How should people answer the "Where are you from" question? Asking where someone "is really from" can be hurtful. I don't think this is really understood in Japan. I love to flip the equation, to ask "Where in Japan were you born?" to people who are clearly non-Japanese, but who seem to have been living here for a long time. Living in Japan as non-native, it's probably the first time they've ever been asked that question. It never ceases to delight. In a homogenous society, being considered an insider — even if it's performative and from a place of knowing, almost like a wink — can be a tiny gift of being made to feel not The Other, if only for a second. — Craig Mod, writer, July 27
