Cambridgeshire Constabulary
Ethics Playing Cards
Copyright © 2025 Compass Ethics
9
What do you do if you see behaviour that is clearly discriminatory, but is dismissed by other members of the team as “banter”?
Case Studies
- There are different types of discrimination – what are they and are they all equally bad?
- Can white middle-aged men face discrimination?
Discussion
Just because you are not aware of a particular kind of discrimination going on, does not mean that it isn’t happening.
- Banter is when we talk to each other in a friendly and humorous way. But what might be humorous to one person may not be to the other, or someone who overhears it.
- Banter should never be at the expense of someone, especially any of their protected characteristics that would make them feel different or ‘othered’.
- It is important to note that this is less about the intent the banter is delivered in, but the impact that it potentially has. Even if the comments / nicknames, etc are given in a positive way, they can still be microaggressions.
- Anyone can be bullied and victimised. That may be as a result of discrimination. It’s important to remember that a white middle-aged male may be on the receiving end of “banter” because of a less visible protected characteristic (such as disability, religious beliefs, sexual orientation), or they could be bullied and harassed by team mates for other reasons (hair colour, body shape, socio-economic background, accent and so on). Both can result in disciplinary action, even if the person receiving it is comfortable with the names - others might not be.
By all means, build relationships with your colleagues. But do so in a way which isn’t consistently focusing on what may be seen as negative characteristics.