Turns out that mayor Emanuel is going to take Spanish classes in order to address the Hispanics better. As my fellow citizens would say in this land: "Good for him!" Apparently, a very smart decision, and convenient, of course. Smart because the mayor could communicate better, and convenient because more people would support and sympathize with him.
According to statistics, out of the 2,850,000 Chicago residents, more than a quarter are Latino. But beware, the fact that the population is Hispanic, does not necessarily mean that speak Spanish. As a native Spanish speaker and professor of journalism in Chicago I can report that many Latino students I know were not precisely raised as active participants in their culture or language of origin.
More than once I have made the mistake of addressing in Spanish people who fit the stereotypical image of the Latino: dark eyes, skin and hair, whose name ends in "ez", for example. In return I have gotten some perplexed reactions and confused faces that look back at me in surprise and say, "Huh?"
I don't assume anymore. Now I only speak English, and later I ask if my party speaks Spanish. Just as these students, many other people, especially Hispanics of second or third generation have chosen to embrace rightfully, the American identity. However, a large proportion of Latinos choose to identify with their origins and work to maintain their identity and language, making them part of their daily lives in this country. For them, Emanuel's bilingualism would be extremely useful.
I still wonder why the vast majority of Americans simply choose to be monolingual. One simple reason would be the belief that since the United States is the most powerful nation on the planet everybody must learn English. There wouldn't be then, a necessity to learn a second language. Other reason could be lack of time or plain laziness.
What folks do not seem to take into account is that if they were to take the opportunity to study another language, their minds would be exposed to other cultures, other social, economic and political points of view, and thus better understand the world we live in.
But studying a language other than our own is no easy task. Many whom I know say with pride: "I took four years of Spanish in school." But they never practiced it, so they only remember how to say "cerveza" or "baño".
The same goes for those who studied French, German or Latin. Many times I feel ashamed when I hear these comments. One must spend years studying and practicing a foreign language. It requires dedication and discipline. It takes work.
Mayor Emanuel starts with his personalized classes June 4, three times a week. His goal seems to be realistic: Speak basic Spanish. Although he claims that he learns quickly and has a base rooted in his previous study of Latin, I hope the mayor understands that with three classes a week he would learn only the real basics.
But I find his decision worthy of admiration, as long as he keeps in mind that if he wants to master the language he may need to be in front of City Hall for about 21 years, as Mayor Daley did ... but without losing a single session of his Spanish class. Buena suerte, mi amigo.
I apologize if this has already been addressed in the comments, but just wanted to say that the reason the vast majority of Americans choose to be monolingual is simple: they don't have a pressing need to learn another language. A second language, for the most part, is not needed in the U.S. in order to survive or succeeed, so the incentive to learn one (even the basics of one) is very minimal. The cost of learning a second language involves time and money, but the payoff would not be that great, unless it's really needed for a particular job or if they are moving overseas. Otherwise, the cost tends to outweigh the benefits. I would venture to guess that if Spanish was as prevalent as English, many Spanish speakers would not take the time or money to learn another language. I do agree with everything you said though about the benefits of learning other languages, and that it helps greatly in learning about the language.
The best part of speaking/understanding another language is learning new concepts or ideas that don't carry over into your native language. For instance comadres in Spanish.
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Many people resist the notion because it would shake to its core their myopic view of what they think this country is or should be. And heaven forbid they should find out that their prejudices might have been wrong.
Their approach to exapnsion of their cultural base is best summed up by Thomas Gray's old poem, "Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College":
"Where ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise."
You guys do know that knowledge is power, right? Most of the world isn't monolingual. Monolingualism seems to be more of an American concept.
Spanish-speakers in the US whom haven't learned English yet probably haven't learned English for the same reasons English-speakers in the US haven't learned other languages: On top of the reasons the author stated I would also add that in the US, big businesses want that mighty Hispanic consumer dollar and thus have made an effort to communicate with Hispanics in their native tongue. Therefore, you see Spanish translations everywhere. This proliferation of Spanish in the US, like the proliferation of English all over the world, has sort of created a catch-22. And that's when those reasons like (laziness, lack of time, etc.) kind of take over. Don't think the author meant anything negative by it, it's just a fact.
Anyway, good for you Señor Emanuel!
But that's a topic for an upcoming column.
Just once, I'd like to see an article criticizing immigrants (illegal or otherwise) for remaining monolingual in their home language, refusing to assimilate and adapt to their new country-- instead of these incessant complaints about how Americans aren't bilingual (code - Spanish speaking) enough. Mr. Leturia, when will we see THAT article?
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LOL!! I must have missed the part of the article advocating that!
EVERYONE is "allowed" to be monolingual if they so choose. And Mr. Leturia never stated that anyone else "must become bilingual".
Just once I would like to see people with minds sadly closed-off to other cultures say, "Hmmm, maybe I'll give it a try."
Isn't this profiling? If the police or an ICE agent did this, you would be all hysterical and making a big scene.
Heck even Mexicans who will claim any title for acceptance, call themselves mexican.
Stop lying !!
how ignorant does these authors come? laziness? i was here first speak what we speak, i dont go to mexico and say ahhhh why dont you guys know english, are you saying i should learn spanish simply to tell the cleaning lady (who is illegal and happy to be here) not to use pine sol on my floors and only on the wood tables, or should she adjust for her job description? if we learn spanish for you, then i have to learn arabic for people down the street and so on and so forth. why should we conform to yoru needs on our home turf? do you see the backwardsness of your request? disguised under a polite veil maybe but ignorant none the less based on principal. answer me please bc im confused as to how you got away with publishing this.
(sidenote; i love people of all cultures and ethnicity, but you dont go into some elses house and put your feet on the coffee table and say dude you should be understanding me right here why you draggin.)
Part of the reason more adults do not pursue learning a second language is because they are too busy working and trying to keep their heads above water so they can pay all the taxes needed to support people with 6 kids who are working a minimum wage job because they don't speak English.
I am sorry if you took the "laziness" comment as offensive. I said "could be"... I didn't say that that was the reason.
If your parents brought you here to America for a better life, you should have the courtesy to learn our language, customs and culture. Otherwise, you are bringing your failed cultural systems to America, which we do not need.
You were given an opportunity, you prospered, and you have the nerve to disrespect he who provided for you ?
Gee thanx a bunch, "professor."
I came to the U.S. by myself. My parents are still in my country of origin. I have thought about bringing them here but they would be unhappy, away from their family and culture.
I had the "courtesy" to learn the language before coming here. I was a college professor before coming to the U.S. I also brought a different perspective about the world and I happily share it with whoever wants to appreciate it.
I am sorry if you took my column as disrespectful. That was not my intention. I only wanted to stress that learning a language takes time and effort, and that it's a great tool to open people's minds and provide a better understanding of the different cultures..
Why is this? they do not have to print chinese, french, german, hindi or any number of languages from around the world.
seems the latinos are the only people that are either too lazy or just don't care enough about assimilating to American lifestyle to learn english.
That being said, I agree that we shouldn't be catering to non-English Spanish speakers, both immigrant and non-immigrant, but the Democrats need their votes so I wouldn't expect any kind of change any time soon. (On a side note: If you ever travel to Mexico City, you'll find a lot of locals who can speak English very well, because they view it as the "Language of Success")