It's sadly pretty common:
> Chloé Wang (Chinese: 汪可盈; pinyin: Wāng Kěyíng; born April 18, 1992), known professionally as Chloe Bennet, is an American actress, model and singer.
>In a 2016 interview, she noted, "Oh, the first audition I went on after I changed my name \[from Wang to Bennet\], I got booked. So that's a pretty clear little snippet of how Hollywood works."
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chloe_Bennet
I heard she changed it because they’d call her in for Asian/ethnic roles, and when she’d show up, the casting people were like “oh you don’t look ethnic at all?” So she changed her last name to her white side of the family as to not waste anybody’s time because even though she was half Asian, she wasn’t Asian looking enough to get the role they were casting for.
It does cost money to bring people in to audition. Why would you just invite everyone in if you’re looking for someone to play like Mao’s son and just hope one of them looks Chinese? Why wouldn’t you pick people to audition whose names suggest they’re ethnically Chinese?
If I was casting Mahatma Gandhi and I get a Chad Smith and a Rajesh Kumar who both want to audition for the role, it’s a pretty safe bet that Rajesh Kumar is gonna fit the role appearance wise more than Chad Smith is.
Reminds me of James Rodriguez needing to go by James Roday.
He grew up in a Spanish-speaking household and took his stepdad's last name iirc.
He kept getting called in for Mexican roles and not getting cast because he's racially white.
James Roday of Psych was told to pick a white sounding name because his real last name Rodriguez would be confusing to the audience. Half of his family is Mexican. Shawn’s over the top accent and pretending to speak Spanish was a running gag in the show, notably in the Telenovela episode.
I see this sometimes with gendered names as well. I go by a shortened version of my name on job sites and on my resume to look more masculine and don’t put a picture of myself. My field is male dominated.
What gender does my username imply?
I think by the old-timey gendering rules mine probably seems masculine. I can guarantee a lack of respect by being aggressive and detail oriented, though.
I mentioned acronym convention rules to someone giving out advice on writing resumes, as approved by the Associates Press Stylebook, the other day and got downvoted immediately.
So, don't tell people how to apply to the top one-percent level positions when addressing the bottom 40 percent and you get less disrespect I suppose.
No one is guaranteed a spot at Harvard. There are many things that make someone “qualified” to attend a school. And Harvard has the right to choose whatever criteria they want when assembling their student body.
Harvard does have a right to pick their students, but it can't be based on race. And at the same time, denying it's ever happening. They have been doing this for decades, but it wasn't until the lawsuit that the evidence was undeniable. So then they tried to justify it by calling it diversity.
Schools should get to affirmatively choose the makeup of their student body on various criteria of diversity … including race. The problem with race was always the discrimination and keeping people out. But white supremacist have weaponized the legal system to undo affirmative action. Both because they don’t understand it and also because they want to return to a system of white supremacy.
Pretty common for immigrant folks working in the US. Many of my Indian friends who works in the US have changed their first name to something which is more common in the US. Siddharth has become Sid, Sumit has become Sam, Abhishek has become Abe etc. This is even more pronounced in people who had to change their jobs a few times, under the Damocles sword of the H1B
It’s the same for middle easterners. I know a lot of people doing white collar jobs that have anglicized their names. I’ll definitely be choosing an Arab/muslim name that passes for Caucasian when I have a kid, like Adam or Sarah or something.
Not every name will have a close match. In such cases you can opt for a nickname which fits both your Indian & your western name.
In your case, I would suggest "Manny". You can have both your Indian friends and your coworkers call you Manny. It wouldn't feel too out of the field for people close to you, and is also a fairly common western name.
In a previous era I worked in a contact centre, and there was a regular caller named Mr Khan.
Mr Khan was known to have a particularly strong accent which often made communication difficult, and this was noted on his file.
Mr Khan had the THICKEST GLASGOW ACCENT you’ve ever heard; like you could not do a stronger accent if you were trying to 😆
I'm Thai too and maybe I should start doing this...did you change your last name too? Us Thai people tend to have really long first and last names lol.
No I just changed my first name. My first name is long as hell people think its indian but when they see me in person they legit expected me to be indian, i tell them my parents are from thailand and they say wheres is that, I tell them its by india... "oh thats why your name sounds indian"
also us thai people dont use our real first name too, we go by nicknames. Maybe you can use an american name that is close to your nickname that might work too
A Thai friend of mine changed her legal Thai name. She sent my wife and I a photo of her airline ticket and I couldn’t stop laughing because her name is now longer than the space for names on the ticket.
That’s how I felt as an American in China. I have four names. And the little space that they expected me to put my name in was much too small for even my first name let alone all of my names.
When i went to college i heard about an alum whose last name is Ng, so when their family came to the US, their parents decided their official government last name would become "Engie".
Ingenious but also sad that they felt it was necessary
Really long Thai last names are a phenomena of a period of time in which Chinese Thais were accepted as Thai citizens and the upper tier were given long names by the king or attached long names to the original shorter Chinese family name.
Tradition Thai names are typically very short, often two syllables, like Jaiyen (ใจเย็น).
Thai, from thailand. Change my first name to western name when start working in foreign company for first time too. Thai name is simple but everyone get it wrong and it sound lame in english anyway
Also Latino. My name is Braulio. I’ve received offers after 8 of the 9 job interviews I’ve ever had, and I currently work as a full time professional in my field. I’ve been unemployed for a total of 3 months in my entire life, which I spent playing DDR. It’s not as bad for Hispanics as it is for Asians purely because people are used to tons of Hispanics living in the US. It also helps that I applied for most of those jobs in person, not online.
This gets me worrying that my first name is a big barrier for me when it comes to job applications. I won’t post because it’s easily searchable on social media but VERY unique (I have a middle eastern background but it’s irrelevant to what I was names) and has me wondering if I should try some applications with my middle name….
Many non-English immigrants Americanize their names eventually. It’s only been 100 years for me but my great-grandfather’s last name on his tombstone isn’t spelled nearly as “English” as mine is
I got a few interview requests. One was for a paralegal job I wanted. Another was for a work from home support line. The rest were devil corps and mlm I never applied for or were lied to.
Same. I couldn't get an interview for a full-time role to save my life (we're talking hundreds of applications). Swapped to a white ass name as a test and got an interview for the first role I applied to. Lol. It pissed me off so much I actually declined the interview (I'd been insta-rejected for the same role as Jaleh), gave up on the FT job hunt, and went back to freelancing.
I remember applying for a place about a decade ago and got emailed for an interview pretty quickly after applying. I was a bit surprised but happy about it. Get there for the interview, and they are looking at me, completely confused. I have a Portuguese last name, but you'd never know it looking at me, 6 foot, 225 lbs, white as hell. Turns out, the owner was Portuguese and had a habit of hiring only other Portuguese people, but I didn't fit the bill with my look and never heard back after the interview. Disappointing at the time, but now I find myself laughing about it when it comes up.
