Laughing along with the cruel joke isn’t neutral. The laugh is a signature.

A laugh reads as agreement even when you meant it as social cover. The person being mocked counts the faces, not the intentions, and everyone else in the room learns what the group will tolerate. Staying quiet is not neutral either, but it is honest in a way that laughter is not.

The next time a joke lands on someone who is not there to answer, let the silence sit. You do not need a speech; changing the subject, or asking a plain question about something else, is usually enough.