This commentary draws attention to core assumptions about the nature of society that underlie the current debate on microaggressions. For proponents of microaggression research, the starting assumption is one of a racist society. That is, microaggressions have their source and power within an inequitable, racially stratified society. In contrast, critics of microaggressions begin with the assumption of an equitable society, or at least would not endorse the assumption of a racist society. These two different starting assumptions lead to dramatically different conclusions about the concept of microaggressions. As long as these assumptions are not explicitly recognized, debates on methods, findings, and so on will never be reconciled.

这篇评论提请注意关于社会本质的核心假设，这些假设是当前关于微攻击的辩论的基础。对于微攻击研究的支持者来说，最初的假设是一个种族主义社会。也就是说，在一个不公平的、种族分层的社会中，微观侵略有其来源和力量。相比之下，对微观侵略的批评者从假设社会公平开始，或者至少不会支持种族主义社会的假设。这两种不同的起始假设导致了关于微攻击概念的截然不同的结论。只要这些假设没有被明确承认，关于方法、发现等的争论就永远不会被调和。