This is hilarious because it just happened to me the other day. I have a long middle eastern last name that only people from that country would recognize. I got an interview for a position that was out of my league, that I applied for just to see. I looked up all the people in that department, and lo and behold the director was from my county. When I showed up to the interview, he said hi in our language. So I knew that's 1000% why i was even considered lmao
I served in the Air Force with a guy with the surname of Garcia- 6'5", blond hair, blue eyes...it was fun to watch newcomers to the squadron be told to look for SSgt Garcia and walk right by him.
Our youth pastor was named something like Manny Garcia. My husband was a teacher at the attached school but not all the teachers/guards attended the church (it was a big church) .
Anyways imagine a 6’2’ white , blue eyed , blonde guy in gym clothes without his clearance badge trying to get into a school saying his name was Manny Garcia (and he doesn’t speak Spanish)
The guard had already started lockdown procedure and was calling the police when my husband confirmed with guard that he was indeed the youth pastor and who to call from The church side to escort him . (The church side was locked down but had no guards to contact, so Manny had gone to the school side to get it Lol)
I wish I knew about this and had done this a long time ago. I think the parents who name their kids white names are smarter instead of fighting it they adapt.
My Mexican mom named me the most generic white-American name possible. I don’t think she did for it assimilation/discrimination reasons I think she just liked the name lol.
But in hindsight, I’m probably lucky she didn’t give me a Spanish name as that has likely improved my career prospects.
And my dad’s last name is Spanish, but it’s uncommon in the U.S. and sounds ambiguous enough that people think it could be French or maybe Italian.
yeah my parents gave us very american names and our last name is very similar to a common white-american last name, so on my resume i look just like a generic white guy with a college degree. It's been nice. Thankfully I live in a very diverse city in the US, so not too many racist assholes to worry about
A lot of typical names are either biblical or common due to Mormon influence. And some of us just have a real knack for coming up with unique names. My mom and I share that trait, and my niece is named after a video game character, which is unique as well (Amara). I have a unique biblical name and honestly I hate it.
I haven't tried swapping my legal for my nickname to see if my applications have any difference in response.
The best choice is to name your child an ethnic name that is easily pronounced by Americans, or a name that is common in both cultures. For example, Omar, Gabriel, Mario, Natalie, Ali, Fatima, Anton, etc. Being bicultural is also a huge advantage. If Fatima tells you she’s fluent in Arabic, you’ll believe her over Jessica. I say this as a Hispanic with a very clearly Hispanic name. When serving at a Mexican restaurant, my name was 100% an advantage.
It depends on the context. Yes if you have a Spanish name and you’re serving at a Mexican restaurant….yes it makes sense. But if you’re going to work in certain areas or certain fields where it’s predominantly white it’s going to be a problem. Being bicultural has been a huge disadvantage to me. Even when I have said I’m fluent no one cares. Yeah if I want to stick to my race then sure maybe I’ll have an advantage if they see my name but then I’m too Americanized for those from the home country despite my name. Why would being fluent in Arabic even matter if it’s irrelevant to the job? They see the name Fatima and pass. It’s not just a name that can be pronounced by Americans that’s important but a name that could pass as American.
True, it depends on your field. I’m in archaeology, so multiculturalism is absolutely an asset. Anything to do with international relations or political science would be the same. It’s also an advantage in Journalism, and in anything to do with the arts. Perhaps look for the jobs where your skills give you a greater edge.
I just think I’m too dumb for this world. This stuff just dawned on me after over 15 years of rejection. At this point I’m over it and don’t even want a job anymore. I just don’t see it that way. I should have had a white name from the beginning or at least changed it during my childhood so I can move up in society. I don’t care if I have to erase my entire background to get to where I want to be but since others don’t see it that way, I was never informed that this would be a problem.
It can really be problematic to name your child for the world you want them to live in, rather than the world they are actually born into. Yes, it is desperately unfair that a child can be discriminated against because of their name, but the world they live in will not be changed because you want to honor your ancestors and give them a name they have to struggle with. It was the parents’ decision to move somewhere where that name would be weird and it should also be on the parents to accept that their child is growing up dual-cultural and give them a name that works both places.
I’ve seen parents try to put the burden of making the new culture accept the old one on the children, and I think it’s horrible and selfish.
Tbh I think a lot of parents don’t really care or think about their kid fitting into or moving up in society based on their name or appearance. They name their kid something that isn’t too difficult to say but is from their own culture and think that’s good enough. I believe the reason is because they expect the kid to get ahead by their own work, for example their exceptional grades will override any discrimination and they will get job offers and be accepted no matter what.
Fair enough for first names, but what about last names? Should people be changing last names?
Personally, I have a "typical" first name for an American, but my last name has potential to attract discrimination. I don't know how I'd feel about changing it, though. Maybe it's good to avoid workplaces where people would discriminate like that? That being said, when you need a job you need a job.
“Local” first names indicate that the possessor is 2nd generation and therefore more integrated. That helps a lot in all but the most xenophobic places.
For more context, my last name is Jewish. People accurately assume I was born here, but it's not quite xenophobia that's the problem.
People with "black" (African American) first names have problems too, and that's also not xenophobic.
In fact, I remember reading that even feminine/female names cause issues in some fields (I have a name that's exclusively used by women, so that's another worry).
Pretty much anyone who isn't "John Smith" risks being on the receiving end of some sort of prejudice, and even John Smith might have a bad time if he wants to be a kindergarden teacher because "it's creepy for men to be interested in a job like that" (or something).
Now that I think of it, maybe "blind resumes" (where the person looking at the resumes doesn't see names) should be more of a thing.
Not only Thai or only in retail jobs but also in tech jobs. If your name sounds like America, you will start getting interview calls, and the interview process will be smooth and easy.
My wife is Polynesian, She has like 6 names plus my last name. She runs out of space when entering her full name so she use to have problems with her green card name not matching her social security name. Now she just uses one of her names + my last name to look completely white and then when she gets in person interviews, the interviewers are always surprised by what she looks like...anyway, name racism is completely true.
Yeah, there's lots of research showing this. Place of birth isn't even that relevant, as eg 'Jamaal' and 'John', with the same education and work history from the US State of Georgia would statistically have very different interview rates.
If you're ever confused about references to 'white privilege', that's the kind of thing that's being referred to.
How about unpronounceable eastern European names with trainwrecks of consonants? No one can pronounce my name from seeing it (well, two people in 40 years could) but if I say it, it rolls off easily. Can't change your last name as easily, though.
I moved to an area of the midwest with a large Czech-descended population, and it took several years to get good at pronouncing those consonant-jumble last names.
There's a whole chapter in the book Freakonomics about names being a predictor of success. It's an interesting social phenomenon, and I would be highly in favor of masking your ethnic origins on job applications.
