brené with Ibram X. Kendi on How to Be an Antiracist
Brene Brown talks with “Professor Ibram X. Kendi, New York Times bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist and the Director of the Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University. [The discussion covers] racial disparities, policy, and equality…[and] How to Be an Antiracist, which is a groundbreaking approach to understanding uprooting racism and inequality in our society and in ourselves.” - website description
Short Videos
1. Melanie Funchess, Implicit Bias--How It Affects Us and How We Push Through, TEDx (Oct. 16, 2014), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr8G7MtRNlk.
In this 16-minute video Melanie Funchess defines implicit bias, discusses how to recognize our assumptions about unknown people, and shares a way forward.
2. Hari Sreenivasan, How the Biases in the Back of Your Mind Affect How You Feel About Race, PBS NewsHour (Mar. 30, 2015), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6nncquib9A&feature=youtu.be.
This 9-minute news segment from PBS explores bias among Millennials. The reporter visits a research lab where bias is researched and implications of bias are discussed including criminal justice issues and online dating.
3. Saleem Reshamwala, Peanut Butter, Jelly and Racism, New York Times (Dec. 16, 2016), https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000004818663/peanut-butter-jelly-and-racism.html.
This 2-minute video is an introduction to the concept of implicit bias with links to more in depth videos discussing how to recognize and diminish effects of implicit bias.
vi. Organizations
1. NATIONAL CENTER FOR STATE COURTS--RACIAL FAIRNESS TASK FORCES AND REPORTS: GENDER AND RACIAL FAIRNESS STATE LINKS
This resource from the National Center for State Courts lists state level task forces and reports on gender and racial fairness.
2. LEAN IN
Lean In works to combat gender bias and recognizes the intersections of race and gender.
3. PROJECT IMPLICIT
Project Implicit is a non-profit organization studying implicit social cognition. The website contains resources for organizations and individuals to explore implicit biases.
