Speaking Up
It happened in a swanky Bay Area hotel. We had finished a long day and had gotten together to debrief and socialize before all heading back to our homes throughout the Bay Area and beyond. It was a work event. Everyone was enjoying finger foods and drinks and making small talk. We talked about the weather. Because that's what you do. And that's when one of my colleagues (an older White man) casually made a joke about how someone's wife was so cheap that she won't turn on the heater until it's below 40 degrees. He said something about her being Asian and implied that her cheapness was due to her Asian-ness. I was so shocked. I couldn't believe my ears. The anger welled up from inside me. I looked at him directly and spat out the words. "She did that because she's cheap! Not because she's Asian!" I turned to the Southasian American woman colleague, let's call her Priya, sitting next to me and asked, "Did he just really say that?" ...