Read the article “8 Things NEVER to Say to a Mixed-Race Colleague” and then you’ll understand my 8 responses.
1. Do people actually ask this directly? Jesus!
2. I look foreign as compared to what?
3. See? I don’t make this stuff up. Apparently, mixed race people get told they’ll make beautiful babies all the time.
4. Is this like when someone asked me if I’d choose Israel or the Dominican Republic or America in a war?
5. People like asking me how my husband and I met. Sometimes, unfortunately, they ask it like they can’t believe we ever got together. Not very nice.
6. My sister argues she has the best of both worlds. She celebrates Jewish holidays and isn’t actually Jewish. So matzah is a choice. She should be Jewish though mostly because she is the only person I know who can break down matzah.
7. I never get enough of this one. My husband’s cousin says she wants to sound “teal.”
8. And some of us are more mixed up than others.
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 
If I had a nickel for every time I was asked one of these questions, I’d be a very wealthy girl. Another thing that really irritates me is when people are shocked that I’ve finished a degree already, and that I’m now in law school- is it really so surprising that a biracial female is actually doing something productive? Or whenever I take my younger brother out (he’s 9 years younger than me), people assume that he’s my child. Both of these I find extremely insulting, so I think that when I hear the things listed in the article posted I don’t get nearly as upset. I just recently began a conversion into Judaism, and I’m really glad I found your blog- the community where I am converting is very homogenous, and though they’re very welcoming, I still sometimes feel like an outsider. I also really enjoy hearing how you blend your own traditions with Jewish ones, it’s nice to know that I won’t have to give up my Irish and Jamaican roots, I’ll just have to put in a little work to synthesize them! Keep up the good work, I really do enjoy your posts!
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I knew you would like the list, that’s why I sent it to you. I had a friend with absolutely horrible problems this weekend, so I kind of broke Shabbat to keep her sane and from self harm. My reward, some random Jewish person asked me about my “origins,” I found the list and flipped out. As a multiracial Jewish female, I’m really sick of this. Amusingly, I sent him a copy of the Ashkenazi Privilege Checklist, told him which items her violated, and deleted his reply. It felt good.
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I think people don’t realize that when you’ve heard something for the thousandth time, you’re liable to snap. When it really comes down to it, it’s all about education. People need to learn how to talk to each other.
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I get that question all the time. You should see the reaction when I say oh I’m from NYC. The next question goes something like this: Where is your family from? or Where are you really from? In a very low tone I have been giving the “I’m really from NYC like I said before”. 🙂
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I’m really glad so many people connected with my post. It is a great article. Mostly because it says a lot of the stuff I’ve been saying over and over and over (SORRY!) on my blog. But I feel like when it’s just one person saying it, people don’t get the message at all.
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