As someone who's half-white, half-Asian (and looks predominantly Asian) I often hear questions like "where are you from? Like, where are your parents from?"
I'm not sure I see this as a 'micro-agression.' Or aggression at all, it's just a question. People ask me where my ancestors came from, and I tell them Scotland and Finland. No big deal. It's pretty clear I'm not native american.
Sometimes I also get asked where I grew up. I tell them. Nosy people. If you don't want people to be curious about details in your life, that's kind of anti-social.
I have a foreign sounding last name and get asked this a lot. It gets tiring and reminds you that you are somehow apart from the group. Each time isn't a big deal on its own, but it adds up. I'm sure no-one is actually being agreessive when they say it, but none the less the effect of being asked over and over and over again does have an affect.
It's no-one's fault, it's just something we sound address.
Yeah, welcome to life. In Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, there's a scene where the author complains about this very topic for someone who is a detective, and also for someone who plays the bassoon (I think, could be a different instrument).
Calling it racism or sexism doesn't help the situation, and is a form of microagression on its own.
Where are your ancestors from? (Score:4, Insightful)
As someone who's half-white, half-Asian (and looks predominantly Asian) I often hear questions like "where are you from? Like, where are your parents from?"
I'm not sure I see this as a 'micro-agression.' Or aggression at all, it's just a question. People ask me where my ancestors came from, and I tell them Scotland and Finland. No big deal. It's pretty clear I'm not native american.
Sometimes I also get asked where I grew up. I tell them. Nosy people. If you don't want people to be curious about details in your life, that's kind of anti-social.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
I have a foreign sounding last name and get asked this a lot. It gets tiring and reminds you that you are somehow apart from the group. Each time isn't a big deal on its own, but it adds up. I'm sure no-one is actually being agreessive when they say it, but none the less the effect of being asked over and over and over again does have an affect.
It's no-one's fault, it's just something we sound address.
Re:Where are your ancestors from? (Score:2)
Calling it racism or sexism doesn't help the situation, and is a form of microagression on its own.