What to Do When Your Values Are Called “Offensive”

I meant to write this post a week ago. It was going to be about a client of mine—an ethical entrepreneur—who was confronted for using the word “genocide” in her newsletter.

But then I took a trip to Minneapolis. My first solo trip in years. No partner, no kids. Just me.

I thought it would be deeply restorative. And parts of it were. I walked through politically-charged neighborhoods where murals bloomed on every building. I ate good food. I stood still. I noticed things. Minneapolis is a politically engaged city, and it was good to be reminded of what collective grief and resistance can look like—lived, not just posted.

But without the noise of parenting, I found myself even more immersed in the news cycle than usual. And the news that weekend? Devastating. Protests against ICE erupted in LA and Minneapolis. The aid ship Madleen was seized at Gaza’s border. The world felt like it was vibrating—grief on one frequency, resistance on another.

I visited George Floyd’s memorial. I stood on the corner where he was murdered by police in broad daylight. I remember where I was when that happened. The weight of it. The shock. The rage. The way it made everything else feel irrelevant—or maybe, more relevant than ever.

Back then, I had a mainstream business coach. One of those “keep it neutral, keep it professional” types. She told me not to talk about Minneapolis. She told me to “stay in my lane.” Keep posting. Keep selling. Pretend it’s all fine.

And I remember feeling—in my gut, not yet in words—that she was wrong.

I didn’t know how to say it yet. I was still afraid of saying the wrong thing. So I stayed mostly quiet. I reposted Black voices. I tried to amplify, to listen. But something shifted. I knew I couldn’t keep building a business that ignored the world we live in.

That moment was my before-and-after.

Now, years later, I work in ethical business consulting. I support people who want their businesses to reflect their values. Who refuse to return to business as usual. Who are actively searching for alternatives to capitalism—not just in theory, but in how they run their day-to-day.

This is where we begin.

The Story: When a Flower Farmer Got Called Out

One of my clients, Renee, runs a flower farm. She’s warm, grounded, sharp as hell. She sent a newsletter to her CSA customers—a simple, heartfelt update about the chaos of tulip season. The warm weather had made everything bloom at once: 5,000 tulips in ten days. She wrote about juggling new plantings, overwhelming workloads, and trying to stay grounded as genocide, climate crisis, and capitalism collided.

She used the word. Genocide.

And then came the reply.

A long-time CSA customer wrote back. He described himself as a “rabid progressive.” Said he supported universal healthcare and climate justice. But then he said he was “deeply offended” by her use of the word “genocide.” That she was being tricked. That she must be antisemitic. That Palestinians were to blame. That Trump’s election was the fault of people like her. That maybe it was karma.

Renee forwarded me the email. She was shaken. And she asked the question so many ethical entrepreneurs ask:

Do I reply? Do I let it go?

What to Do When Someone Challenges Your Values in Business

This happens more than you’d think. Especially when you’re part of a movement that dares to explore alternatives to capitalism or center justice in your messaging. Here’s what I told Renee—and what I tell everyone in these moments.

1. Your body will react. That doesn’t mean you did something wrong.

Getting a message like this activates your nervous system. Cortisol spikes. Your heart pounds. You start spiraling: Was I too harsh? Did I cross a line? Should I apologize?

Let the wave pass. Move your body. Shake. Walk. Dance. Call someone you trust. (I’m here, truly.) Then—only then—decide if a reply serves you. Not if it will satisfy them.

2. Some people don’t want dialogue. They want control.

There’s a difference between “I’m confused, can we talk?” and “I’m offended, and here’s why you’re wrong.”

Dan—Renee’s CSA customer—didn’t ask questions. He didn’t come with curiosity. He came to assert dominance. That’s not a conversation. That’s a performance of control.

Ethical entrepreneurs aren’t here to perform submission in the face of faux-progressive scolding. You don’t owe them anything.

3. If you do want to reply, here’s a script:

Hi [Name],
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I hear that my use of the word “genocide” upset you. I want you to know I don’t use that word lightly. Like many human rights organizations, I chose it intentionally to describe what’s happening in Gaza.
You’re right—it’s complex. But complexity doesn’t mean silence. My values—empathy, justice, accountability—call me to speak.
I named this genocide because my government is funding it. Because my taxes are paying for it.
I reject all forms of racism, antisemitism, and Islamophobia. My stance is rooted in opposing state violence and colonialism everywhere.
I know not everyone will agree. That’s okay. I’m not trying to change every mind. I’m trying to live in integrity.
Wishing you well.

Adapt it to sound like you. Or don’t reply at all. That’s allowed too.

4. Expect the conversation to not end there.

People like Dan rarely respond once and walk away. They push. They provoke. They try to reassert control. So before you reply, decide: how many times are you willing to go back and forth?