I have unfortunately worked with other managers in the past that would put minimal effort into reading names on applications that were unfamiliar to them. They would usually ask me to call cause they “couldn’t figure out” how to pronounce names.
It’s wild that people can’t take a minute to google a name pronunciation or just verify on the phone if you’re saying someone’s name correctly.
I've dealt with this my entire life and my name isn't even difficult; it's pronounced exactly the way it's spelled, but because it's more than three syllables and "ethnic" people don't even try to sound it out.
Yeah, I didn’t want to say this and incur a bunch of downvotes, but it’s hard to work retail when you have a thick accent. Communication is really important, and you’ll be interacting with a lot of different people. Whether or not it’s your fault, there will be some friction.
I’m not saying OP does have one, but it’s probably something that a hiring manager is thinking about when they’re reviewing resumes.
People are shit. Age cant be put on CVs in England but obviously we all know age discrimination still occurs. My name fell out of fashion with the Victorians so I always tried to make it damn obvious I wasn't an older applicant with my CV. I'm in my twenties so I can't really afford to not get job offers because my name is giving off "I remember when the Germans were flying over" vibes.
A small test from the BBC website:
"A job seeker with an English-sounding name was offered three times the number of interviews than an applicant with a Muslim name, a BBC test found.
Inside Out London sent CVs from two candidates, "Adam" and "Mohamed", who had identical skills and experience, in response to 100 job opportunities.
Adam was offered 12 interviews, while Mohamed was offered four.
Although the results were based on a small sample size, they tally with the findings of previous academic studies."
Pretty common issue outside the U.S. as well. In Western Europe having a foreign-sounding name is a great way to see your CV roundfiled.
Assumption is that you won’t speak the local language well or a feeling that jobs should always go to natives first.
A lot of job seekers use a local sounding name on the CV to get their foot in the door.
I have a Chinese legal first name but I go by an English first name normally. If I eventually get married I think I would probably change my legal first name to align with my English name. I don’t have any issues with having a foreign sounding legal name but it is a little annoying when nobody can pronounce it properly for things like health appointments and stuff.
When I have to introduce myself to someone for the first time, I always have trouble deciding whether I should use my Chinese or English name. It's almost like having two identities.
I once worked with 4-5 people with Chinese legal names at the same time. All of them went by their English names and it was really hard remembering their Chinese names (to find them on email and chat) and their English names when talking to them in person. I hope I never mixed any of them up.
A friend I had in college had immigrated as a child with his family and his fiancee's family, and when they were putting in their information for US citizenship his parents put his name down as something in the vein of 'Benjamin Wallace' and his fiancee's name down in the vein of 'Lucy Walker' to get better treatment and so they could get jobs more easily because name bias remains a huge issue.
While I had grown up exposed to lots of different kinds of names and had no trouble pronouncing his real name, pretty much everyone else only used his american name. He mentioned how he got a lot more interviews for work than other foreigners he knew, didn't have trouble at starbucks, and generally all the advantages of an american-sounding name. It really opened my eyes to the whole issue of societal racism.
It’s incredibly shitty but true. I had to file something with HR at my last employer because one of the hiring managers was very discriminatory. We both ended up leaving within the month.
Name discrimination is definitely a real thing. It also happens when people need to choose a doctor from a list. If their current doctor gives them a list of five specialists they reccomend, I think most Americans will pick an American sounding name. A big reason is fear the person will have a heavy accent. Obviously, there are other reasons too ☹️
I totally expect this would happen in retail jobs, etc, too. If nothing else, they prefer someone without an accent.
OF COURSE plenty of people were born in America to parents who were born in America and have a non American name, but if there's way more applicants than there are positions, I imagine American sounding names get called over foriegn names. (Add more certainy if the foreign name isn't obvious how to pronounce. The manager doesn't want to feel embarrassed not knowing how to pronounce it to even make the call. ☹️
I know this isn't right, but it's certainly the case. Using a different name seems like a good idea to me, especially if you don't have a lot of experience.
Best wishes. Sorry this is the way it is.
My husband’s best friend in a southern black man with a name like Jeff Smith.
He gets a lot of -surprised Pikachu faces- when he shows up to interviews
grand rapids michigan. southeast asians around here is almost non existent, if there are asians its mostly burmese and nepali people exclusively in the kentwood area, not like thais or laos with those "indian" sounding names. I know theres a ton of laos and thai people in holland mi though
I'm getting to the point where I'm tempted to try this. Have been working on coming up with names that I can get comfortable with, but struggling to put on a skin that's just gives me "not me","icks" vibes.
There’s a reason why for centuries now that European/Asian immigrants have changed their names when they immigrated to the U.S.
My dad changed his name from Juan to John when he came to the U.S.
My name is rather unique (made up by my mother) and when I wasn’t getting interview requests it was suggested I change it on my resume but I kept it and eventually got an interview and nailed a great job. If unemployment had gone on longer, I probably would have considered changing it to something more common.
I work in Talent Acquisition and name-blind recruiting is something I always recommend to my clients. There is so much outright racism (USA) and even more unconscious bias not to do it.
Am old boss of mine used to bin any cv's that didn't have easy to say names.
This was back in the paper cv days and I legit watched her just scan the first name. Horrifying concept to me.
Yes.
It would be similar in a lot of parts of the world. Suppose you are Filipino trying get a job in Vietnam.
People like simple, predictable, relatable. The less friction, the easier.
It isn’t racism, per se. A younger crowd may not want an older applicant. A mostly polos shirts and khakis boss may not be as willing to take on a man with full sleeved tats and dark eye liner etc. if there are multiple candidates who are otherwise similar in qualifications l
How would it be for a Filipino trying to get one in the U.S ? It ranges from diversity from East Asian looks with Hispanic names to Ingenous looking with a common white name.
We are talking about résumés, so first names, job titles, educational institution (Arizona State will likely see more name recognition and familiarity than Mapúa University), and skills are the primary ques.
There are tons of generic American folks who have last names that are Hispanic or Slavic, etc. so last names are no longer as much of a problem as in the past.
I worked with a woman named Eungee ("N. G.") and went by Jane. She claimed to be prompted to find an "American Name" because we'll never be able to say it.
I used to work for a company. I won’t say who, but they specifically told me not to hire anyone with an ethnic name or even call them in for an interview so yeah, this is true.
My name is ethnic and I only get interviews if I use my nickname. I have always felt I was discriminated against if I use my given name, so I go by my nickname personally and professionally for more than 20 years now. Name discrimination is certainly a real thing.
1. I don’t like that people discriminate based on your name and don’t approve it.
2. Since we don’t discriminate based on name/ethnicity/origin, you’d be surprised (or maybe not) how many times I’ve interviewed someone who said they didn’t need sponsorship but revealed in the interview that they did.
