MS, welcome to the site, btw.
I think the main issue for me isn't what "they" say or don't, but rather it's the fact that they've not thought at all about what they say. Stereotypes aren't necessarily all bad, but people need to be aware of what stereotype they're promulgating, and whether those stereotypes hinder their targets in any way. To some degree, "sticks and stones, etc." but on the other hand, am I to be reduced to "slant eyes," or "Chink," or "gook?" What message does someone convey when they say in my presence, "No tickee, no washee?" Is that the way they see me, or do they think of me as "white?" Being nearsighted and a know-it-all as a kid, there were the additional taunts of "4-eye" and "nerd." I actually liked being compared to Mr. Peabody, since he could time travel, so that was kind of cool.
However, there are places I've paid money to get in, and almost immediately turned around and walked out, just because it was made clear to me that "Chinks" weren't welcome. In general, Asians get the benefit of the doubt, out stereotype is that we're high achievers and smart, but there's always an undercurrent of resentment for things that we achieve, as those are considered to be "oppressions" of the people that don't achieve. A white, female, junior-high classmate actually sued our school district because she didn't get into the magnet high school, and somehow, she won, resulting in a reverse-discrimination where Asians were then required to have a half-point higher GPA to get into that high school, compared to any other race.
TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert!
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