Would you report offensive message in a group work chat?

[ChilliPB]

As the title says really. A pretty offensive meme sent as ‘banter’ (not funny and genuinely offensive). It was sent in a group chat - a non-official WhatsApp chat with over 50 people, used for social chat. We have a separate more official group chat for work related stuff.

Options are to pick it up individually with the person (who I don’t know and have never met). Or flag direct to HR. Or flag up to HR but not disclose what was said or who said it and hope they could send a stern but general reminder about behaviour and conduct and the individual wouldn’t actually be identified.

Appreciate its a non-official chat but even so. Really likely to offend some of the members there and also it’s the sort of job where if it came out it would look awful, and I’m worried those that don’t report it could also be in trouble as complicit.

What would you do?!

We’ve been told it was Islamophobia, to do with the exploding pagers in Lebanon.

OP and other virtue signallers: would you feel equally strongly if it was a tasteless comment about deaths or injuries caused to (overwhelmingly) terrorists of any other religion? What if it was about Christians? Worth thinking about.

If you think it fine. No ones going to come at you for thinking it in your head. It's the sharing in a group of work colleagues and bringing the employer into disrepute if one of the 50 leaks to the press. That's the problem. If you're a racist just keep it in your head no one else wants to hear it.

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves I don't think she should do anything about it.

It doesn't matter. If OP thinks it is racist then it needs reporting. OP can't use the defense of "I asked mumsnet and 20% of them said it was fine so I left it"

@Nothinglikeagoodbook except several posters have come on here and said that if it's the meme they're thinking of, then it isn't really offensive at all.

I wonder how many of the answers would change if they knew exactly what OP was referring to.

We’ve been told it’s Islamophobia but we don’t actually know if it is or if that’s OP’s interpretation of it

@llamali I never said it mattered, just that I find it interesting.

So not being Islamaphobic is a political position? I thought it was just being a normal decent human being.

Are you suggesting that anyone whose experience of Islam is anything other than peaceful is not allowed to say so?

Del Boy?

I would pm the group admin and say you thought it was offensive so you have a trail of descent.
I bet others have already and it’s up to group admin to call that person out

‘These nuts’ - but I’ve seen the Del Boy one as well!

Are you trying to imply all people who report stuff are oversensitive? Or that we should ignore racist/sexist/misogynistic talk and not challenge them?

I'm a civil servant, we are told not to be bystanders and calm out any racism, sexism etc. As a civil servant this would be dealt with as a disciplinary, that is because we adhere to the civil service code and our behaviour inside and outside work is taken into account. Outside the civil service I think it's up to HR to decide. By not addressing it you are accepting, you'll probably find that lots of other people are thinking the same as you. But sitting on the fence not wanting to say anything. As far as the police are involved I don't think (may be wrong) they will do anything unless it entices racial violence

I think we need to see it to see it as its hard to know if you have a valid point or if your just a bit soft

OK, so you think that she should turn a blind eye to what she considers to be hate speech.

So you are also part of the problem.

@MrsBennetsPoorNerves oh well.

True. I was going to say something about "Christianophobia" but I don’t think it’s a word. Not sure it’s even a concept. (And no, I’m not a Christian, just bemused about how we’re allowed to say unpleasant things about some religions but not others.)

I just think if you find something offensive then you should be prepared to bring it up at the time to the person in question @MrsBennetsPoorNerves - not go running to HR behind their backs.

If it includes hate speech and it is a group solely used by staff of your work place then it is a work issue.

It's the same sort of situation as if you all go out as colleagues and someone said something racist then. Only in writing so there's a trail of whoever is laughing along with emojis

There really are degrees for all these things. Steering away from the topic for examples, I find "ginger" jokes largely offensive, but unless they are targeting a specific person would ignore or have a private word at the next level of offensive. Anti-semitic memes I would have a private word, or call out publically, or call out publically AND send to HR, it depends on level of offensiveness of the specific item.

So, it depends on the specific meme. If it's clearly targeted at terrorists not the general attack, then I would be at the level of a private word / publically call out, but not HR. "Some children died too as well as innocents maimed in markets, that's inappropriate not funny. Please would you take it down, thanks."

Hmmmm sounds distasteful. I think I would have replied in the chat- not funny, suggest you take this down.

i have stopped pussyfooting around shit like this. I expect men to call out sexism and misogyny among their mates, and so i find it only natural that i call out racism and such like

In a situation like this i would: screenshot. Reply in the group, directly to the person who sent it that it is unacceptable islamophobia, think about HR depending on what happens next.

Depending on other replies i'd escalate to HR with a note in the group that i was doing so, and then leave the group. Or i'd just carry on in the expectation that it doesn't happen again.

If there’s 50 people in the chat I think you can report without worrying about repercussions. It’s not like there’s six people in the chat.