Most recently, I observed a person of Indian descent being abused by an American who was senior to this individual. While I probably did a horrific job of providing feedback to this abusive American, it was made clear that I had no interest in any rationalization he could provide. What I struggled to understand with the employee being abused was the fact that he tolerated the abuse and simply decided to let it go so as to not make waves.
I often ask myself how often does this occur and was this just a one-time event? Sadly, I know the answer to this question as I have observed it on more than one occasion. What becomes especially challenging is to report a situation to human resources especially when the abuser is viewed as a proverbial rockstar in the culture. Most human resource departments make it relatively easy to report challenges with regular employees but seek to defend their top performers.
As a person who cares immensely about the human condition and wants the best for all people regardless of their gender or ethnic origin, I have struggled to understand the below questions and hope that others will be able to provide insight:
- How to encourage people from other cultures to stand up for themselves without being viewed as a rabble rouser?
- What to do when human resources themselves reflects a particular bias and loses objectivity?
- Are there techniques to help encourage Americans who suffer from authoritative ignorance to see the light without resorting to human resources?