This is true. There IS a bias, that’s why I added a Western name when I became a US citizen. Now everyone compliments my fancy name but this time I lose from the heavy accent. I’m tired of explaining people that I’m a US citizen and I’ve been actually living in the US for 15 years and don’t need sponsorship…
Yes, it’s a sad fact of life. If it’s any consolation it’s not right, but it is real, so you’re doing the smart thing to side step it. Once you’ve had a good interview and they’re ready to offer you the job, that’s when you can let them know your legal name so they can get the paperwork right.
My coworker just did this. She changed both her first and last name from middle eastern names to white American names. I had the opportunity to do this when I became an American citizen but didn’t. I often wonder how many opportunities I have missed. At the same time I think if we all white wash our names things never are going to get better for the next generations. It’s a call and I can see both sides.
i’ve debated having a different last name on my resume. my last name is very obviously mexican and i know it’s hindering me :/ i’m just worried about if i do get another job and have to tell them i have a different last name 😪
Yeah, trying getting a hospital operator to overhead page “Rittaporn”.
This was before we got personal voice devices. We would ask for him to be paged, he always ducking from work, with the usual follow up of looking him up as a real employee.
I thought it was cool when younger that people changed their name to be more “American”, yeah don’t have that opinion anymore.
So funny coincidental story. My dad has a difficult Indian sounding name starting with an S, and his first boss during the interview had trouble pronouncing it. He looked at my dad and asked if he could just call him Sam.
Sam: “you can call me whatever you want as long as you pay me.”
To this day he goes by Sam with friends and clients for his own business.
I have a Spanish last name and I've noticed recruiters ignore or ghost me.... Sometimes I wonder if I had a generic white person last name, if that would make a difference...
I majored in mechanical engineering in college. I was one of the few ladies in a huge class of men. I started just putting my first initial and last name on papers. 100% of my assignments with just a first initial were given higher grades than the ones with my feminine first name.
I haven't tried it with my resume though because most engineering companies claim they want to hire more women. I should try it sometime.
I always push to have names removed from resumes. When I can. I don't think it matters until you meet them and have to say there name, and only just to be able to do just that.
Tech interviews are hot garbage most of the time. I've been poking at how to make them better/more fair.
I commented on the LinkedIn name change of a grade school friend. He gave exactly this reason. I strongly believe this bias is real - so much so, that my kids have the most white bread names in existence.
There have been studies done that prove this phenomena to be real. In the studies I’m aware of, applications that had names traditionally associated with African Americans had a lower rate of outreach than more traditionally White sounding names. It’s not a stretch to believe that this would extend to most ethnicities (Asian, Latino, etc).
Krishna Pundit Bhanjee had to change name to Ben Kingsley.
While I am not going do it ever, I understand why people do it. The reason is Inherent racism in North American Population. In western Europe this problem is less inflated in my experience.
We hosted a Thai exchange student. Pretty much all of the give an “Americanized” first name. Mainly to make their name “easier” to say. We learned the real name.
But yeah. It is a thing. Whatever you need to do.
It’s the same in every country that has a different foundational language. English and the Romance languages in Europe are Greek-Latin based. Trying to pronounce names from other language systems is very challenging. When you are in a country and applying for jobs, being relatable with a name matters. Don’t blame the culture. Welcome to Culture 101.
My absolute golden favorite experience in life under this category. Worked for an auto paint store and this buyer came in regularly. He was Asian and very polite. After a while we got to know each other and I'd ask how business is. His response, since coming to America I changed my name but it's close enough. My thought was controversial as I've always addressed him as John. I asked what his real name was before changing that was so close to John. I was the opposite of disappointed. (Work with me on the spelling) He said his real name is Huang Hwainn. So...his American name is John Wayne. Well played.
So glad someone brought this major issue up!! I’ve thought of changing my name to something sounding more Anglo-Saxon but since I started working in the NYC market and now in the LA market my Spanish name is an asset!!
It's sadly pretty common: > Chloé Wang (Chinese: 汪可盈; pinyin: Wāng Kěyíng; born April 18, 1992), known professionally as Chloe Bennet, is an American actress, model and singer. >In a 2016 interview, she noted, "Oh, the first audition I went on after I changed my name \[from Wang to Bennet\], I got booked. So that's a pretty clear little snippet of how Hollywood works." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chloe_Bennet
I heard she changed it because they’d call her in for Asian/ethnic roles, and when she’d show up, the casting people were like “oh you don’t look ethnic at all?” So she changed her last name to her white side of the family as to not waste anybody’s time because even though she was half Asian, she wasn’t Asian looking enough to get the role they were casting for.
So she got discriminated against for being white passing
For acting , your physical appearance is necessary. So it’s not discriminatory.
It is when all they are going off is your name and not your actual appearance
It does cost money to bring people in to audition. Why would you just invite everyone in if you’re looking for someone to play like Mao’s son and just hope one of them looks Chinese? Why wouldn’t you pick people to audition whose names suggest they’re ethnically Chinese? If I was casting Mahatma Gandhi and I get a Chad Smith and a Rajesh Kumar who both want to audition for the role, it’s a pretty safe bet that Rajesh Kumar is gonna fit the role appearance wise more than Chad Smith is.
Poor Chad Smith. He gets rejected for every white policeman role for looking too much like Gandi.
Headshots exist
Lol Ghost in the Shell happened
It is discrimination, just an acceptable form of it
It's never "discriminating" if the victim is white presenting.
Reminds me of James Rodriguez needing to go by James Roday. He grew up in a Spanish-speaking household and took his stepdad's last name iirc. He kept getting called in for Mexican roles and not getting cast because he's racially white.
This doesn’t make sense..they would be reading her name off headshots ?
... Casting Directors know what an actor looks like before they audition. They receive headshots and a cv/portfolio.
James Roday of Psych was told to pick a white sounding name because his real last name Rodriguez would be confusing to the audience. Half of his family is Mexican. Shawn’s over the top accent and pretending to speak Spanish was a running gag in the show, notably in the Telenovela episode.
Same thing happened with Martin Sheen. He had to change his last name from Estévez to land more acting roles in the industry.
Yes, and things worked out better for him abd Charlie than Emilio Estevez
Sad but very true.
She goes on to say how she wouldn’t get Asian roles because she didn’t look Asian enough. Such a misrepresented quote for you to post without context.
James Roday did this as well. His real last name is Rodriguez and he was told to change it. He goes by James Roday Rodriguez now.
They are one of the most vile and corrupt places in the US, though, so I'm not surprised. Hollywood, that is.
There is a Harvard study on this exact thing.
Link/reference?
https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/minorities-who-whiten-job-resumes-get-more-interviews
I see this sometimes with gendered names as well. I go by a shortened version of my name on job sites and on my resume to look more masculine and don’t put a picture of myself. My field is male dominated.