Set a boundary—one reply, two replies, and done. Keep it calm. Don’t escalate. And when you hit your limit, log off.

This is ethical business consulting 101: boundaries are a business skill. Especially when navigating conflict rooted in politics, power, and white fragility.

You’re Not Alone in This

This isn’t new for me. I’ve been called a communist. Told to “go back to China” (I’m white, for the record). Had people unsubscribe in dramatic fashion. One woman emailed just to say I “clearly don’t understand economics.”

I kept going. And you can too.

Because the only way to build something better is to keep showing up—even when it’s uncomfortable. Especially when it’s uncomfortable.

This is the daily work of ethical entrepreneurs: navigating risk, holding integrity, and staying rooted when the world wants you to shrink.

If you get a nasty reply? Forward it to me. I’ll help you write a response. Or write it for you. Because you’re not alone. Over 1,000 people are on this list right now trying to figure this out too. Trying to practice ethical entrepreneurship in a system designed to punish it.

Lean on us.

What Does Bravery Look Like, Really?

It’s not always protest marches or boats headed for Gaza.

Sometimes it’s:

• Saying the uncomfortable thing on a client call

• Naming genocide in your farm newsletter

• Risking an unsubscribe

• Writing “Land Back” on your about page

• Refusing to make your brand apolitical just to keep the peace

We need all of it.

Ali Malone, a client of mine and the powerhouse behind Handy Mam, wrote this recently (right after adopting two surprise birds):

“Helping isn’t convenient—it always costs you something, puts a burden on you, disrupts your plans. But that inconvenience, that sacrifice, that’s exactly what makes it WORTH IT somehow. Finding those opportunities to be of service—whether in the human or critter realm—that’s what makes life actually meaningful.”

This is what ethical entrepreneurship is. It’s not perfect branding or a flawless sales funnel. It’s building a business that participates in the world—not one that hides from it.

Why This Matters

There’s a whole world of ethical entrepreneurs right now trying to thread the needle between surviving capitalism and rejecting it. Trying to do ethical business consulting without replicating harm. Trying to sell without manipulation. Market without lies. Grow without extraction.

They’re dreaming up alternatives to capitalism. Not just in theory—but in spreadsheets, sales calls, and strategy meetings.

They’re:

• Practicing mutual aid

• Exploring cooperative economics

• Building community business partnerships

• Designing non-hierarchical teams

• Imagining a post-capitalist future, one email at a time

This is what ethical business consulting should look like: not just performance, but practice. Not just politics in your bio, but politics in your budget.

Final Words (From Someone I Admire)

I’ll close with the words of J.P. Hill, who writes brilliantly about abolition, resistance, and radical history. You can read more of his work on his Substack, New Means:

“You will hear and read propaganda to the contrary in the coming days. You will hear again and again about the supposed violence of protesters, and you will hear much less about the fundamental violence of ICE.

What we have to keep in mind, always, is that protests against ICE do not ‘turn violent,’ they begin with the violence of ICE. They begin with federal agents raiding school graduations to tear families apart. They begin with ICE invading workplaces to tear people away from the lives they’ve built and the communities they live in. They begin with the lie that some people should be kidnapped, and with the immense violence inherent in that act.

I have yet to see a single moment from an anti-ICE protest that comes close to even a fraction of the violence ICE displays every day. Ripping thousands of parents away from their children, deporting people, sometimes to countries that these people have never lived in, scarring children and hurting families — I see nothing remotely akin to this mass violence in a robot car set ablaze or a line of people forcing cops to back away. These comparisons are deliberately false and invoked to condemn the righteous anti-fascists in the streets.

The bare minimum that all of us can uphold is not conflating the people engaged in self-defense, the people trying to protect themselves and their communities, with the violence of the fascist state and its brownshirts. The place that all of us can begin is clearly condemning the mass, systemic violence of ICE.

There is no need to start by condemning the smashing of an inanimate object as real people are hurt and ripped out of their homes every day.”

Stay brave. Stay grounded. Stay inconvenient. I’ll be right here with you. 

Want support navigating political pushback in your business?
I work with ethical entrepreneurs, cooperatives, and community organizers who are building businesses rooted in justice, care, and solidarity—not silence or neutrality.

My 4-month anti-capitalist business coaching program is built for people who want their business to reflect their values—even when it's risky, even when it's hard.

We cover everything from values-aligned marketing and pricing to how to hold your ground when your values are called "offensive." If you’ve been figuring this out alone and want a place to land, I’d love to talk.

🔗 Learn more and apply here

P.S. If you found this blog post because someone challenged your values—or because you're trying to figure out how to respond with integrity—you’re not alone. You’re building something different. And you don’t have to do it in isolation.