Thursday, August 13, 2020

 I had a rather strange experience the other day.  It wasn't the first time that something like this has happened to me.

I was just getting started with my work day when a co-worker, someone who I work with pretty closely almost every day and who I've talked to at length, randomly burst out into a nazi salute, and announced "heil Hitler" in the middle of the work floor, for no apparent reason.  Keep in mind, I don't think he knows that I am Jewish.

Maybe it was in jest, or maybe for the entire time I've known him, he secretly had those kind of sentiments against people like me.  

That was a really big, offensive thing for him to do (So big that I wouldn't even call it a microagression), but there are so many smaller microaggressions that people do, without even realizing it.  

I still have yet to decide what to do.  Maybe he was just goofing off or something, but seriously, who does that in the middle of work (or anywhere for that matter) and why should that be excuse-able? What's next? Is he going to go around shouting the n-word or something?


Update: I called the ethics hotline about this incident and filed a report.

Second update: I worked with the person again today with no incident.   

Third Update: Yet another day with "heil Hitler" Larry.  It seems that he works very well with people, but still he said THAT.  I did converse with him about his military experience in Italy.

Fourth Update: I don't really think anything is going to be done about my complaint since it was anonymous, unless I maybe go to my local human resources...

I haven't received any follow-up information from the ethics hotline.

I could just forget about it, but really..."heil Hitler?" I think it came from a places where it was someone who never comes in contact with Jews, so Nazi jokes are a "normal" part of the humor...Or this guy really has something against Jews and truly believes in the correctness of Hitler's ideologies.

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