Don't Speak!

Yesterday at work I watched an Asian colleague innocently ask a Hispanic colleague if he spoke Spanish. Our Hispanic colleague immediately cried, "yo, that's racist!" I thought surely he must be joking, and so did the Asian guy. So the Asian guy says, “no, really, do you?” Then, summoning greater rage and indignation, the Hispanic guy says, "what, just because I'm Hispanic means I speak Spanish? Just stop bro, you're digging yourself deeper into a hole." The Asian guy, confused and probably feeling somewhat hurt by how he was being publicly scolded and wrongly accused says, "I was just," and the Hispanic guy, raising his voice and interrupting, says "really?! You really want to keep going with this?!" Defeated, the Asian guy replies, "ok sorry, I'll stop."

I almost intervened to say, hey, maybe you should assume positive intent here and not lynch the guy for your oversensitivity; he asked a totally reasonable question that you allowed yourself to get offended by. But I knew if I did that, I'd be transformed into the archetype of the privileged white male racist that is so universally despised today, so I didn't say shit. I still feel guilty that I stood idly by as he belittled my Asian coworker and openly accused him of racism. The Asian guy is literally one of the nicest people I've ever met and meant it innocently.

We're creating a culture where people can't talk to one another anymore. One in which the mere allegation of racism, or some other perceived impropriety, is somehow seen as equal to its confirmation. It suggests that anyone accused of an indiscretion, should they have the audacity to try to defend themselves against the claim, are almost certainly guilty. This sentiment, esteemed by the far left, is literally ungluing liberal cohesion, causing toxic infighting and continued division as we watch them, hellbent on politically-correct self purification, fracture and break while trying compulsively to out-moralize their peers. The first half of this article does a great job at fleshing this out:

https://thebaffler.com/outbursts/all-worked-up-nowhere-to-go-frost

One of the great strengths of communication, of having a dialogue, is the ability to ask clarifying questions and determine, with greater accuracy, what it is the speaker is trying to express. Those who immediately claim offense and deny the speaker the opportunity to explain themselves are advancing the idea that judgement is superior to conversation, that their interpretation of the speaker's message is more important than what the speaker actually had in mind.

They are effectively using victimhood as a vehicle to victimize.