Humor

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So exactly how do I . . .

. . . deal with catcalls?(Click here.)

. . . talk to close friends?

Communication techniques for the bullheaded.

So exactly how do I . . .
. . . talk to my peers?(Click here.)
. . . talk to my parents?
. . . bear witness to the actions of authorities?
. . . challenge authorities?
. . . change institutions?
. . . talk to my boss
. . . deal with customers who act out?
. . . intervene with shopkeepers?
. . . educate teachers?
Does kindness count?
Communication techniques that help others to accept your comments.
What about inter-ethnic mistreatment?
Using humor.
The power to name.

Home Add your story Newest Stories Email RISE Contact RISE Donate to RISE Copyright Policy Links More stories from the interlinked web of oppressions: Ableism Ageism Anti-semitism Classism Colorism Homophobia Racism Sexism Related essays: Guilt White Bashing PC or SC Privilege
	Humor Using Humor See also "Communication techniques that help others to accept your comments" and "Communication techniques for the bullheaded." There is a great scene in Richard Attenborough's 1987 movie "Cry Freedom," in which a South African judge asks Civil Rights activist Stephen Biko (Denzel Washington), "You people look brown to me. Why do you call yourself 'Blacks'?" Biko responds, "You people look pink to me. Why do you call yourself 'Whites'?" I always get a laugh from "white" students and workshop participants when I tell this story, or even when I call myself "pink" without first telling this story. There is something patently absurd about color-classifications, and people instinctively know it. (Jack C. Straton, Portland, OR, USA, 2001) One member of the D.C. Coalition for a Hassle-free Zone came back to a training with the following story in 1987 or so: "I was walking through a neighborhood and a man on his porch whistled at me. I responded with our stock phrase, 'That's harassment! I don't like it, no woman does!' He turned to the woman sitting next to him and asked, 'What did she say?' Her response: 'She said, "Shut up!"'." (Jack C. Straton, Portland, OR, USA, 2001)

Using Humor