Librarians at Simmons College are warning Christian students that “Merry Christmas,” “Happy Easter,” and “God bless you” are microaggressions against Muslim people.
The librarians caution against such expressions in a new guide on “Anti-Islamomisia,” which argues that “people who follow Christianity have institutionalized power” and therefore may inadvertently commit microaggressions against Muslims and other religious minorities.
“Islamomisic Microaggressions are commonplace verbal or behavioral indignities, whether intentional or unintentional...[that] invoke oppressive systems of religious/Christian hierarchy,” the librarians assert.
These microaggressions include “endorsing religious stereotypes,” viewing hijabs as trendy or fashionable, suggesting that Muslims follow the “wrong” religion, and reinforcing “the assumption of one’s own religious identity as the norm.”