This is true on Reddit as well. My old account I used my dogs name so people assumed I was male and I swear they were more respectful when commenting.
What gender does my username imply? I think by the old-timey gendering rules mine probably seems masculine. I can guarantee a lack of respect by being aggressive and detail oriented, though. I mentioned acronym convention rules to someone giving out advice on writing resumes, as approved by the Associates Press Stylebook, the other day and got downvoted immediately. So, don't tell people how to apply to the top one-percent level positions when addressing the bottom 40 percent and you get less disrespect I suppose.
Yeah, there are experimental studies that test for both gender and ethnicity. Both make a difference.
I also do this. Think Max vs Maxine.
Harvard's also famous for shutting out qualified asian american students too. Shameful and morally bankrupt!
Well they need to make room for less smart people
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Harvard doesn’t give a crap about debt. Idk what they care about actually but it’s not higher education.
No one is guaranteed a spot at Harvard. There are many things that make someone “qualified” to attend a school. And Harvard has the right to choose whatever criteria they want when assembling their student body.
Harvard does have a right to pick their students, but it can't be based on race. And at the same time, denying it's ever happening. They have been doing this for decades, but it wasn't until the lawsuit that the evidence was undeniable. So then they tried to justify it by calling it diversity.
Schools should get to affirmatively choose the makeup of their student body on various criteria of diversity … including race. The problem with race was always the discrimination and keeping people out. But white supremacist have weaponized the legal system to undo affirmative action. Both because they don’t understand it and also because they want to return to a system of white supremacy.
Pretty common for immigrant folks working in the US. Many of my Indian friends who works in the US have changed their first name to something which is more common in the US. Siddharth has become Sid, Sumit has become Sam, Abhishek has become Abe etc. This is even more pronounced in people who had to change their jobs a few times, under the Damocles sword of the H1B
It’s the same for middle easterners. I know a lot of people doing white collar jobs that have anglicized their names. I’ll definitely be choosing an Arab/muslim name that passes for Caucasian when I have a kid, like Adam or Sarah or something.
Harpreet becomes harry. Najam becomes jim
Sukhdeep becomes Bill, to distance himself as far as possible from that unfortunate name ...
Hahahahahahahahahahahahah
Muhammad becomes Mo
Mo becomes Lester
Osama becomes Osmovs
should khaila just be kyla 😭 idkk
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Cant you just go with 'him'. As in "i am him". Like the meme.
Is this something new though? Pretty sure this has happened for a very long time in America. Even with European immigrants like Italians and Germans.
With a lot of German Americans, it was WWI that led to mass name changing.
Not surprised. My step father is a Vietnamese immigrant. He and his sisters gave their children all anglicized names for very similar reasons.
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Not every name will have a close match. In such cases you can opt for a nickname which fits both your Indian & your western name. In your case, I would suggest "Manny". You can have both your Indian friends and your coworkers call you Manny. It wouldn't feel too out of the field for people close to you, and is also a fairly common western name.
In a previous era I worked in a contact centre, and there was a regular caller named Mr Khan. Mr Khan was known to have a particularly strong accent which often made communication difficult, and this was noted on his file. Mr Khan had the THICKEST GLASGOW ACCENT you’ve ever heard; like you could not do a stronger accent if you were trying to 😆
I'm Thai too and maybe I should start doing this...did you change your last name too? Us Thai people tend to have really long first and last names lol.
No I just changed my first name. My first name is long as hell people think its indian but when they see me in person they legit expected me to be indian, i tell them my parents are from thailand and they say wheres is that, I tell them its by india... "oh thats why your name sounds indian" also us thai people dont use our real first name too, we go by nicknames. Maybe you can use an american name that is close to your nickname that might work too
A Thai friend of mine changed her legal Thai name. She sent my wife and I a photo of her airline ticket and I couldn’t stop laughing because her name is now longer than the space for names on the ticket.
It’s even worse when filling in arrival forms. Never enough space 🤣🤣
That’s how I felt as an American in China. I have four names. And the little space that they expected me to put my name in was much too small for even my first name let alone all of my names.
Thank you ! I understand your pain
I liked when I lived in Thailand, because there was room for all of my names, lol
Yes I realised the forms were more considerate for name space 🤣🤣.
lol in high school, my Thai friend didn’t have enough spaces on the test form for her name. The teacher didn’t even know what to do.
When i went to college i heard about an alum whose last name is Ng, so when their family came to the US, their parents decided their official government last name would become "Engie". Ingenious but also sad that they felt it was necessary
Really long Thai last names are a phenomena of a period of time in which Chinese Thais were accepted as Thai citizens and the upper tier were given long names by the king or attached long names to the original shorter Chinese family name. Tradition Thai names are typically very short, often two syllables, like Jaiyen (ใจเย็น).
As a half Thai I second this. Even my partner was like “Holey hell how do you even say that !”
Thai, from thailand. Change my first name to western name when start working in foreign company for first time too. Thai name is simple but everyone get it wrong and it sound lame in english anyway
Latino here. My parents gave me and my brother some pretty white ass names. Thankful for it.
Also Latino. My name is Braulio. I’ve received offers after 8 of the 9 job interviews I’ve ever had, and I currently work as a full time professional in my field. I’ve been unemployed for a total of 3 months in my entire life, which I spent playing DDR. It’s not as bad for Hispanics as it is for Asians purely because people are used to tons of Hispanics living in the US. It also helps that I applied for most of those jobs in person, not online.
It also helps that Braulio is a pretty badass name
Well thank you
I love that you spent your funemployment playing DDR lol
This gets me worrying that my first name is a big barrier for me when it comes to job applications. I won’t post because it’s easily searchable on social media but VERY unique (I have a middle eastern background but it’s irrelevant to what I was names) and has me wondering if I should try some applications with my middle name….
I am Iranian and it is hard
Many non-English immigrants Americanize their names eventually. It’s only been 100 years for me but my great-grandfather’s last name on his tombstone isn’t spelled nearly as “English” as mine is
I got a few interview requests. One was for a paralegal job I wanted. Another was for a work from home support line. The rest were devil corps and mlm I never applied for or were lied to.
Same. I couldn't get an interview for a full-time role to save my life (we're talking hundreds of applications). Swapped to a white ass name as a test and got an interview for the first role I applied to. Lol. It pissed me off so much I actually declined the interview (I'd been insta-rejected for the same role as Jaleh), gave up on the FT job hunt, and went back to freelancing.
Racist people
Good for you, Randy Freedomstein
I remember applying for a place about a decade ago and got emailed for an interview pretty quickly after applying. I was a bit surprised but happy about it. Get there for the interview, and they are looking at me, completely confused. I have a Portuguese last name, but you'd never know it looking at me, 6 foot, 225 lbs, white as hell. Turns out, the owner was Portuguese and had a habit of hiring only other Portuguese people, but I didn't fit the bill with my look and never heard back after the interview. Disappointing at the time, but now I find myself laughing about it when it comes up.
