1.) Pretty much my entire life I've been asked (primary by white people) the question that I imagine every "asian" person cringes at inside: "Where are you from?" I'm certain the person asking this is completely ignorant to how annoying this question is and why...
2.) Over time, I began to answer the question by saying "New York" or "California" - where I had spent my childhood and formative years - just to give the person the benefit of the doubt that they weren't going where I already knew they were...
3.) Inevitably, they would follow-up with some version of "no, I mean what is your background? Chinese or Japanese?" A.) WTF does it matter B.) Does anyone come up to you and ask - "hey, you Irish or German or Scottish or French or Dutch or etc...
4.) When I would answer Seoul, South Korea I would get the inevitable anecdote about how this person knew someone or traveled someplace or had some random connection to Korean culture. Except for the fact that I was adopted at 3 months old by parents that were German & Italian...
5.) So I had zero personal connection to said Korean cultural anecdote & the assumption that I would somehow A.) give a crap and B.) define myself by the physical location of where I happened to be born (which I had zero input over) is incredibly presumptuous and insulting...
6.) So when the @POTUS @realDonaldTrump casually asks a career intelligence analyst "where are you from" and she responds "New York" - that should end the conversation. When he asked again and she responded "Manhattan" - that should've ended the conversation...
7.) When #Trump asked where are "your people" from & she is then forced to answer that her parents are Korean - he is robbing this woman of all of the hard work, intellect & skill she has invested into her profession. Where she or her parents are from has zero bearing on her job.
8.) When #DonadlTrump then asks why the “pretty Korean lady” wasn’t negotiating with #NorthKorea - he has somehow managed to combine #sexism with #racism #stereotyping to further demean and insult this woman...
9.) It's one thing if someone volunteers information about their culture, background, family & upbringing. But until they do, it's none of your business and should have no role in how you judge/evaluate/view them as professionals or human beings...
10.) @realDonaldTrump owes this "pretty Korean lady" an apology for his at best, ignorant comments. And just as people folks, next time you think about asking someone "where are you from" - be mindful of context & maybe start first: "I grew up in upstate NY, how bout you?"
11.) you’ve heard my story ... I’d love to hear yours. Share it and let’s start a thoughtful and respectful conversation
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