How to speak up against bias and stereotypes

Have you ever been present when someone makes a disrespectful comment or joke about people in a certain age group (baby boomers, millennials, and teen-agers), race, sex, or other group of people? Are you aware the comment is disrespectful and could hurt the feelings of others present, but you were not sure what to do? You have a choice, you can reinforce it by laughing or joining in the conversation, say nothing, which is what most people do, or speak up.
    You may think that by saying nothing is the best method, but often your silence sends a message that you agree, or at the least you don’t object. Is that the message you want to send? If not then what can you do?
    A program called Ouch! That Stereotype Hurts, has defined six ways to speak up against bias and stereotypes.
    1) Assume the person has good intent and doesn’t realize the statement is hurtful. One way to respond to this this it to make a statement, “I know you mean well, but that hurts.”
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