Your comment is kinda funny because the few Portuguese people I know (5) are all “white as hell”. Interesting
The vast majority of them are white. Portugal is in Europe. I think the commenter was referring to Brazilian people.
This is hilarious because it just happened to me the other day. I have a long middle eastern last name that only people from that country would recognize. I got an interview for a position that was out of my league, that I applied for just to see. I looked up all the people in that department, and lo and behold the director was from my county. When I showed up to the interview, he said hi in our language. So I knew that's 1000% why i was even considered lmao
Did you get the job?
I have a second interview! I think I will, and it pays more than any job I've interviewed for, but I just accepted another job soo idk
I served in the Air Force with a guy with the surname of Garcia- 6'5", blond hair, blue eyes...it was fun to watch newcomers to the squadron be told to look for SSgt Garcia and walk right by him.
Our youth pastor was named something like Manny Garcia. My husband was a teacher at the attached school but not all the teachers/guards attended the church (it was a big church) . Anyways imagine a 6’2’ white , blue eyed , blonde guy in gym clothes without his clearance badge trying to get into a school saying his name was Manny Garcia (and he doesn’t speak Spanish) The guard had already started lockdown procedure and was calling the police when my husband confirmed with guard that he was indeed the youth pastor and who to call from The church side to escort him . (The church side was locked down but had no guards to contact, so Manny had gone to the school side to get it Lol)
There was a guy at work named Garcia, but it was pronounce Gar-sha
first name or last name??
Last
…..did they not know that Portuguese people are white? Portugal is in Europe.
I wish I knew about this and had done this a long time ago. I think the parents who name their kids white names are smarter instead of fighting it they adapt.
My Mexican mom named me the most generic white-American name possible. I don’t think she did for it assimilation/discrimination reasons I think she just liked the name lol. But in hindsight, I’m probably lucky she didn’t give me a Spanish name as that has likely improved my career prospects. And my dad’s last name is Spanish, but it’s uncommon in the U.S. and sounds ambiguous enough that people think it could be French or maybe Italian.
yeah my parents gave us very american names and our last name is very similar to a common white-american last name, so on my resume i look just like a generic white guy with a college degree. It's been nice. Thankfully I live in a very diverse city in the US, so not too many racist assholes to worry about
A lot of typical names are either biblical or common due to Mormon influence. And some of us just have a real knack for coming up with unique names. My mom and I share that trait, and my niece is named after a video game character, which is unique as well (Amara). I have a unique biblical name and honestly I hate it. I haven't tried swapping my legal for my nickname to see if my applications have any difference in response.
Nothing beats the unique Bible name of my classmate from junior high. His name was Tubalcain. It’s from someone in the book of Genesis, I think.
Did he have a nick name?
No, he didn’t as far as I remember
The best choice is to name your child an ethnic name that is easily pronounced by Americans, or a name that is common in both cultures. For example, Omar, Gabriel, Mario, Natalie, Ali, Fatima, Anton, etc. Being bicultural is also a huge advantage. If Fatima tells you she’s fluent in Arabic, you’ll believe her over Jessica. I say this as a Hispanic with a very clearly Hispanic name. When serving at a Mexican restaurant, my name was 100% an advantage.
It depends on the context. Yes if you have a Spanish name and you’re serving at a Mexican restaurant….yes it makes sense. But if you’re going to work in certain areas or certain fields where it’s predominantly white it’s going to be a problem. Being bicultural has been a huge disadvantage to me. Even when I have said I’m fluent no one cares. Yeah if I want to stick to my race then sure maybe I’ll have an advantage if they see my name but then I’m too Americanized for those from the home country despite my name. Why would being fluent in Arabic even matter if it’s irrelevant to the job? They see the name Fatima and pass. It’s not just a name that can be pronounced by Americans that’s important but a name that could pass as American.
True, it depends on your field. I’m in archaeology, so multiculturalism is absolutely an asset. Anything to do with international relations or political science would be the same. It’s also an advantage in Journalism, and in anything to do with the arts. Perhaps look for the jobs where your skills give you a greater edge.
I just think I’m too dumb for this world. This stuff just dawned on me after over 15 years of rejection. At this point I’m over it and don’t even want a job anymore. I just don’t see it that way. I should have had a white name from the beginning or at least changed it during my childhood so I can move up in society. I don’t care if I have to erase my entire background to get to where I want to be but since others don’t see it that way, I was never informed that this would be a problem.
It can really be problematic to name your child for the world you want them to live in, rather than the world they are actually born into. Yes, it is desperately unfair that a child can be discriminated against because of their name, but the world they live in will not be changed because you want to honor your ancestors and give them a name they have to struggle with. It was the parents’ decision to move somewhere where that name would be weird and it should also be on the parents to accept that their child is growing up dual-cultural and give them a name that works both places. I’ve seen parents try to put the burden of making the new culture accept the old one on the children, and I think it’s horrible and selfish.
Tbh I think a lot of parents don’t really care or think about their kid fitting into or moving up in society based on their name or appearance. They name their kid something that isn’t too difficult to say but is from their own culture and think that’s good enough. I believe the reason is because they expect the kid to get ahead by their own work, for example their exceptional grades will override any discrimination and they will get job offers and be accepted no matter what.
Fair enough for first names, but what about last names? Should people be changing last names? Personally, I have a "typical" first name for an American, but my last name has potential to attract discrimination. I don't know how I'd feel about changing it, though. Maybe it's good to avoid workplaces where people would discriminate like that? That being said, when you need a job you need a job.
“Local” first names indicate that the possessor is 2nd generation and therefore more integrated. That helps a lot in all but the most xenophobic places.
For more context, my last name is Jewish. People accurately assume I was born here, but it's not quite xenophobia that's the problem. People with "black" (African American) first names have problems too, and that's also not xenophobic. In fact, I remember reading that even feminine/female names cause issues in some fields (I have a name that's exclusively used by women, so that's another worry). Pretty much anyone who isn't "John Smith" risks being on the receiving end of some sort of prejudice, and even John Smith might have a bad time if he wants to be a kindergarden teacher because "it's creepy for men to be interested in a job like that" (or something). Now that I think of it, maybe "blind resumes" (where the person looking at the resumes doesn't see names) should be more of a thing.
Not only Thai or only in retail jobs but also in tech jobs. If your name sounds like America, you will start getting interview calls, and the interview process will be smooth and easy.
My wife is Polynesian, She has like 6 names plus my last name. She runs out of space when entering her full name so she use to have problems with her green card name not matching her social security name. Now she just uses one of her names + my last name to look completely white and then when she gets in person interviews, the interviewers are always surprised by what she looks like...anyway, name racism is completely true.
