Hi Brooke,
I was raised in the North and recently moved to the South. I’m not very political but in my current work place, everyone seems to adhere to the same politics which is so very different from how I was raised. My co-workers consistently make inappropriate comments in-front of me that they seem to think is perfectly normal but in my opinion, they are pretty racist comments. However, they do not make those comments toward me. I do try to do thought models about it and tell myself, they are good people with just different upbringing and different experiences and they have every right to their opinions. But oh my god, its so hard. Sometimes they make comments that bring an immediate lump to my throat, my body temperature rises, and I feel like shouting, ” WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!? ” I think one of the biggest reasons I’m so upset about this is because I’m a very passive person who avoids all conflicts so I never speak up, even when they are saying something that is completely factually wrong. I always try to keep my politics out of my work environment, but my co workers are making it so hard for me. Should I speak up and risk ostracizing myself, or should I just convince myself to rise above it and coach myself to stay calm. Thank you in advance for your reply.