Yael Kidron is the director of the Character Education Program at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. Views are her own.
A Note for National Bullying Prevention Month
Nearly a year ago, the publicly expressed concern of the General Secretary of the Alliance of Colonial Era Tribes about President Trump's humorous nickname for Senator Warren made the news. Referring to a time in which Warren identified herself as Native American, Trump nicknamed her “Pocahontas.” To be sure, this reference to a woman from the 17th century was not about American history and heritage. It was about a stereotype popularized by the entertainment industry.[1]
In recent days, the debate heated up again when Trump mocked Warren’s DNA test while using the same nickname. Individuals in both the Republican and Democrat camps were alarmed by the repeated offense.
What has this debate enabled us to do? It is an opportunity to engage youth and adults in discussions about the ethics of humor during a month, which, coincidentally, is the National Bullying Prevention Month.
Humor Ethics
Since the ancient world, thinkers struggled with the multi-faceted nature of humor – having the potential to cause either joy or discomfort. The same philosophers who influenced modern ethical thinking frowned upon humor. Plato described laughter as an irresponsible behavior because the experience of pleasure was generated by malice towards the people laughed at.
An area of particular concern in humor ethics is the use of ethnic or racial slurs and stereotypes relevant to historically marginalized groups. Not only can jokes lead to discomfort for victims and bystanders, but they can also undo efforts to eliminate the forms of expression that preserve bigotry.
National Bullying Prevention Month
Founded in 2006 by PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Center, National Bullying Prevention Month encourages educators to supplement their regular teaching with activities that build safer school environments.
The subtlety of some humorous remarks makes it a difficult task to discern malicious versus benign intent. A good-natured tease becomes an aggressive verbal message when the joke is used as a means to put down a person or a group of people, or the joke contains derogatory references to people, ideologies, or cultures. Also, benign intentions cannot be assumed when the speaker has been informed about the potential harm of his/her language.
Who is responsible for stopping bullying? According to a recent review of the research on bullying in schools, a positive school climate is the most powerful solution to peer victimization.[2] Bystanders and other members of the school community should all be expected to become part of the bullying prevention school efforts.
[1] Pewewardy, C. (1996-7). The Pocahontas Paradox: A Cautionary Tale for Educators. Journal of Navajo Education, 14(1-2).
Portman, T. A. A., & Herring, R. D. (2001). Debunking the Pocahontas paradox: the need for a humanistic perspective. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education & Development, 40(2), p. 185–199.
[2] Zych, I., Aggression and Violent Behavior (2018), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2018.06.008