But I also don’t know the polite way to ask someone what country their family is from…
It’s not that there are specific polite ways. Sometimes people ask where you are from because they want to know the exact racism and bullshit to hit you with. Let me talk about a specific type of the other times. Gran was a nurse in a town by a military base. She asked everyone where they were from because there was a good chance they weren’t from said town. Gran wasn’t. It was an opportunity to share and connect (and distract the patient from whatever awfulness they were feeling).
If you’re looking for a rule, it’s pretty much the same one to live life by: be excellent to each other. Approach the conversation in good faith and with kindness and you tend to get good results.
It’s not that there are specific polite ways. Sometimes people ask where you are from because they want to know the exact racism and bullshit to hit you with. Let me talk about a specific type of the other times. Gran was a nurse in a town by a military base. She asked everyone where they were from because there was a good chance they weren’t from said town. Gran wasn’t. It was an opportunity to share and connect (and distract the patient from whatever awfulness they were feeling).
If you’re looking for a rule, it’s pretty much the same one to live life by: be excellent to each other. Approach the conversation in good faith and with kindness and you tend to get good results.