So, shameful confession time.
I can't tell the difference between Chinese, South Korean, North Korean, Japanese, and Taiwanese just by looking at people. I know the difference if I'm looking at a map, obviously, but people? No.
Likewise, I don't really expect white people to be able to tell the difference between Bengali, Indian, and Sri Lankan people. Not unless they've spent a significant amount of time in one of those countries.
See, I have a friend from Bangladesh who was insulted when someone mistook her for being from India. I get asked if I'm from India all the time, and I usually just laugh and say "No, Sri Lanka" because hey, at least they were on the right continent and that's something. But when I think about it, I wonder if maybe I should take it a little more seriously because the sentence "Oh, but they all look alike" sounds so ignorant to me.
At the same time, though, I think the idea of thinking everyone of a particular ethnicity looks alike is more insulting if you're failing to distinguish between individuals as opposed to knowing what country they come from. Consider the two scenarios:
Person A: Hi, Chamithri!
Person B: ...I'm not Chamithri. I'm Dilkushi.
Person A: Oh, sorry. It's just that you all look alike to me.
versus
Person A: Hi! Listen, I was wondering, I was thinking about going to India for the summer and do you know any good places to visit?
Person B: No, sorry, never been there.
Person A: But aren't you Indian?
Person B: No, I'm from Pakistan.
Person A: Oh, I'm sorry. Everyone from thereabouts just looks alike to me.
To me, the second one is a lot less offensive because the differences are subtle enough that I wouldn't expect them to be able to judge people's origins by their faces or skin color. The first one, however, is just plain rude because it means that not only are you not paying attention to the people you meet but you're also trying to brush it off by lumping everyone into a big mass of brown or black or yellow or whatever color.
If anyone ever said "All white people look the same to me", they'd be considered an idiot. If they said that they can't tell the difference between people from France, Germany and Italy based on appearance, it would probably be allowed to slide.
Moral of the post? Appearances can be deceptive, and of everyone on my flist, I know the ethnicities of only very few of you. If you want me to try to guess yours, leave me a comment daring me to guess, and I'll have a try. No getting offended if I get it wrong! XD
I can't tell the difference between Chinese, South Korean, North Korean, Japanese, and Taiwanese just by looking at people. I know the difference if I'm looking at a map, obviously, but people? No.
Likewise, I don't really expect white people to be able to tell the difference between Bengali, Indian, and Sri Lankan people. Not unless they've spent a significant amount of time in one of those countries.
See, I have a friend from Bangladesh who was insulted when someone mistook her for being from India. I get asked if I'm from India all the time, and I usually just laugh and say "No, Sri Lanka" because hey, at least they were on the right continent and that's something. But when I think about it, I wonder if maybe I should take it a little more seriously because the sentence "Oh, but they all look alike" sounds so ignorant to me.
At the same time, though, I think the idea of thinking everyone of a particular ethnicity looks alike is more insulting if you're failing to distinguish between individuals as opposed to knowing what country they come from. Consider the two scenarios:
Person A: Hi, Chamithri!
Person B: ...I'm not Chamithri. I'm Dilkushi.
Person A: Oh, sorry. It's just that you all look alike to me.
versus
Person A: Hi! Listen, I was wondering, I was thinking about going to India for the summer and do you know any good places to visit?
Person B: No, sorry, never been there.
Person A: But aren't you Indian?
Person B: No, I'm from Pakistan.
Person A: Oh, I'm sorry. Everyone from thereabouts just looks alike to me.
To me, the second one is a lot less offensive because the differences are subtle enough that I wouldn't expect them to be able to judge people's origins by their faces or skin color. The first one, however, is just plain rude because it means that not only are you not paying attention to the people you meet but you're also trying to brush it off by lumping everyone into a big mass of brown or black or yellow or whatever color.
If anyone ever said "All white people look the same to me", they'd be considered an idiot. If they said that they can't tell the difference between people from France, Germany and Italy based on appearance, it would probably be allowed to slide.
Moral of the post? Appearances can be deceptive, and of everyone on my flist, I know the ethnicities of only very few of you. If you want me to try to guess yours, leave me a comment daring me to guess, and I'll have a try. No getting offended if I get it wrong! XD