One recent American story is so terrible none of its sordid details will be retold here. The headline is horrible enough: In January, six white Mississippi police officers broke into a home and viciously and repeatedly tortured two innocent black men for hours.
All six have pled guilty.
Not one or two but six officers actively planned and carried out this racist and sadistic attack. I wonder if any of them had second thoughts before or mid-crime but could not stand strong against his "buddies."
What does this have to do with caregiving and leadership? How often have you seen co-workers, including doctors, leaders, board members, or others engaged in wrongdoing and said nothing?
Standing strong against wrong. We are all love that idea. Still, under peer pressure, we routinely "go along to get along" and thus, actively or passively, end up endorsing cruel behavior.
Yes. We need to know when and where to draw the line. Sometimes (not always) I have openly argued with others when they make racist or sexist comments. Many think I speak up too much. "Just let it go, Erie," I have often been told. "You aren't going to change anything."
But silence can imply endorsement.
How many others in that Mississippi town's subculture of hateful rhetoric stood silent, went along to get along, let it go?
When you look at the chart, which "zone" is your favorite? We all love comfort. Can we enjoy our comfort if we always just "let it go?" It we entered the Challenge zone more often and stood strong against wrong instead of sitting silently in the Comfort zone, could we save someone from suffering?
-Erie Chapman
Note" Screenshot of Six from CNN
