In her Lit Arts seminar last month, a Brown university student with an ethnic-sounding name was unsurprisingly picked last in a Zoom popcorn introduction. “I can’t prove my name’s the reason, but no matter how big the class, I’m always last,” said sophomore Ahn Nguyen, whose name is one of the most common in the world and very simple to pronounce. "When they got to me, they said ‘Is it…Oon?’ as if to say ‘are you fucking serious with that name?’ I know it’s unusual in this country, but Jessica, there’s people here naming their kids Sheighleigh.” At press time, Nguyen has yet to be called on to speak in the class.

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