I have been racially attacked.
A black colleague I work with was somewhat chippy about her ethnic origins, but it was never an issue in the office until our spat.
She was promoted to temporary team leader, but shared the duty with another person, and on the day I was late in to the office for personal reasons, she demanded in quite a stroppy way to know why I was late. Still feeling upset from the issues I was dealing with, and having told her politely that she was not team leader that day, and I was not obliged to explain. She pushed the issue, and my legendary patience deserted me, and I said, quote, “You speak English, mind your own business!”
She rang our manager’s manager citing racism, and demanded that I be disciplined. It was passed down to our (female) manager, who put the two of us together, with her, to discuss it. It turns out she had reported me as saying I had said ‘Don’t you speak English?’ which she took as a racist insult.
I asked the lady if she thought I was a racist, and she said, and I demanded to know why she had accused me of being one. I quoted back to her word for word what I had said, and advised that my comment was not based on her skin colour, but on her rudeness. I advised her that, had the company taken her side, as modern companies are prone to do, I could have been dismissed, and never worked again given the reason. I then told her that I had issues with her nosiness, her chippy nature and her resorting to trying to get me disciplined for something I hadn’t done, but I had no issue with her ethnic origins, which were identical to mine – we were both born in Wolverhampton!
Our manager told her to apologise, she refused, and was given the instruction again at four times the volume, at which point she grudgingly co-operated.
The issue was done with there and then for me, and I am just glad that it didn’t turn out differently.
As anyone on here knows, I am absolutely not afraid to say what I think, but I try never to be overtly rude, and I am certainly not in any sense a racist.