We’ve all heard it — someone cracks a joke, the room goes quiet, and then comes the awkward follow-up: “It was just a joke!” But was it really? Or was it a thinly veiled insult, a poke at someone’s pain, or a comment that crossed a line no one agreed to?
Humour can be brilliant — it diffuses tension, connects people, and offers relief in tough times. But it can also sting. Humour, after all, is never neutral. It reflects what we value, who we’re willing to mock, and what we’re prepared to trivialise.
In today’s world — where banter is instant, global, and often poorly thought-out — it’s more important than ever to know that joking about some things just isn’t funny.
This article explores what not to joke about, why certain topics should remain off-limits, and how to find humour that heals rather than harms.
Mental Health
okes about depression, suicide, anxiety, or therapy used to be shrugged off — sometimes even in comedy specials. But with growing awareness of mental health struggles, there’s been a shift. These aren’t punchlines — they’re people’s lives.
Laughing at someone’s breakdown or mocking trauma-related behaviours contributes to stigma. It discourages people from seeking help. It’s not edgy. It’s cruel.
Better approach: Use humour to lighten the load of mental health conversations — not to silence or shame them
Key point
Race, Ethnicity, and Culture
Racist jokes aren’t harmless — even if they’re framed as “just a bit of fun”. They reinforce stereotypes, embolden prejudice, and alienate people. Just because something gets a nervous laugh doesn’t make it okay.
Ethnic and cultural jokes often punch down — turning someone’s identity into a caricature. And intent doesn’t outweigh impact.
📌 Key rule: If you’re not part of that group, don’t joke at its expense.
Body Image and Appearance
From fat jokes to mockery of acne, weight, or hair loss — these comments often cloak insecurity in “humour”. But the damage runs deep. Joking about someone’s body, especially in public or online, feeds into toxic beauty standards and body shaming culture.
Even self-deprecating humour can be triggering to others. What feels like a throwaway line might hit someone else in a raw place.
💡 Try this instead: Celebrate body diversity. Or, if you must joke about appearance, keep it playful — and consensual.
Disability and Illness
Mocking someone’s disability, chronic condition, or neurodivergence has never been funny. And yet, it still happens — on stage, in schoolyards, in offices. These jokes reduce complex realities to stereotypes and rob people of dignity.
Whether it’s autism, mobility issues, or invisible illnesses like fibromyalgia or long COVID — it’s not a joke if someone else suffers for the laugh.
Flip the script: Amplify stories from disabled communities. Let humour be inclusive, not isolating.
Religion and Faith
Religion is deeply personal — and for many, sacred. Joking about someone’s beliefs, their place of worship, or their spiritual practices isn’t witty. It’s dismissive.
Of course, there’s a place for light-hearted self-reflection within religious communities. But when jokes come from outside — especially in a mocking or cynical tone — they often cause division, not dialogue.
Rule of thumb: If it’s holy to someone, treat it with care.
Poverty, Addiction, and Homelessness
Making jokes about people who are struggling — financially, emotionally, or physically — is perhaps the most tone-deaf humour of all.
Laughing at someone’s “crackhead cousin” or mimicking someone living on the streets might make some people chuckle, but for others, it hits a nerve of lived experience and despair.
Compassion must come before comedy.
But What Can We Joke About?
Plenty, actually. The best comedy punches up, not down. It challenges power, mocks hypocrisy, and exposes injustice. It draws humour from shared human quirks — not individual suffering.
We can joke about awkward dates, pets, the endless chaos of modern parenting, coffee addictions, tech fails, your inability to parallel park — all the relatable, harmless chaos of being human.
So Why Does This Matter?
Words are never just words. Jokes shape culture. They normalise attitudes. What we laugh at says what we’re willing to tolerate.
When we joke about someone’s identity, trauma, or disadvantage, we’re not being clever — we’re telling the world who’s safe to mock. That has consequences.
This doesn’t mean we cancel humour, or all walk on eggshells. It means we choose wit over cruelty, and impact over intent.
Final Thought: Be Funny, But Be Kind
Humour can be a beautiful thing — healing, humanising, even holy. But it’s a tool, not a licence.
If your joke needs to come at someone else’s expense, maybe it’s not worth telling.
Because at the end of the day, joking about certain things isn’t just insensitive — it’s irresponsible. And the ability to make someone laugh is a gift — one best used with empathy, not ego.
