STANDING UP: What is calling in versus calling out?

15th March, 2018    |    By  Project Rockit    |     1.4k

In Episode 9, Danielle and Archie present ‘calling in’ and ‘calling out’ as two ways to challenge prejudice depending on your level of confidence. 1. What are some of the different factors that might hold people back from challenging prejudice? 2. In what types of situations do you feel calling out would be more effective than calling in? 3. Can you think of a time you’ve challenged discrimination before? If so, what is the biggest reward of challenging it? Want more resources like these? Head to www.projectrockit.com.au/contact/ to stay in the loop! Produced by Momentum Studios Australia


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STANDING UP: What is calling in versus calling out?

How can we use language to challenge other people’s behavior when it’s offensive or stand up on behalf of those who need it? Unfortunately, we’re going to find ourselves in situations where someone’s being prejudiced or harmful towards a group or person. Whether that’s being racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, or prejudiced in some other way, it’s important that we can let that person know that their behavior’s not okay.

Yeah, what we’re talking about is calling someone in or calling someone out based on their behavior. Let’s discuss the difference between calling in and calling out.

Yeah, essentially, they have the same purpose, which is to point out that what someone is doing is not okay. They just have different ways of achieving it. Calling out is naming, in the moment, in front of whoever’s present, that the situation is not okay. Calling someone in, on the other hand, involves addressing that person’s behavior more privately or personally. It might take place a little bit later on, and it usually involves taking the time to explain why that person’s behavior was offensive.

Okay, let’s use an example. I’ll pick something a bit random so it’s not offensive to anyone. Let’s say I’m being really awful about someone who’s wearing a dinosaur t-shirt, which of course I’d never do because dinosaur t-shirts are awesome. Anyway, let’s go with it.

“Hey, I was meaning to tell you I bumped into Emil last weekend, and get this—it was so messed up! He was wearing a dinosaur t-shirt. As soon as I realized, I got out of there. It was disgusting! How could he think that was okay? And you know what they say about people who wear dinosaur t-shirts…”

“Hey, come on, people can wear whatever they want.”

“Hey, remember what you said earlier about Emil wearing that t-shirt? I just wanted to clarify what you meant, because to be honest, it’s just a t-shirt, and we all wear them differently.”

So it’s obvious from that example that calling out is a much more direct process, which means it can sometimes be met with a defensive reaction. Calling in, on the flip side, is a much more calm process and often takes more time, energy, and patience. But both methods are 100% valid.

Yeah, completely. And let’s imagine that in that example, Danny wasn’t just talking about a t-shirt. Imagine that those comments had been made about Amir’s religious beliefs, or cultural clothing, or gender diversity, or maybe a disability that he has. And while calling someone in is a great way to generate positive conversations, it’s not always possible, right?

I may not have felt comfortable approaching Danny on a personal level, or maybe they have a form of power over me that makes calling them in really, really difficult—like popularity or leadership, or maybe being part of a majority group. And realistically, if you’re the person experiencing discrimination, it’s not up to you to educate the people who are doing the discriminating.

So, if you’re being discriminated against or oppressed or targeted by someone who has power over you, we reckon you have every right to call that person in or out. But in those moments when you’re deciding which approach to take, we think you should ask yourself a few questions:

First up, what are their intentions? Are they trying to cause harm or offense, or have they just been careless with their words?

What’s best for you: having the conversation one-on-one or in a setting where there are other people around?

And thirdly, what do you want to get out of it? Do you just want to name that what that person did was offensive, or do you want to explain the impact of their behavior and how they can improve in the future?

So, at the end of the day, we’re all going to be faced with prejudice at some point, and it’s really important that in those moments, if it’s safe for us, we feel empowered to call someone in or out on their behavior.

Yeah, and we know it’s not always easy, but if it means standing up for yourself or somebody else, we reckon it’s worth it.

Video by Project Rockit