General Discussion

tcfrogs

(2,913 posts) Thu Oct 16, 2025, 08:02 AM Oct 16

I was reported to HR for using the word Negro in a perfectly appropriate context [View all]

Let me elaborate. Was chatting with a co-worker in the small cafeteria/breakroom yesterday when I was refilling my coffee. He and I are both baseball fans, and were discussing the baseball playoffs and he referenced his visit to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Told him I hadn’t been to Cooperstown yet, but I had visited the Negro League Baseball Museum in Kansas City a few years ago. Just idle chatter and then went back to my desk.

Within an hour, received an e-mail from someone in HR requesting my presence later in her office later in the afternoon. Was absolutely floored when she informed me that a co-worker had overheard me use the word Negro and felt that was completely inappropriate. Obviously I explained the context, and the HR woman either didn’t quite understand or sympathized with the complaining associate, and immediately scheduled a meeting with both my boss and the head of HR for tomorrow (which is now today.)

Now I think this is making a mountain out of a molehill. And don’t think my boss nor the HR director (who is a personal friend) will do anything more than laugh off this innocent statement of fact that I made.

Any thoughts on how to proceed?

110 replies

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Highlight:

I was reported to HR for using the word Negro in a perfectly appropriate context [View all] tcfrogs Oct 16 OP

Show HR the online site that no_hypocrisy Oct 16 #1

Precisely this - it's the name of the museum hatrack Oct 16 #2

Difficult to tell anymore tcfrogs Oct 16 #6

Way ahead of you tcfrogs Oct 16 #3

Print out a hard copy and hand it to them. Hopefully the meeting lasts 2 minutes. TheRickles Oct 16 #9

No. Print out 3 copies - ms liberty Oct 16 #13

Exactly.. mountain grammy Oct 16 #23

Or post it on the company bulletin board, assuming you have one...nt Wounded Bear Oct 16 #34

The offended person would probably consider that harassment. LisaM Oct 16 #108

HR can show it to her, that is the point. ms liberty Oct 16 #109

and at SOME point demand an apology.... democratsruletheday Oct 16 #14

this!!! Celerity Oct 16 #35

Use uninformed delicate flower Aviation Pro Oct 16 #41

When I was in high school, back in the Bronze Age, a very naive and foolishly 'helpful' classmate Attilatheblond Oct 16 #53

I guarantee that student grew up and voted for Trump three times. yardwork Oct 16 #58

This was in Orange County, Ca, and her family were rigerous about their 'traditional bible' church attendence Attilatheblond Oct 16 #63

Your post brought back unpleasant memories of that type of "sweet" girl. yardwork Oct 16 #64

Would biracials be chocolate marshmellows? flor-de-jasmim Oct 16 #77

LOL Throw in a couple Hispanics and ya got s'mores! Attilatheblond Oct 16 #80

i hate these people who go behind my back and whine to someone else and dont apologise to me AllaN01Bear Oct 16 #65

How would they feel BonnieJW Oct 16 #72

It is our history Bluetus Oct 16 #69

I knew someone who got in trouble for saying, "frijoles negros." FSogol Oct 16 #4

No way John Coktosten Oct 16 #21

They Voted For Cantaloupe Caligula The Corpulent... GB_RN Oct 16 #26

Haha John Coktosten Oct 16 #27

Thanks! GB_RN Oct 16 #31

Having someone get offended when you say "frijoles negros" is the least of your worries today whopis01 Oct 16 #29

I went to a dentist years ago who was a MAGA type. He was whining about all the 'illegals' travelingthrulife Oct 16 #42

Goes to show you stupid people can get advanced degrees. nt Wednesdays Oct 16 #73

It's a furrin' language. CanonRay Oct 16 #66

There should be no problem, as long as they pronounce it "NAY-gross" JustABozoOnThisBus Oct 16 #37

OK, here's what I'd do. ananda Oct 16 #5

It Was The Name Of The League! ProfessorGAC Oct 16 #7

Even as recently as the early 1970's tcfrogs Oct 16 #8

This is ForgedCrank Oct 16 #12

Yes - exactly. And it won't end anytime soon. whopis01 Oct 16 #33

The color Black in Spanish is Negro (soft e like Negative, not hard e like Knee) ... aggiesal Oct 16 #46

Exactly, it's pronounced "nehgro" neh as in meh with a slight roll to the gr ms liberty Oct 16 #87

I'm really sorry this is happening to you. yardwork Oct 16 #10

I would want HR to formally educate the snitch Tanuki Oct 16 #68

Any escalation will probably hurt the OP more. yardwork Oct 16 #81

I met W James Cobbin while doing a job at his museum in Youngstown Orrex Oct 16 #11

Continue to tell the story as it happened. barbtries Oct 16 #15

I would tell the that, since this is an issue, all employees need to have a list created. OldBaldy1701E Oct 16 #16

Or make it fun. Ask them to google "Geddy Lee and baseball" ms liberty Oct 16 #17

