Episode 43: Where Are You From?
Cue the cringe music because most of us have either asked someone this question OR we have been asked this question directly. It's a question that most people who are being racially profiled or who may speak with an accent get asked. And for many of us white folks, it's a question we use to displace a person (even if we think it's us being 'curious').
Why does this question harm people so much? What is this micro aggression really saying to people from ethnically and culturally diverse backgrounds? It's important to realize that the question actually displaces the one being asked. It's a question that assumes they aren't 'from here' and that they must be from somewhere else. It's a question that we need to let go of if we really want to know someone.
Hostion and Andrea unpack this question, the impact and what it does to relationships and to creating a more curious world. If you've asked this question, it's not too late to stop. And if you're being asked this question, there is no obligation to share. There are other ways to build a relationship - but this question, isn't one of them.
Episode Sources
What You’re Really Asking When You Ask ‘Where Are You From?’ - Bloomberg
On Being Asked, ‘Where Are You From?’ - The Atlantic
What’s Wrong With Asking ‘Where Are You From?’ - Harvard Business Review
Where Are You From? A Validation of the Foreigner Objectification Scale and the Psychological Correlates of Foreigner Objectification Among Asian Americans and Latinos - National Library of Medicine
Where Are You From? Impact, Implications & Alternatives - SLD Consulting Inc
The Regional Accentism That Secretly Affects Job Prospects - BBC News
Quiz Sources
Ranked: British Accents Are the Sexiest Foreign Accent - Preply
The Canadian Census: A Rich Portrait of the Country’s Religious and Ethnocultural Diversity - Statistics Canada