Got canceled by my own book club over a joke I made on Zoom

I was hosting our monthly book club meeting on Zoom last March when I made a light joke about how one character kept making bad decisions like my cousin in Cleveland. Two members stopped talking to me after that, and the admin removed me from the group chat without any warning. I never got a chance to explain myself, and it's been eating at me for 6 months now. Has anyone else had a close friend group turn on them over something small like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_margaret17d ago

Maybe it wasn't just the joke itself but how you delivered it or what it implied about a group member. A light joke can land really differently over Zoom when nobody can read your body language or tone. Idk, maybe the admin thought removing you quietly was less awkward than a big confrontation, even if it felt harsh.

terry_thomas17d ago

Had a buddy at my old job get booted from a Slack channel for a similar thing. He posted a GIF of that "This is fine" dog in a burning room after someone in the group chat complained about a small deadline delay. @the_margaret is right about the delivery thing. My friend thought he was being funny and relatable, but the project lead thought he was making light of the team's stress. No warning, just a silent removal from the channel. He felt blindsided too, but looking back he admitted the joke probably hit wrong without the tone of his voice.