Standing Up Is Hard!!!

Title- Standing Up Is Hard

Why Write About This?  I am writing about this because I had to do it yesterday.  Is there importance behind this issue that I decided to write about standing up?  Yes, in Life Ethics and Worldview Class I was challenged to Stand up for my values and beliefs.  Will this example apply to the reader? If you have morals and beliefs and values, then yes. ENJOY!!!

So yesterday I was in a public area for college students, enojoying fellowship with some friends, while eating supper. Supper was going well until one student decided to talk about another student and pick out his bad characteristics. Without anger, I stated, "This doesn't sound like it is very edifying to the people you are talking about, so why are you pointing out his faults." The correction stood, but I could tell there was a sour taste left behind to the one rebuked.  Then shortly after, another friend came and sat down. She was not having the best of days, you could tell by her body language and emotions.  The supper conversation continued just fine, until four of my friends went to get drinks and more food. When that happened the kid one seat away from me standing decided to say the word ni**a. I looked at him with a surprised facial reaction, before I could say anything he said it again, but used the term ni**er.  I corrected him by saying, "watch your mouth (insert name)." He then told me to shut the h*ll up. (I'm completely shocked by this behavior at the moment) I told him, " no, you need to remember where your at." He replied, "man I don't care" I replied, "You should care". He  said, "shut the f**k up man," but then he added."I'll punch you in you f***ing face." I continued with this conversation by saying ," no you won't, if you do that you will get kicked out." He replied by saying, " man I don't care". I told him that if he didn't care then to dismiss himself from standing at our table. ( Because the sum of us there didn't want to hear his vulgar terms for black people or me) He then tried to antagonize me and so he sat down and said, "make me". I ended this by saying no (insert name) I will not resort to your level, I know where I'm at. He then sat for a couple minutes and left.

After reading this you maybe shocked that I used the language that (insert name) used, but I wanted you to connect to the story, that I was faced with. I do not normally use those terms, so if you took offense to that, let me know and I'll consider you next time I ever write a story like that. My main point behind this story is obviously standing up for your beliefs and values. Some people might say that I have no right to correct him in front of 3 people. But I didn't do it for the glory, I did it because I didn't want him to think it was okay. I was not looking for the ordeal I had in discussion with him, but thats the risk of confronting people in situations like that. Another reason I took this term personal is because my old best friend from college  is black, I hated it when people used those terms then and I still do now.

Overall I would like to know your ideas on this story. Was I wrong in saying something? Should I have gone to him personally and confronted him? Or did I do the right thing, knowing that he would just brush it off his shoulders when confronted in a group, as he would have done in private? Either way I confronted him as a reaction, it was like the matrix. It wasn't something that was planned out.