Hello everyone! This is going to be very controversial- it's four oneshots about disarming microaggressions, and you may be offended by them! No pressure, but please feel free to comment/message about your experiences if comfortable. I am committed to making this place a safe zone. As always, if you'd prefer not to read it for whatever reason (and all reasons are valid), please feel free.
If you already know this, please feel free to skip this next part. Microaggressions are common ways in which people from marginalized groups are mistreated. Microaggressions generally fall into four categories- microinvalidations, microinsults, microassaults, and environmental microaggressions. Each chapter is going to be about one type of microaggression, and it will be defined in the notes before the text.
This first chapter is going to portray a microinvalidation. That is a type of microaggression in which an aspect of a person's identity is invalidated. For example, as an autistic person, one thing I never like hearing is "you don't look autistic". That invalidates my identity as an autistic person because it asserts that, in order to be "valid" as an autistic person, I need to present a certain way. Telling an autistic person they're "high-functioning" sends the same message; we don't even use functioning labels anymore! I once had a neurologist tell me I'm "very well-adjusted" when I told him that I'm autistic (issue with my medical records, so he probably never saw that). Although I didn't know the term for it back then, I remember being offended, and now I recognize that it was a microinvalidation!
As for how microaggressions are disarmed- you'll see. Everything will be explicitly stated at the end of each chapter.
Country names used, although when they're in certain public places they might use their human names to refer to each other. Also, when the Italy brothers are together, I'll be referring to North Italy as "Veneziano".
Unfortunately, my latest paycheck isn't going to let me buy ownership of Hetalia. See the citation at the end of the chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter 1- Microinvalidation
Veneziano was out having pasta with Romano. It was a lovely day out, and they got to sit outside; they were right by the ocean, which made it even nicer! Overall, it was just a perfect day in Lido di Ostia, weather-wise.
The brothers had actually managed to have a decent conversation. It started off with Veneziano going off about pizza and pasta, as usual. Food seemed to be the only thing the two could talk about without any major issues.
The conversation took a different turn when Romano suddenly mentioned his relationship troubles- he wasn't interested in Spain, but was looking for a relationship with a woman. The problem was, women just didn't seem interested in him, and he wasn't sure what to do. So he consulted his younger brother for advice, as he seemed to be successful in that regard; at least, that's how Romano perceived him.
"Well, Ludwig and I just… happened, I guess", Veneziano said. As soon as he said it, though, he regretted it; he knew his brother never had anything good to say about the German. Veneziano braced himself, waiting for a mouthful of insults about the "potato bastard" to come out of his fratello's mouth.
Miraculously, that didn't happen. Instead, Romano looked as if he were deep in thought, then kind of shrugged it off. Blunt as he was, Romano actually had the decency not to insult others' romantic partners. He actually did not know that Veneziano and Germany were in a relationship, so what his brother said was a bit of a surprise.
The best Romano could do was just say "Congrats" and just rant about his relationship troubles. He didn't think that a girlfriend would "just happen" to him, so he wasn't really going to take his fratello's advice (if you could even call it "advice", since he didn't really tell him what to do).
Overall, up until this point, Veneziano had actually managed to have a decent conversation with his fratello. Of course, it was somewhat one-sided, but that's kind of how conversations with Veneziano tend to go, especially when it's about pasta. However, it was far better than what usually happens!
That is, until lunch was over. After paying for their food, the Italy brothers made to leave; however, before they left the outdoor seating area, Romano asked Veneziano, "So, who's the man in your relationship?".
Veneziano was shocked at being asked that question; he may have been in a relationship with another man, but he was a man, too! Totally invalidated his male identity. Veneziano was completely speechless; as awful as his brother had been to him in the past, it had never risen to that level. In short, his relationship with his fratello had been damaged, and he wasn't sure it'd ever be repaired.
Although Veneziano did not know what to say, someone else at the restaurant did. It just so happened that America was on vacation in Italy, and was eating with England at that very restaurant. America just so happened to overhear what Romano said, and, since he was also in a relationship with another man, he took offense to that. However, as he was not the person to whom it was said directly, he felt that he was in a better position to handle the situation.
America excused himself to use the restroom (although he didn't actually need to go; he just needed a convenient excuse to leave the table), and got up from his seat toward the building. Fortunately, he quickly found the Italy brothers. Deciding to play it cool, America politely said, "Forgive me for being a little nosy, but I thought I heard you ask who the man is in someone's relationship. Did I hear correctly"? America sort of felt awkward asking that, but nobody said being a hero would be easy, right?