Get the friend you were chatting to to confirm, either to the HR person or in writing, that it was the museum name muriel_volestrangler Oct 16 #18

Attorney - Get An Attorney Now - You're Being Targeted And Attacked MayReasonRule Oct 16 #19

Geddy Lee Tadams01KC Oct 16 #20

How old is the person who complained about this? 3catwoman3 Oct 16 #38

Wow. I would be giddy about that, particularly now ms liberty Oct 16 #97

Interesting FHRRK Oct 16 #22

Just tell them you didn't realize a trip to KC was so controversial. xmas74 Oct 16 #24

For God's sake, don't tell them what NAACP stands for. nt chowmama Oct 16 #25

I was just thinking the same thing. So silly Callie1979 Oct 16 #43

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ... aggiesal Oct 16 #57

The implication is that the person who got yorkster Oct 16 #70

Similar, because referring to a black person as "colored" is generally unacceptable in the same way "negro" is. nt thesquanderer Oct 16 #71

On top of all that, Black people actually perferred to be called Black. (This is based on the movie Red Tails) ... aggiesal Oct 16 #92

Depends though Mosby Oct 16 #96

Give them a link to the Negro Leagues malaise Oct 16 #28

Have a screen shot of their website with the title and logo of the museum JT45242 Oct 16 #30

I was reported for using "SNAFU" in an email Ponietz Oct 16 #32

Situation Normal, all fouled up... Wounded Bear Oct 16 #36

Wait til they learn "niggardly" kiri Oct 16 #39

I have stopped using that word because it's too easily misunderstood. yardwork Oct 16 #47

Years ago I used the word "niggardly" during a meeting to describe a low-ball settlement offer. sop Oct 16 #105

Ask if you should stop donating ... JustABozoOnThisBus Oct 16 #40

Ask for a copy of the company policy that forbids the word n/t Shrek Oct 16 #44

Poor HR gulliver Oct 16 #45

I agree that the lying snitch is not to be trusted. yardwork Oct 16 #49

THIS is the kind of nonsense the RW loves to point out. Callie1979 Oct 16 #48

The RW causes this kind of situation more often than not. yardwork Oct 16 #51

You might keep your mind open to the possibility.... 70sEraVet Oct 16 #50

Snitching to HR is never a good faith move. yardwork Oct 16 #54

I guess I always worked for smaller companies. 70sEraVet Oct 16 #67

Lie down on the floor, kick your feet, rip your clothes, and cry like a baby. hay rick Oct 16 #52

Whatever happens, please tell us about the outcome rurallib Oct 16 #55

My husband and I attended a function several years ago at this museum. mommymarine2003 Oct 16 #56

Many moons ago, a member of the Nixon Whitehouse 3Hotdogs Oct 16 #59

it was preferred by my community in my own time bigtree Oct 16 #60

Ignorance angrychair Oct 16 #61

Taken out of context "Negro" is colonial stollen Oct 16 #62

It sounds like you have an overactive co-worker. hamsterjill Oct 16 #74

Sounds like you have an Ass Kissing Republican coworker. Emile Oct 16 #75

I would definitely insist on an apology Grim Chieftain Oct 16 #76

I would just insist that they never get to mention it again. Iggo Oct 16 #88

Simple - Have the website of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum cued up on your phone. flashman13 Oct 16 #78

examples DAML Oct 16 #79

I remember their commercials from Saturday morning cartoons questionseverything Oct 16 #106

Sort of on-topic but not really Shrek Oct 16 #82

That's funny. I was reported here for something kind of like that (but not really.) Iggo Oct 16 #83

Outrage Factory hard at work at your place of employment. n/t flvegan Oct 16 #84

Counterclaim that the displayed denial of a named business denotes a racism against blacks. Festivito Oct 16 #85

Go to the web SocialDemocrat61 Oct 16 #86

Several years ago when I was still working, I was miffed about something that happened. MIButterfly Oct 16 #89

The complainant was malicious Bobstandard Oct 16 #90

There are no facts, only interpretations. Nietzsche Ping Tung Oct 16 #91

Ask everyone at the meeting if they know what NAACP stands for. johnp3907 Oct 16 #93

Cool story. Mosby Oct 16 #94

There seems to be some confusion in this thread. And... LAS14 Oct 16 #95

Cool story! Mysterian Oct 16 #98

What a cool story! obamanut2012 Oct 16 #99

I am so tired of stupid people who can't mind their own d*** business FoxNewsSucks Oct 16 #100

Get a lawyer, get a lawyer, document everything, get a lawyer, and document everything. unblock Oct 16 #101

is there an official record of this, er, UTTER NONSENSE Skittles Oct 16 #102

Show up with an attorney. Just like talking to the cops. Hotler Oct 16 #103

That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. It was called the Negro League and is still called the Negro League. Vinca Oct 16 #104

People are idiots. I don't miss the days of someone mishearing something that was not said to them. dem4decades Oct 16 #107

My company's HR, now called "People", is the most overhead-iest of all overhead... Mark.b2 Oct 16 #110