What It's Like To Be Middle-Eastern In America
Start writing a post
Arts Entertainment

13 Things You Hear If You're Half Middle-Eastern Born And Raised in America

People have said these things, repeatedly.

273
13 Things You Hear If You're Half Middle-Eastern Born And Raised in America
https://pixabay.com/en/persian-cat-cat-persians-2461526/

You know what's really annoying? Being ogled at and having the fact that you're Middle-Eastern when you're not even doing Middle-Eastern things pointed out all the time. These are some common comments and questions that are frequently said. Included are the sassy responses that go through my head every time. Do I ever say them out loud? No. Will I say them here for my own entertainment and yours? 100-percent yes. Enjoy.

"What are you?"

media.giphy.com

This is honestly one of the rudest questions. It's like "What are you? An animal? A tree?" Um, I'm a human being. This question is capital "R" Rude because it's a question that's basically saying "it should be obvious what question I'm asking because you should be used to being dehumanized by now". Ummmm NO. Proper question, "what ethnicity are you?" You're welcome.

"No, but like, where are you really from?"

media.giphy.com

When you ask me where I'm from and I tell you Michigan, and you retort with "no, where are you really from?", I am still from Michigan, because, you know, I was born there. Again, the question they're really asking is "what ethnicity are you?" and again, you're welcome.

"You don't act brown"

media.giphy.com

If you've been born and raised in the USA there's a good chance you have adhered to more American culture than Middle-Eastern and have a tendency to act accordingly, which then prompts this stupid question from other people because in their minds you're brown on the outside but act "white" on the inside so really "you don't act brown" also translates to "why are you white?". Dumbasses.

"Why do you have so much hair?"

media.giphy.com

Because, I'm fabulous. Look, I know I have a lot of hair. I got it on my arms, my toes, and all over my face. Girl, you bet I know my mustache is poppin'. You wanna pet it? Us Middle-Eastern's are just naturally thick and dark haired, get over it.

"I love your eyebrow. . .s"

media.giphy.com

Thank you. No, I don't have to do anything to them other than pluck them a lot. AND I'm fully aware that you were hinting at the fact that I currently have one eyebrow. I've been lazy, I just haven't plucked in the middle for a while. It's fine.

"Do you know any terrorists?"

media.giphy.com

Seriously? Of course I don't. That was stupid. Next question please. Or better yet, maybe don't.

"You're Muslim, right?"

media.giphy.com

When you assume you make an "ass" of "u" and "me". Not everyone that's Middle-Eastern is Muslim, stop trying to make yourself look cultured, you failed, go home.

"When did you learn English?"

media.giphy.com

Same time as you, love. Same time as you.

"You speak English really well!"

media.giphy.com

Yeah, I've only lived here my entire life.

"You remind me of Frida Khalo."

media.giphy.com

It's the eyebrow thing again isn't it? (Sigh).

"What kind of brown are you?"

media.giphy.com

What bullshit question did you just ask me? Try again. Hint: the question you're looking for is "What ethnicity are you?"

"Your mom is white? OMG you look nothing like her!"

media.giphy.com

First of all: WRONG. I am my momma's carbon copy, I am just the brown version. I guess they when they said "I don't see color" what they meant was "I'm over-compensating cause all I see is color".

"Were you adopted?"

media.giphy.com

Just because you see me hanging out with my white parent does not mean that my other parent is also white. Y'all just assuming that there are these homogeneous couples. Also, again, I look just like my mom. Lame.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Featured

Writer of the Month: Emily Templeton

Get to know Miami University alumni and top creator Emily Templeton!

198
Writer of the Month: Emily Templeton

The talented team of response writers make our world at Odyssey go round! Using our response button feature, they carry out our mission of sparking positive, productive conversations in a polarized world.

Keep Reading...Show less
Top 3 Response Articles of This Week!
c1.staticflickr.com

Happy Memorial Day from Odyssey! We're excited to welcome in the summer season with our creator community. Each week, more writers are joining Odyssey while school's on break- and you could, too! Check out the bottom of the article to learn how.

Here are the top three response articles of last week:

Keep Reading...Show less
We Need More Than Memorials this Memorial Day
Cape Cod Irish

When I was a child, I used to look forward to Memorial Day Weekend from the time I returned to school after Christmas vacation. It was the yearly benchmark announcing the end of the school year and the beginning of summer vacation. It meant I was one step closer to regattas, swim meets and tennis matches.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

5 fun Summer Vacations that won't break your bank

Enjoy the sun, relax the wallet - here are the estimated costs

3216
5 fun Summer Vacations that won't break your bank
Endless Ocean
We compiled the costs related to 5 enriching summer vacations for this year in the thrifty sense:
Keep Reading...Show less
sunglasses

I remember how exciting summer was when I was a kid. I would just be eagerly waiting for school to end so that I could fly to some exotic location with my family for the summer. Or hang out with my friends every day. Or just lay around in bed or read, paint, draw, basically do whatever.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments