Derald Wing Sue believes racial microaggressions are worse than hate crimes because they often go unnoticed.

The keynote speaker for Asian Heritage Month told more than 200 people Monday in Warriner Hall’s Plachta Auditorium that racial microaggressions are daily verbal and behavioral messages that communicate derogatory or racial slights, whether they are intended or not.

“I am frightened that good people like you and me have hidden biases about us that go unnoticed every day,” Sue said.

Sue, a psychology and education professor at Columbia University, said people of all colors have these biases.

“There is none of us who is immune from developing these racial biases,” Sue said. “The power of microaggressions is that they are invisible to the perpetrator.”

Sue dealt specifically with Asian Americans in his speech.

“If you use these standards to judge a certain group of people, then you aren’t looking at the data correctly,” Sue said.

“The success myth has actually shortchanged the needs of Asians in this country because it is believed that they are all successful because of stereotypes.”

Auburn sophomore Nou Her said Sue offered a lot of knowledge and experience.

“Sue is truly a pioneer in multicultural education,” Her said. “We are happy to have him speaking with us tonight.”

Being an Asian male born in America, Sue has seen several examples of racial microaggressions first hand, and said it has an effect on everyone who experiences it.

He said in every instance of a racial microaggressions, there is a common characteristic that goes along with it.

“I am a perpetual foreigner in the country that I am from,” Sue said. “Every instance of racial microaggression has a common characteristic, and that is that they always involve a minority.”

Sue said many of these acts even have an effect in the work place. Statistics have shown these acts of racial microaggression bring down the amount of work being done by minority groups, he said. This in turn leads to more inaccurate stereotypes.

Sue said people need to change their perceptions of all stereotypes whether they are believed to be accurate or not.

Fenton junior Monica Brooks said Sue’s speech made her think a little differently.

“People’s perceptions on things are interesting,” Brooks said. “They make you think outside the box.”

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