CommsCon: How to handle a client who is sick of all this woke nonsense
As we move towards a more inclusive world, and communications continue to mirror the new language and nuances entering broader society, there are some who fiercely feel that all this woke nonsense has gone too far.
There are a number of topics — race, gender, sexuality, climate change, disability, immigration, education — that trigger strong reactions from all who wade into these sometimes choppy waters.
But what about those who aim to counsel clients who believe that ‘wokeness’ has gone mad.
The trick is in the execution, according to Hannah Moreno, owner of tech and finance PR firm, Third Hemisphere.
At Mumbrella’s CommsCon on Wednesday, she spoke on how to handle what she classifies as “the social justice adverse”.
The social justice adverse was defined by Moreno as someone who is “inconvenienced, or even outright angry about anything related to social justice.”
“At best they might find it an unnecessary distraction, because we’re all equally privileged in their eyes. At worst, they might be enraged by it, because they feel personally victimised by the process.”
This person is a huge risk. They may get away with abusive behaviour for a while, until they accidentally aim at the wrong person.
“Or, they might simply carelessly say and do something that is shared and re-shared, and re-shared again, until they’ve blown up their own careers, or even their entire operation.”
Moreno said it’s unlikely you’ll change the way this people thinks, but “the primary goals here are risk mitigation and public protection.” Preventing their views from hurting themselves and others.
“First,” Moreno suggested, “you need to know exactly what you’re dealing with, by interrogating where their concerns lie.”
If they are overly concerned they can’t be a room alone with a woman because they’ll falsely accuse them of sexual harassment, that’s a red flag. If they worry affirmation action means white people can’t get jobs these days. Another flag.
“Once you know what you’re working with, set out the risks in a way that plays to their self-interest,” Moreno explained.
“Essentially the goal is to demonstrate they’ll benefit from keeping their opinions to themselves. But please do remember to protect yourselves too.”
Moreno said if you are part of a minority race, it can be exhausting to have to constantly speak up when a white colleague is being offensive. She suggested getting another white colleague to “do this labour for you” and make a stand.
“As much as it sucks,” Moreno reasoned, “a person who expresses racist views is probably only going to listen to a person of their race anyway.”
Even when it seems a hopeless cause, it helps to tap into the root of why the social justice adverse are that way.
“Fear of loss is actually what drives much of the averse to push back on social justice.”
Another important factor is to not assume the worse. Sometimes people just screw up. Moreno said we need to “create a pathway to redemption for those who mess up.”
“Without this, we cannot create space for the change that is at the heart of why we speak out in the first place.”
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Nathan Jolly is the Features Editor at Mumbrella. He joined the team in July, 2023.
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The whole thing has been built by the false narrative that people only buy brands that align with their value. I’ll shop at Coles if it’s easy to get a park and close to my house. I’ll buy Ben & Jerry’s because it is delicious. I’ll fly Qantas if it’s the best price and most convenient flight time.
This whole values narrative is garbage based on qualitative data from useless surveys. Buyer behaviour suggests otherwise.
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Or just another, albeit slightly more eloquent, angle on the suppression of free speech and debate by reinforcing the current potential negative consequences of commenting.
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“Essentially the goal is to demonstrate they’ll benefit from keeping their opinions to themselves.”
Wise words. Loved this viewpoint and tips for having others do the work on your behalf.
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