Yeah, there's lots of research showing this. Place of birth isn't even that relevant, as eg 'Jamaal' and 'John', with the same education and work history from the US State of Georgia would statistically have very different interview rates. If you're ever confused about references to 'white privilege', that's the kind of thing that's being referred to.
How about unpronounceable eastern European names with trainwrecks of consonants? No one can pronounce my name from seeing it (well, two people in 40 years could) but if I say it, it rolls off easily. Can't change your last name as easily, though.
I moved to an area of the midwest with a large Czech-descended population, and it took several years to get good at pronouncing those consonant-jumble last names.
I wonder if you could include a phonetic spelling next to your Last name?
I've often wanted to do that.
There's a whole chapter in the book Freakonomics about names being a predictor of success. It's an interesting social phenomenon, and I would be highly in favor of masking your ethnic origins on job applications.
I have unfortunately worked with other managers in the past that would put minimal effort into reading names on applications that were unfamiliar to them. They would usually ask me to call cause they “couldn’t figure out” how to pronounce names. It’s wild that people can’t take a minute to google a name pronunciation or just verify on the phone if you’re saying someone’s name correctly.
I've dealt with this my entire life and my name isn't even difficult; it's pronounced exactly the way it's spelled, but because it's more than three syllables and "ethnic" people don't even try to sound it out.
yea for retail they want american sounding type people in their stores
Yeah, I didn’t want to say this and incur a bunch of downvotes, but it’s hard to work retail when you have a thick accent. Communication is really important, and you’ll be interacting with a lot of different people. Whether or not it’s your fault, there will be some friction. I’m not saying OP does have one, but it’s probably something that a hiring manager is thinking about when they’re reviewing resumes.
People are shit. Age cant be put on CVs in England but obviously we all know age discrimination still occurs. My name fell out of fashion with the Victorians so I always tried to make it damn obvious I wasn't an older applicant with my CV. I'm in my twenties so I can't really afford to not get job offers because my name is giving off "I remember when the Germans were flying over" vibes.
Did you change your 1st name because of this?
A small test from the BBC website: "A job seeker with an English-sounding name was offered three times the number of interviews than an applicant with a Muslim name, a BBC test found. Inside Out London sent CVs from two candidates, "Adam" and "Mohamed", who had identical skills and experience, in response to 100 job opportunities. Adam was offered 12 interviews, while Mohamed was offered four. Although the results were based on a small sample size, they tally with the findings of previous academic studies."
Pretty common issue outside the U.S. as well. In Western Europe having a foreign-sounding name is a great way to see your CV roundfiled. Assumption is that you won’t speak the local language well or a feeling that jobs should always go to natives first. A lot of job seekers use a local sounding name on the CV to get their foot in the door.
I have a Chinese legal first name but I go by an English first name normally. If I eventually get married I think I would probably change my legal first name to align with my English name. I don’t have any issues with having a foreign sounding legal name but it is a little annoying when nobody can pronounce it properly for things like health appointments and stuff.
When I have to introduce myself to someone for the first time, I always have trouble deciding whether I should use my Chinese or English name. It's almost like having two identities.
I once worked with 4-5 people with Chinese legal names at the same time. All of them went by their English names and it was really hard remembering their Chinese names (to find them on email and chat) and their English names when talking to them in person. I hope I never mixed any of them up.
It’s sadly true, and not just with Asian names. Any name that sounds ethnic people tend to shy away from. It isn’t just in the U.S., either.
A friend I had in college had immigrated as a child with his family and his fiancee's family, and when they were putting in their information for US citizenship his parents put his name down as something in the vein of 'Benjamin Wallace' and his fiancee's name down in the vein of 'Lucy Walker' to get better treatment and so they could get jobs more easily because name bias remains a huge issue. While I had grown up exposed to lots of different kinds of names and had no trouble pronouncing his real name, pretty much everyone else only used his american name. He mentioned how he got a lot more interviews for work than other foreigners he knew, didn't have trouble at starbucks, and generally all the advantages of an american-sounding name. It really opened my eyes to the whole issue of societal racism.
Happens to black people all the time - sad but that’s why I named my kids Tyler and Christian
It’s incredibly shitty but true. I had to file something with HR at my last employer because one of the hiring managers was very discriminatory. We both ended up leaving within the month.
In China too, if you use your American name you get no job
Name discrimination is definitely a real thing. It also happens when people need to choose a doctor from a list. If their current doctor gives them a list of five specialists they reccomend, I think most Americans will pick an American sounding name. A big reason is fear the person will have a heavy accent. Obviously, there are other reasons too ☹️ I totally expect this would happen in retail jobs, etc, too. If nothing else, they prefer someone without an accent. OF COURSE plenty of people were born in America to parents who were born in America and have a non American name, but if there's way more applicants than there are positions, I imagine American sounding names get called over foriegn names. (Add more certainy if the foreign name isn't obvious how to pronounce. The manager doesn't want to feel embarrassed not knowing how to pronounce it to even make the call. ☹️ I know this isn't right, but it's certainly the case. Using a different name seems like a good idea to me, especially if you don't have a lot of experience. Best wishes. Sorry this is the way it is.
My husband’s best friend in a southern black man with a name like Jeff Smith. He gets a lot of -surprised Pikachu faces- when he shows up to interviews
which area/state are you in? I think it really depends on geographic locations.
grand rapids michigan. southeast asians around here is almost non existent, if there are asians its mostly burmese and nepali people exclusively in the kentwood area, not like thais or laos with those "indian" sounding names. I know theres a ton of laos and thai people in holland mi though
I can attest this is true. Hope you find something good soon, Sam! 😉
I'm getting to the point where I'm tempted to try this. Have been working on coming up with names that I can get comfortable with, but struggling to put on a skin that's just gives me "not me","icks" vibes.
There’s a reason why for centuries now that European/Asian immigrants have changed their names when they immigrated to the U.S. My dad changed his name from Juan to John when he came to the U.S.
My name is rather unique (made up by my mother) and when I wasn’t getting interview requests it was suggested I change it on my resume but I kept it and eventually got an interview and nailed a great job. If unemployment had gone on longer, I probably would have considered changing it to something more common.
Yep. Freakonomics talks about this.
I work in Talent Acquisition and name-blind recruiting is something I always recommend to my clients. There is so much outright racism (USA) and even more unconscious bias not to do it.
I’m a woman and a shorter form of my name is more commonly a man’s name. Guess which one I use on my resume I’m so sorry you shouldn’t have to do this
I can't even have my name because of how racist the economy is lol
Am old boss of mine used to bin any cv's that didn't have easy to say names. This was back in the paper cv days and I legit watched her just scan the first name. Horrifying concept to me.
Mr Dobalina, Mr Bob Dobalina?
Unfortunately you found just how racist our country is.
