Understanding Unconscious Bias and Unintentional Racism

n the blink of an eye, unconscious bias was visible to me, an Mrican American. A man saw my face as I walked into the store and unconsciously checked his wallet. On the street, a woman catches my eye a halfblock away and moves her purse from the handle of her baby's stroller to her side as she arranges the baby's blanket. In the airport, a man sig­ nals to his wife to move her purse so it is not over the back of her chair, which is adjacent to the one I am moving to­ ward. What is happening in these instances? Were these actions general safety precautions? If so, why did the sight only of my brown face, not the others who moved among these individuals, elicit these actions? I believe these are examples of "blink of the eye" racism. Such unconscious biases lead to un­ intentional racism: racism that is usually invisi­ ble even andespecially to those who perpetrate it. Yet, most people do not want to be considered racist or capable of racist acts because the spo­ ken and unspoken norm is that "good people do not discriminate or in any way participate in racism" (Dovidio and Gaertner 2005, p. 2). Such unconscious biases affect all ofour relationships, whether they are fleeting relationships in airports or longer term relationships between teachers and students, teachers and parents, teachers and other educators. Understanding our own biases is a first step toward improving the interactions that we have with all people and is essential ifwe hope to build deep commu­ nity within our schools. Biases are rooted in stereotypes and prejudices. A stereotype is a simplistic image or distorted