Say My Name – CORRECTLY!

My daughter once told me that some of the kids in her class called her Melissa instead of her name, Marissa. She shrugged her shoulders and said she didn’t correct them because she knew they didn’t mean any harm.

My Nickname

There was a time while I was attending Stanford University for my Master’s Degree when students mispronounced my name. An instructor asked us to share our nicknames and I was excited to share because I loved being called Veró.  To this day when people call me Veró I smile because it is what my closest family and friends call me. However, being that it was Stanford and the majority of my classmates were not students of color, they began saying it in the English form of Vero. Everytime they said it I cringed. It was like a dagger to my pride and my heart. I wished I had never shared my nickname with them. My imposter syndrome only grew stronger and It made me feel like I didn’t belong at Stanford. The days I spent at Stanford felt very lonely with only one other Latina in my program.

Hearing my daughter’s story brought back all these memories and emotions. I immediately told her she should never allow anyone to mispronounce her name. Our names are more than just words. They are who we are and a part of our identity. Saying the names of students of color incorrectly is considered a racial microaggression according to research.

Strategies to combat mispronouncing names

I am an instructor now at a community college so I know the challenges that come with pronouncing students’ names correctly but I also understand how hurtful it is for people to constantly mispronounce or misspell your name. For this reason I work hard to learn my students’ names. For educators there are many tips and tricks to help with pronouncing students’ names. I also plan to correct others when they mispronounce my name and teach my daughters to do the same. Having people pronounce your name correctly is one way to show that you value your name and yourself.