"Spanglish" Doesn't Count: The History of Bans on Bilingualism

This week in class, we read and discussed about an article by Juan González
entitled "Speak English!" It summarized an important, but widely overlooked topic in American society: the fact that some Americans are knowledgeable of more than one language, and also have preferences over which language they choose to speak. The author included several instances in which America, over the decades, has made unwise decisions regarding whether or not to provide amnesty to countries or individuals who knew English or solely their mother tongue. An example of this would be the government-ordered institution of several hundred Cherokee Indians from Oklahoma to Americanized school systems, in which the entirety of classes were taught in English. A look into the past would uncover that, before this order, Cherokee Indians who were taught in their own schools were better able to understand the content that was covered in class, and also learned enough English to be considered literate by America's standards. The results of the institutionalization of these young students are astonishing: "40 percent of the Cherokee students became illiterate in any language" (any as in, I presume, their own language) and "75 percent dropped out of school." ("Speak English: You're in America")

The author, González, presented a structurally sound article that argued for the American public to become more aware of the injustices that some of their own may face just because they are bilingual-- however, he seemed to give more light to those who were bilingual rather than those who knew a language outside of English. Though flawed, the laws enforced by the government obviously state that English is the national language of America, and all laws should be kept in order to sustain any sense of order. This isn't to say that any and all languages besides English be banned, but that all Americans should have an understanding of the language that they choose citizenship over.

Works Cited Page:

González, Juan. Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America. New York: Viking, 2000. Print.

HB-2281: Arizona's Book Thief

The current ban of literature based primarily on Mexican-American/Native American themes has led to complete outrage in Arizonian schools. Children are being prevented from learning basic historical concepts such as differing views on the real colonization of America. They are also forbidden from reading or being taught from texts such as Shakespeare's The Tempest, which carries certain Mexican-American undertones. The reason for this ban was due to the state's discomfort with many grade school's interest in "ethnic studies", and possibly feared that some sort of backlash would arise from continuous teachings of such studies from students and/or parents. While this concern is somewhat understandable, the means of preventing any backlash from occurring is, in itself, insipid. Clearly, there is more concern about the banning of ethnic studies in the eyes of teachers, who worry about their pupils educational well-being. Many worry that by not being able to teach that, for example, Christopher Columbus was not the true founder of America, but tribes of Indians had settled in parts of the Americas several years before any expeditions ever occurred, that the students will be incapable of being open to more than one side of a concept, and will therefore be closed off to any opposing views anyone else may have on a matter.

Those pushing for the new law replied to the outrage by claiming that the books were not "banned", but were being "temporarily discontinued" to make way for a new teaching curriculum for students that would be determined by the Tucson Unified School District. The books, in fact, were placed in libraries throughout the affected schools' districts. However, only a select few of the books (i.e. Shakespearean works) were easily accessible at these libraries, and most of the other banned books by Chicano and Native American authors were not as simple to find. ("Rethinking America") Several students talk about the dispiriting feelings they felt as they watched many of their textbooks removed from their schools- during school hours.



Works Cited

Bigelow, Bill. "Rethinking Columbus Banned in Tucson « Rethinking Schools Blog." Rethinking Schools Blog. Web. 22 Jan. 2012. .

Entry One

More recently, there has been tension between individuals on the basis of blended ethnicity and skin color. These individuals, often called "mixed", have been subjected to ridicule from both sides of their original race, as well as several outside races. It is fairly simple for people to want to separate themselves from others due to differences in race, class or social standing, and it is even simpler for them to act upon those desires. By doing so, a select few distance themselves socially, economically and in most cases, physically, from those the "higher" class deems unfavorable. The media has so perfectly portrayed "outsiders" such as Mexican-Americans as undesirable, which has led to an overwhelming number of people who wish to discontinue America's reputation of being a "melting pot" of all types of people from various backgrounds. By acting upon the fear and hatred instilled into them by outside resources, the privileged few cold-heartedly segregate fellow human beings with callous satisfaction. As a result, there are several people throughout history who have suffered backlash due to their mixed heritage.

An example would be mulattoes, descendants of black and white parents. Caught in an unwarranted limbo between two distinct races, mulattoes often time chose to appeal to only part of their race or claim one over the other. Barack Obama has faced this issue head-on. Due to the color of his skin, he had to face opposition from non-minorities while trying to appease those that were of this other. One form of such opposition would be a recent article that was posted on the Washington Times Opinion section of the newspaper's website. The author of the article claimed that President Obama is "calling on the primacy of race and gender in order to perpetuate his national socialist revolution... Just like his old pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Mr. Obama is an anti-American, virulent race-baiter." In essence, he is not "black" or "white" enough to be fully accepted by either one of his two parts, and such is the burden that los atravesados must suffer.

Works Cited:

1. Kuhner, Jeffrey T. "KUHNER: Is Obama Fomenting a Race War? - Washington Times." Washington Times - Politics, Breaking News, US and World News. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. .

Link to website: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/apr/30/is-obama-fomenting-a-race-war/?page=all