TO REVIEW: You Do Know That This is Not Okay?

TO REVIEW: You Do Know That This is Not Okay?

RACIAL SLURS IN THE NEWS AGAIN!  Jimmy Galligan, who posted a video online of a classmate using a racial slur, said he had been mocked for years by students with that same language. In the past, he had complained to his schoolteachers and administrators with no results. Galligan, now 18, whose mother is Black, and father is White, said that his classmate who uttered the video slur, Mimi Groves, did not understand the severity of the language.

Groves had posted the video on Snapchat in 2016. In the video, she looked into the camera and stated: “I can drive N____”, after getting her learner’s permit. While the video did not circulate widely at that time, Galligan sent it out this year and the post went viral.

HEAVY CONSEQUENCES: Groves, a varsity cheer captain, dreamed of attending the University of Tennessee, whose cheer team was the reigning national champion. Within days of the video going viral, she had resigned from the school and – under pressure – declined her acceptance to the University of Tennessee.

A SAD AND SHAMEFUL HISTORY:  Public universities have a limited ability to expel students for offensive language, because of free speech concerns. The University had gained other negative publicity in recent years, however, including Snapchat photos of students wearing blackface and mocking Black Lives Matter protestors, a student suspended by her sorority for referring to Black people with an online video including a racial slur, and swastikas and other hateful messages painted on campus.

In addition, Leesburg, Virginia, the seat of the high school, fought an order to desegregate for more than a decade after the Supreme Court’s ruling, and in fact, was named for Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Unfortunately, the area had long tolerated demeaning racial speech.

What Should You Do?

TAKE A HARD STAND:  If you are a leader, make sure that you enforce your organization’s policies on racist, sexist, and other kinds of unacceptable speech. While your troops might try to raise First Amendment objections, employees in private companies have limited – if any – free speech rights. You have a right to restrict unacceptable behavior at work, including speech.

DON’T LISTEN TO EXCUSES:  Groves initially tried to explain that the slur was in “every song they listened to” and was common in online and everyday speech among her peers. With kids, of course, parents might be prompted to ask whether jumping off a cliff just because musicians or peers do it would not be smart. While I am sympathetic to Grove’s suggestion that she said something wrong because she was so young (who among us hasn’t done something idiotic at 15?), the justification that entertainers or members of a certain group use unacceptable language doesn’t work in the workplace. In educational institutions, it is a sign that we need to do a better job of educating our children about our racial history and our record of injustice.

FORGET POLITICAL CORRECTNESS: People sometimes try to argue that a reaction to hate speech is just “political correctness.” Balderdash. There are standards of behavior that are simply “correct” in a civilized organization and eliminating racist language is one of them.

For more posts on racist and other inappropriate language go to Newsletter – Want to Stop Racism? Start With Yourself | (workplacesthatwork.com)

Did You Know

These and other meeting ideas are addressed in all our leadership and management workshops – live and online.

Call or write us at: 303-216-1020 or Lynne@workplacesthatwork.com

Coaching and webinars on these and other management and leadership topics can all be delivered virtually.

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Read Lynne’s books on sexual harassment and affirmative action