We’ve heard the advice: “If you see something, say something”. However, many of us struggle with saying something in the moment. Perhaps our voice fails us and we can’t find the words. Perhaps we worry about causing more harm to the person in danger, the perpetrator of the violence, ourselves, or our community.
Understanding Bystander Intervention can help.
Bystander Intervention is recognizing a potentially harmful situation or interaction and choosing to respond in a way that could positively influence the outcome.
Right To Be
At its core, Bystander Intervention has three goals:
- Support someone who is being harassed,
- Emphasize that harassment is not okay, and
- Demonstrate to people in your life that they too have the power to make our communities and workplaces safer
This contrasts with the “Let me speak to your Manager” (a.k.a. “Karen”) energy that is punitive or seeks a negative outcome.
In August 2023, I co-hosted a Bystander Intervention webinar with Right To Be. Right To Be’s methodology for Bystander Intervention is collectively known as “The 5 Ds”, which stands for:
- Distract
- Delay
- Document
- Delegate
- Direct communication
I was relieved and empowered to learn there are four (4) other methods to intervene besides saying, “Stop that!”
Learn how I utilize Bystander Intervention in the Workplace.
