Exposing white Finnish privilege #70: At the dentist’s and where are you from?

There have been a number of social media posts about how health-care workers assume what is your cultural and linguistic background. Not only do they make the assumption, but label you in such a way.

While some of you may say that I am being hypersensative, what would a black USAmerican think if I asked him if he spoke English and where he was from?

I have lived most of my adult life in Finland and I still get asked by some health officials if I speak Finnish and where I’m from.

Here is a short dialogue of what happened this week at the dentist’s.

The dentist asks in English if I speak Finnish.

Me: “Yes I do” (responding in Finnish).

Dentist: “Oh, ok, but where are you from? You have a foreign name.”

At this moment I felt a bit uncomfortable. Why should I explain my background to the dentist? It’s my teeth that she should worry about.

Me: “I was born in Argentina, grew up in the States and my mother is Finnish.”

Even if I told her that “I grew up in the United States,” she determined that I was only from South American.

Dentist: “My husband is a foreigner and we have travelled in South American countries like Peru, Chile and Bolivia.”

Me: “Is your husband from South America?”

Dentist taken slighly aback: “No, he’s German.”

I told the dentist that in this day and age, there are a lot of Finns that don’t have Finnish-sounding names.

FINNISH WHITE PRIVILEGE #70

I hope that Finnish children are giving a different education about Finnish identity and Finns than what the middle-aged dentist received.

The dentist’s questions about my background felt like a rude example of white Finnish privilege.

See also:

• Defining white Finnish privilege #1: I have it and you don’t
• Defining white Finnish privilege #2: Third culture children versus “pupil with immigrant background” 
• Defining white Finnish privilege #3 No history, no doctrine, no heroes and no martyrs
• Defining white Finnish privilege #4 Holding the short end of the stick
• Defining white Finnish privilege #5 It’s ok to be a racist
• Defining white Finnish privilege #6 Not having a voice and the media
• Defining white Finnish privilege #7 A definitive guide
• Defining white Finnish privilege #8 Underrated and less intelligent
• Defining white Finnish privilege #9 Mohammad Ali’s insight
• Defining white Finnish privilege #10 I can victimize and make up any story I like about migrants because I’m white
• Defining white Finnish privilege #11: Case Teuvo Hakkarainen
• Defining white Finnish privilege #12: Case Tom Packalén
• Defining white Finnish privilege #13: Case Matti Putkonen
• Defining white Finnish privilege #14: Losing sight of the real issue
• Defining white Finnish privilege #15: Case Halla-ago on the PS
• Defining white Finnish privilege #16: Rosa Emilia Clay and my history versus yours
• Defining white Finnish privilege #17: The Perussuomalaiset and our civil rights
• Defining white Finnish privilege #18: Labeling others according to your prejudice
• Defining white Finnish privilege #19: My rape statistics about your group
• Defining white Finnish privilege #20: Labeling Others to strengthen “us” and “them.”
• Defining white Finnish privilege #21: Who can be a Finn?
• Defining white Finnish privilege #22: From racist, fascist to a politician without memory
• Defining white Finnish privilege #23: Greater police powers to monitor migrants and minorities
• Defining white Finnish privilege #24: Becoming a heartless accomplice in wars and people’s suffering
• Defining white Finnish privilege #25: This land is my land, this isn’t your land
• Defining white Finnish privilege #26: Are you an ethnic Finn?
• Defining white Finnish privilege #27: White versus Other media
• Defining white Finnish privilege #28: Are you an ethnic Finn (Part 2)?
• Defining white Finnish privilege #29: Your family is worth less than mine
• White Finnish privilege #30: Whitewashing and racializing the news
• White Finnish privilege #31: The Soldiers of Odin and the Finnish media
• White Finnish privilege #32: The white Finnish police and “them” 
• White Finnish privilege #33: Appropriating our narrative to maintain the status quo, amass more power and privilege
• White Finnish privilege #34: Building a political career on privilege and nativist nationalism   
• White Finnish privilege #35: Case Sampo Terho and the ministry of (dis)culture
• White Finnish privilege #36: Hate speech and censorship
• White Finnish privilege #37: The master of near-everything
• Defining white Finnish privilege #38: Cultural appropriation and racism are quaint discussion topics between white Finns
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #39: The Hollywood ending of racism that will never happen in Finland
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #40: To whitewash or to disenfranchise
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #41: An Islamophobic politician and gender equality 
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #42: Labeling and shaming
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #43: White versus dark skin
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #44: Defending Nazis’ rights to march is ok as long we agree on the common enemy
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #45: Do blondes have more fun? 
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #46: Teuvo Hakkarainen = white racism and sexism 
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #47: President Sauli Niinistö’s “culture inside four walls”
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #48: Allow me to smear your religion so mine can shine
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #49: When white privilege backfires 
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #50: Caving in to white narratives
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #51: The police are the defenders of white power and privilege
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #52: Having no privilege is dangerous
• White Finnish privilege #53: Plan Finland’s unplanned pregnancy campaign #ProtectBlackGirlsToo #Whatofme
• White Finnish privilege #54: Disguising your racism, bigotry, and prejudices effectively
• White Finnish privilege #55: It’s that time of the year – Christmas! 
• White Finnish privilege #56: How Islamophobic is Finland?
• White Finnish privilege #57: Finland’s “hostile environment” against migrants
• White Finnish privilege #58: How the police, media and politicians fuel Finland’s hostile environment against Muslims and migrants
• White Finnish privilege #59: In this country, you are guilty before proven innocent
• White Finnish privilege #60: Oulu, OULU! Awaken and sniff the racist coffee.
• Exposing Finnish white privilege #61: #NoRacismInUniversity #WeAreNotSkinColour
• Exposing Finnish white privilege #62: On free speech and scared white men
• Exposing Finnish white privilege #63: Silence and acting dumb are the swords of institutional racism
• Exposing Finnish white privilege #64: The cancer of institutional racism in Finland
• Exposing Finnish white privilege #65: Racism exists because our society profits from it
• Exposing Finnish white privilege #66: Abdirahim Husu Hussein and dealing with racist passengers in a racist environment
• Exposing Finnish white privilege #67: Pirkka-Pekka Petelius’ apology exposes deep-rooted white Finnish supremacy
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #68: The party that injects Finland’s Islamophobia with steroids and other hate-enhancing drugs
• Exposing white Finnish privilege #69: At the dentist – do you speak Finnish?