I am mixed-race American. When you do not fit into the binary of Black &White..people constantly question you. Someone once said that asking, "Where are you from is a polite way to say that you do not belong."
And it just does not come from White people.
Earlier this year I was at the Meijer on Ann Arbor- Saline road and spoke to someone who identified as Black. She said the most racism she got was from other minorities. One day, I was in the local TJMaxx and a chocolate skinned person (I don't want to assume race but he could have been Black) asked me what nationality I was. When I said American..he asked, "American and so dark?"
Recently, two brown skinned men with thick accents at the local Salvation Army came up to me and asked if I was Mexican-American. I said, "No, but I am Native American." One of them said, "Well, we are ALL Native American.."
Then finally an uber driver from another country said, "You speak perfect English..but your color/face is different..where are you from?"as we almost crashed into the car in front of us.
Like a lot of these racist people Isaac asked me in rude way, "Where are you from?"
He was basically trying to figure out why I was not White. And making me feel that I do not belong.
He needs to understand that brown people, Native people, and mixed- people are American. Maybe these people including Isaac are not American or feel that they are not American enough- but just because they feel that way does not make me less American.