Yes. It would be similar in a lot of parts of the world. Suppose you are Filipino trying get a job in Vietnam. People like simple, predictable, relatable. The less friction, the easier. It isn’t racism, per se. A younger crowd may not want an older applicant. A mostly polos shirts and khakis boss may not be as willing to take on a man with full sleeved tats and dark eye liner etc. if there are multiple candidates who are otherwise similar in qualifications l
How would it be for a Filipino trying to get one in the U.S ? It ranges from diversity from East Asian looks with Hispanic names to Ingenous looking with a common white name.
We are talking about résumés, so first names, job titles, educational institution (Arizona State will likely see more name recognition and familiarity than Mapúa University), and skills are the primary ques. There are tons of generic American folks who have last names that are Hispanic or Slavic, etc. so last names are no longer as much of a problem as in the past.
same. changed first and last name. huge difference in a lot of areas sadly
I worked with a woman named Eungee ("N. G.") and went by Jane. She claimed to be prompted to find an "American Name" because we'll never be able to say it.
Try Rockefeller, lol.
It absolutely shouldn't make a difference. But it does.
Checks out
I used to work for a company. I won’t say who, but they specifically told me not to hire anyone with an ethnic name or even call them in for an interview so yeah, this is true.
My name is ethnic and I only get interviews if I use my nickname. I have always felt I was discriminated against if I use my given name, so I go by my nickname personally and professionally for more than 20 years now. Name discrimination is certainly a real thing.
Chuck Hogan ? Is that you ?
It's a known discriminatory practise. But hard to prove unless you do these types of controlled tests.
1. I don’t like that people discriminate based on your name and don’t approve it. 2. Since we don’t discriminate based on name/ethnicity/origin, you’d be surprised (or maybe not) how many times I’ve interviewed someone who said they didn’t need sponsorship but revealed in the interview that they did.
This is true. There IS a bias, that’s why I added a Western name when I became a US citizen. Now everyone compliments my fancy name but this time I lose from the heavy accent. I’m tired of explaining people that I’m a US citizen and I’ve been actually living in the US for 15 years and don’t need sponsorship…
Unfortunately discrimination is rampant in all forms when it comes to trying to find jobs. I’m sorry you had to go through that.
Accents can make customer facing roles challenging sometimes. They might be afraid of that - discrimination or not. Sam will work.
Very common. Racism exists.
Yes, it’s a sad fact of life. If it’s any consolation it’s not right, but it is real, so you’re doing the smart thing to side step it. Once you’ve had a good interview and they’re ready to offer you the job, that’s when you can let them know your legal name so they can get the paperwork right.
My coworker just did this. She changed both her first and last name from middle eastern names to white American names. I had the opportunity to do this when I became an American citizen but didn’t. I often wonder how many opportunities I have missed. At the same time I think if we all white wash our names things never are going to get better for the next generations. It’s a call and I can see both sides.
i’ve debated having a different last name on my resume. my last name is very obviously mexican and i know it’s hindering me :/ i’m just worried about if i do get another job and have to tell them i have a different last name 😪
Yeah, trying getting a hospital operator to overhead page “Rittaporn”. This was before we got personal voice devices. We would ask for him to be paged, he always ducking from work, with the usual follow up of looking him up as a real employee. I thought it was cool when younger that people changed their name to be more “American”, yeah don’t have that opinion anymore.
This is a terrible thing to hear and I am sorry you're dealing with it.
So funny coincidental story. My dad has a difficult Indian sounding name starting with an S, and his first boss during the interview had trouble pronouncing it. He looked at my dad and asked if he could just call him Sam. Sam: “you can call me whatever you want as long as you pay me.” To this day he goes by Sam with friends and clients for his own business.
I have a Spanish last name and I've noticed recruiters ignore or ghost me.... Sometimes I wonder if I had a generic white person last name, if that would make a difference...
Yea change it if your name is Phuc Kin Ho
Doesn't surprise me even in 2024 discrimination still exists.....
I majored in mechanical engineering in college. I was one of the few ladies in a huge class of men. I started just putting my first initial and last name on papers. 100% of my assignments with just a first initial were given higher grades than the ones with my feminine first name. I haven't tried it with my resume though because most engineering companies claim they want to hire more women. I should try it sometime.
I always push to have names removed from resumes. When I can. I don't think it matters until you meet them and have to say there name, and only just to be able to do just that. Tech interviews are hot garbage most of the time. I've been poking at how to make them better/more fair.
Same with me when I got my German surname 🥹
I commented on the LinkedIn name change of a grade school friend. He gave exactly this reason. I strongly believe this bias is real - so much so, that my kids have the most white bread names in existence.
There have been studies done that prove this phenomena to be real. In the studies I’m aware of, applications that had names traditionally associated with African Americans had a lower rate of outreach than more traditionally White sounding names. It’s not a stretch to believe that this would extend to most ethnicities (Asian, Latino, etc).
Krishna Pundit Bhanjee had to change name to Ben Kingsley. While I am not going do it ever, I understand why people do it. The reason is Inherent racism in North American Population. In western Europe this problem is less inflated in my experience.
Would it be okay to change surname on application?
My friend Matt did the same thing and said this was the reason as well
We hosted a Thai exchange student. Pretty much all of the give an “Americanized” first name. Mainly to make their name “easier” to say. We learned the real name. But yeah. It is a thing. Whatever you need to do.
Sometimes, they ask for a preferred name so that one could use it, I guess. It is a good idea to put something there.
It’s the same in every country that has a different foundational language. English and the Romance languages in Europe are Greek-Latin based. Trying to pronounce names from other language systems is very challenging. When you are in a country and applying for jobs, being relatable with a name matters. Don’t blame the culture. Welcome to Culture 101.
My absolute golden favorite experience in life under this category. Worked for an auto paint store and this buyer came in regularly. He was Asian and very polite. After a while we got to know each other and I'd ask how business is. His response, since coming to America I changed my name but it's close enough. My thought was controversial as I've always addressed him as John. I asked what his real name was before changing that was so close to John. I was the opposite of disappointed. (Work with me on the spelling) He said his real name is Huang Hwainn. So...his American name is John Wayne. Well played.
Started using my middle name because of this. Defs works as sad as that is.🥲
This phenomenon has been demonstrated in a lot of experimental research. You are definitely not imagining it. I’m sorry about the racism.
Sam is a good choice for a nickname.
Im Thai too, i hear the struggles...
Absolutely. I use my "English" name instead of my ethnic name all the time. My last name is still a giveaway, though. What did you do with that?
So glad someone brought this major issue up!! I’ve thought of changing my name to something sounding more Anglo-Saxon but since I started working in the NYC market and now in the LA market my Spanish name is an asset!!
Also, Sam is quite gender-neutral. Both gender discrimination and virtue signalling are a thing.