- Racist jokes, they can happen anywhere.
School, work, Thanksgiving dinner....
So if someone tells a racist joke,
how do you handle it?
(dance music)
So you're at a party and someone tells a racist joke.
"And that guy in the ghetto is a cop."
(laughs)
"You know it's true."
Do you [A] give a sarcastic laugh?
(laughs) That's a good one.
[B] Get mad and throw a chair?
That was hilarious.
or [C] Google "How do you respond to a racist joke?"
I'm gonna guess you went with [C].
Jokes come in all shapes, sizes and in this case, colors.
When it comes to racist humor,
we're not just talking about being offended,
we're talking about jokes being oppressive.
So what's the difference?
Offensive jokes hurt feelings or make people uncomfortable.
Jokes that are oppressive don't just
make people uncomfortable,
they actually reinforce negative ideas about
marginalized groups of people.
A study out of Western Carolina University
analyzed how people's attitudes changed about
particular groups based on the
types of jokes they were presented with.
What they found is that when people feel
discrimination against a certain group is justified,
disparaging remarks about that group
don't really change their thinking on them.
You're pretty much set in stone.
But for groups where prejudiced attitudes are shifting
and being challenged, like women,
LGBT folks and people of color,
negative jokes about those groups
can release inhibitions.
Making some people believe
the discrimination is justified.
This also goes for "ironic racism."
Like when Sarah Silverman did blackface.
It's still blackface.
"No, but I'm like saying something racist
"to comment on how bad racism is, it's meta."
Tl;dr, words mean things,
and they can influence people in negative ways,
even if it's just a joke.
So what do you do if you hear a racist joke?
Here's what's worked for me.
First I ask myself, can I talk about this now?
Basically, you gotta pick your battles.
Not every situation is suited for don't-be-a-racist-101.
"No, grandma, this ends now."
But if I could talk about it in that moment,
I usually try one of these.
The sarcastic approach.
"Know what's really funny?
"Ironic racism, still racist."
Go completely silent.
(crickets)
Play dumb.
"Huh, I just, I don't get it.
"I mean, this country was stolen from the Native Americans,
"built by slave labor and founded by immigrants,
"so technically wouldn't that make you illegal?"
Reply with a judgmental GIF or
JIF if you're one of those.
Or you can just unfriend them.
I mean, you don't have to put up with that online or off.
It's not your job to educate everyone.
And when all else fails, just be honest and direct.
"Hey, that's not funny.
"I'm really not cool with jokes about people
"who already have it bad enough.
"So please don't say stuff like that around me."
So does that mean everything is off limits?
Not at all, I mean, technically you could make jokes
about whatever you want.
But there will always be consequences.
So using "It's just a joke"
doesn't make it exempt from criticism,
nor does complaining about political correctness.
"So there's an Asian guy, a black guy and a Mexican...
"Oh (bleep), it's the PC Police."
Calling others the PC Police basically says,
"I should be allowed to say whatever I want,
"but you aren't allowed to say whatever you want
"about whatever I just said."
Um, free speech doesn't work that way, so...
Good jokes should stand the test of time,
but as our society progresses,
our perception of what's funny evolves.
So jokes that were funny 20 years ago, might not fly today.
Political correctness isn't keeping anyone
from making jokes,
it's saying we want a better world,
so jokes have to be better too.
So if you ever had to shut down a racist joke,
what strategy worked or didn't work?
Tell me about it in the comments,
and I will see you next week.
In our last vlog we asked,
does race affect your dating life?
Here are some of your comments.
I think that's a pretty good strategy, Matthew,
personality is a great way to pick your dates.
DenverBroncos18181818, MTVNews
is my favorite channel too, twinsies.
Sorry, shibidy dibidy, you are wrongety dongety.
Beyoncé is not half-white.
In our last sketch, we talked about
things white people take for granted.
Here's what you had to say.
Oh, Fern!
♫ This comment makes my heart sing ♫
Sorry I had to ruin band-Aids for you, Valentina.
Now you know how we feel.
Yes, for ThisOneWoman.
Thanks Kid Fury for bringing Coco L here,
and all the Fury fans.
You are strong in numbers.
Ethan, I think you're using attack the wrong way.
There have been no white people harmed
on the set of Decoded, I promise.
(dance music)