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Show THERE ARE NO IMMIGRANTS IN THE WORLD 59 Mexico. Next, he gave the man a lesson in Mexican history. He informed the man that Texas, New Mexico, Utah, Arizona, California, and Colorado were all part of Mexico before the Mexican-American war and that part of the treaty was for Mexicans to be able to live in those areas even after the war. Thomas said the man spent the rest of the break in a corner by himself but then later apologized. Thomas said they remained friends for many years after that. In this situation, Thomas defended his right to live and work in the U.S. but he did not use divisive language to make his point to his co-worker. He did not tell the American to get off of Mexican land, he simply gave the man a lesson in the Mexican-American war. The result was a deescalation of the discriminatory behavior and the rift between the men was healed. Thomas responded respectfully to both himself and his co-worker. By modeling inclusive language, he also gave the alternate framework of "we" as opposed to "us vs them" (Lakoff, 2008). Thomas taught by example how to co-exist and not allow national policies and war between governments to dictate individual behavior (Ganz, 2009). Intrapersonal Skills There is a great deal of overlap between interpersonal and intrapersonal skills. The key to intrapersonal is the capacity of self-assessment, self-control, and self-discipline in responding to and dealing with feelings (Glenn, 1981). The previous examples of how the men managed conflict at work also highlighted their ability to manage their emotions as situations arose. Joseph had recently attended a pro-immigration march with his wife in downtown Salt Lake. He told me that people yelled, "Go home you dirty wetbacks!" as the protesters walked past. When I asked him how he responded to that verbal abuse, he shrugged and said he ignored it. Then I asked him how he felt when people said those things. Joseph responded, "Jódale, pertenezco donde mi familia es. [Fuck you, I belong where my family is.]" Immediately, Joseph was |