Romano replied, "Si, I did. My fratello's dating another guy, and that makes him less of a man".
America internally cringed; this is what he was looking for. Veneziano looked like he was about to cry, so he had to act fast! America replied by saying, "You shouldn't say that. Your brother's as much of a man as you are. Just because his sexual orientation is different from your own doesn't mean his gender identity is different; those are two different things. You ought to be ashamed of the way you treated him- especially in public".
Romano appeared stunned, not even angry. It was the weirdest thing- usually when someone calls Romano out, he immediately springs to action and cusses the other person out. However, this time, it was almost as if he knew he was in the wrong, so, after taking a minute to contemplate why he shouldn't have said what he said, he turned to Veneziano and said, "Mi dispiace, fratello. I had no idea that was offensive! I won't say it again". And with that, Romano turned around and left, his younger brother following him.
Nobody felt great after that incident, nor should they have expected to. Veneziano was the victim, and, although he's not one to hold grudges, he really was deeply offended. Romano was the perpetrator, and he knew he was in the wrong and felt very angry at himself for it. And America was an active bystander (which is a slightly more academic way of saying "hero"). However, for some reason, he didn't feel like a hero; he didn't feel the satisfaction of having saved someone, as he didn't really know if Veneziano was going to be ok. He did later call him to check on his wellbeing, and he said that he didn't want to talk about it, which America respected (believe it or not, he does have boundaries).
There is something that came out of this situation, though- Romano was appropriately punished. He never said anything like that again.
So, before I explain the ending (which may be confusing and not really feel like a good way to conclude this oneshot, but I do acknowledge that it can be tough for me to figure out a good stopping point), I'll explain what America did to disarm the microaggression. Before he did anything, he first had to notice the microaggression. America just so happened to be within earshot when Romano said what he said, and he recognized that that was a microaggression. The next thing America did was bring the meaning behind the offensive phrase to light, simply by asking whether or not he heard correctly. That worked a lot better than what usually happens when I try to do this, as Romano responded by explicitly stating the meaning behind his words. Next, America attempted to educate Romano by explaining why what he said was wrong, and Romano was far more receptive than what I've experienced. Finally, Romano apologized, and everyone left feeling pretty uncomfortable, which is to be expected. No matter what your role was, you should NOT leave a microaggression incident (for lack of a better term) feeling perfectly happy, as microaggressions are inherently uncomfortable, and disarming them is not as easy as America made it look. However, when doing this type of work, it is important to be "comfortable being uncomfortable". And when I say that Romano felt "punished", I meant it as in "less likely to repeat that behavior". Although behaviorism's not really my thing (to put it lightly), I will admit, there are circumstances under which behavioral techniques do work, and this just so happened to be one of them.
I chose the particular location (Lido di Ostia, which is a coastal neighborhood of Rome) just because I liked the vibes. If you've been there/know more about it than I do, though, please let me know, I'd be very happy to learn more about it.
Apologies for some OOCness- I chose America for literally no reason other than I like the idea of him taking a break from his hamburgers and deciding to try pasta, although, of course, that would never happen. (He doesn't know what he's missing!) Ships used- GerIta and USUK. Ships are always subject to change, meaning that, in a different story/oneshot, I may use a ship that conflicts with another (for example, maybe I'll write a story in which FrUK plays a prominent role? No promises, though- depends on what I feel like). It's not a reflection on what I truly believe, just because, for whatever reason, I thought that would be what would work best with the story. Basically, although ships will probably not be the focus of most stories, if I do include them, they'll probably be all over the place- could have AusHun in one story, but SwissAus in the next! And you know what? That's ok; if you very strongly disagree with a particular ship, feel free not to read that story. If you want to talk about ships, I'd be more than happy to chat- just be respectful of people's opinions that may be different from your own. I'll try to do the same.
Finally, my most sincere apologies for what may have appeared to be SpaMano bashing. The only reason why I did it was because I felt it was necessary if I wanted Romano to be the perpetrator for this particular microaggression. I promise, at some point in my life, I will write a fanfic in which SpaMano is included, just to make up for that.
References
Himaruya, Hidekaz. "Hetalia: Axis Powers". 2009. Studio Deen: Dubbed by Funimation. I watch it on 9Anime.
