So I’m a Taiwanese-American born in the States and currently living in Canada. I went to the local asian grocery store recently to satiate my craving for kway teow and egg tofu and chive dumplings, and at the hot food section as I was paying for my stuff the cashier started talking loudly in Cantonese to another cashier and they kept looking at me and commenting and giggling in a really rude manner. I could guess from a few words that they were saying ”Hey do you think that’s a girl or a boy” and all I wanted to do was slap them. But instead I just ignored them, paid my groceries and walked away.

Does anyone else here ever encounter this? and if so what do you do? I feel like all my most obtuse encounters with homophobia tend to be when I am surrounded by Chinese culture (see: awkward Chinese New Year dinners, a similarly horrifying point-and-stare-and-loudly-comment-to-other-person experience in a restroom in Shanghai, etc…). It just sucks because I want to learn more about the culture my parents came from, but then things like this happen when I’m not even trying do anything but get groceries! and then I give up because I think I’d never fit in anyway.