I grew up asking people where they were from. It was a natural question in my community, a community built by many different immigrant groups. In fact, the city that I grew up in could easily be delineated into cultural/religious groups when I was young. In one neighborhood alone, there was an Irish section, French section, Italian section, Jewish section and Polish section all within a five miles radius. As a child, that common question, "Where are you from?" helped people to make connections to one another and find common experiences. A typical trip to downtown for me included lots and lots of connection making as my mom asked store clerks, waiters, waitresses, people in the elevator, and everywhere else that we went where they were from and then the conversations would move on from there.
Today, however, many have demonstrated worry, disinterest, and insult to the question, Where are you from? While difficult for me to understand this since it was such a common question during my growing-up years, I understand that the question looks and feels differently depending on where you come from and the experiences you've had. I'm more sensitive to asking that question today, though I still love to know where people are from because I like to learn about the people and world around me, and there's no better way to get a sense of culture or experience than to hear first-hand accounts.
As I dig deeply into my family history project, I am thinking a lot about the connections between the places people live and the lives they've had. In Worcester, where I grew up and whose history I still follow via a Facebook history thread where many share stories of Worcester's history and their own experiences as well as reading books and articles, there appears to be a great deal of pride in the city's history. There was a lot of good living in Worcester over time and still today. Often, I meet people who live in Worcester today who represent newer immigrant groups, and not unlike my grandparents and great grandparents, there seems to be a great deal of pride and support for one another in Worcester still. It remains a place where you can live a good life, though like any area in our country, there's always room for betterment.
Where we are from greatly impacts our lives. My rich Irish and Polish history is a big part of who I am. Both families highly regarded education, and that's one reason why my parents were so supportive of my own education, and why, in part, I chose to be a teacher. We have many teachers in our family. Our families supported one another a lot, and I still believe that is very important. Many had a love of nature and the outdoors which I carry forward too.
Yet, no one's history or where they are from can sustain them alone, and that is why it is so important to find ways to reach out and learn about the history, geography, culture, and experiences of people from other backgrounds. My life is far better today because I adopted many traditions from cultures different from my own--traditions that were empowering, true to my spirit, open minded, and energizing. When you visit the historic homes and museums in Massachusetts' North Shore, you can feel the intrigue that explorers and traders from hundreds of years ago had about other cultures. This is visible through the stories shared and artifacts collected. We are intrigued by one another and enriched by each others' experiences and ways of living. Yet, throughout time, that intrique and curiosity has been too often coupled with oppression, insensitivity, prejudice, judgement, and injustice.
The question, Where are you from?, will remain a question I am curious about, but I want to be sensitive as to how I utilize this question. I welcome your wisdom in this regard. Onward.
I received these wise responses.
Harvard Business School article: https://hbr.org/2020/10/whats-wrong-with-asking-where-are-you-from
 |