|
|
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757
Carpal Tunnel
|
OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757 |
The USA and Hispanic culture - will AWAD be Spanish in 2051? ‘…modern Hispanic immigration differs from past waves. Unlike the Irish, Italians and Eastern Europeans, Hispanics can come and go easily, thanks to the proximity of lands of origin. Means of social communication, like Univision, allow them to remain in constant contact. This cultural continuity is strengthened and protected by the present emphasis on multiculturalism and bilingual educational programs and by the growing use of Spanish in government and private industry. The interesting question is whether all this constitutes something so unusual that the Hispanic presence could someday make a significant difference in the dominant culture.’http://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/19/opinion/19ALBA.html?todaysheadlines
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
When I was about ten, there were several ethnic groups in my small Massachusetts town that had their own language schools after the public school hours were over. So far as I know, there are none of them left. The Spanish question is obviously different, mostly because of the large number of Hispanics already here and the constant additional immigration. But I suspect that the advantages of fluency in English will make the next generation of Hispanics less likely to regard Spanish as their preferred language.At present only low level jobs are available to anyone not fluent in English. Hispanics readily qualify for the better jobs, but only by being fluent in English. That is not likely to change.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636 |
What you say may be true now, but I, who speak Spanish as a second language, refuse to quit speaking it because I love the musicality of it. I also like (don't ask me to name them..stern look) the alternative ideas that can easily be expressed in Spanish but not English. It works both ways.
I also had a professor at WMU that claimed that the Hispanic population in the USA would reach majority percentages by 2010-2020. Of my children who grew up with Spanish as their first language, my daughter is still fluent and presently teaches Spanish at the secondary level.
My son is lucky if he can say tortilla correctly, but then he always did succumb easier to peer pressure. My main point is that soon it may be cool to speak Spanish and that is what the young will do, so practice rolling those rrrs(look Ma, no apostrophe!)
consuelo
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757 |
I'm sure you are right in wanting to continue your Spanish traditions, consuelo. That's what so interests me about these kind of cultural collisions - in a way, linked to the discussion about language death on another thread.
Be interested to hear from anyone else in the States if you have a particualr perspective on this: does a second language seem a threat to you in your area, do you embrace it, or is it simply not an issue you think will seriously arise, despite all the evidence to the contrary?
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 428
addict
|
|
addict
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 428 |
I think that a multilingual US would be great. I'd love to learn (and then be able to use) Spanish, but I like languages and pick them up fairly easily. I imagine that for people who struggle to pick up a language (or have never tried to), the idea that you would be regularly confronted with unintelligible information is scary. Where I live, in Vermont, the impact of the growing presence of Spanish is fairly minimal -- we are almost the whitest state in the nation (not that I'm proud of it). One recent controversy in Burlington (the state's largest city) is the growing number of school children for whom English is not their first language, due to a recently-started Refugee Resettlement program.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,156
old hand
|
|
old hand
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,156 |
Since I was born and raised (more or less) in Canada, which is officially bilingual, I can say that having more than one official language only enhances life. It makes you aware that your way of doing things, of speaking, of thinking, is not the only way. (Ideally this would lead to more cultural understanding; sadly, it sometimes is twisted into hatred instead.)
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 5,400 |
The US will be come more lingual– but I think that English will remain the dominant language– there are so many other groups that even if native spanish speaker out number native english speakers, the english speaker still retain most of the power..
There are some problems with that (i.e., that WASP's still dominate the power structure) but I have learned, and for the most, part integrated their value system.. And there are things about other value systems I don't like...
The Anglo/saxon, judeo/christian value system is more of a meritocracy– many other cultures are "family oriented"– if you are not a member of the family, you are treated as sub human.. So we don't see nepotism as a good– but in many cultures/values systems it is unthinkable for a non family member to "run" the family business.– even if all of the family members are incompetent (or unwilling) to do it themselves.
The A/S, J/C system is also a bit snobbish– but it also values "noblesse obliges".. And we as society are richer for our museums, libraries, park, and other public institutions, that often started as a donation.
In some societies– Park means "private estate" and there are no public cultural institutions or events– only religious ones.. The only public landmark is the religious building–or government ones (and some cases these are one and the same.)
I worry about the changes to US society– and it not just that Spanish speaker /people of hispanic culture are becoming a majority– it is the conflict with all the cultural values, and no longer a WASP majority to teach these a/s, j/c values to all the new comers.
I have worked really hard to express my views with out "dissing" other cultures and value systems.. But if I have failed, forgive me. I don't think others values to be "less or lower" than mine– just different.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 4,757 |
Thanks all, for some very sensitive and interesting responses. Any more takers?
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773
Pooh-Bah
|
|
Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773 |
Lansing is an integrated city, and it has significant populations of recently arrived hispanics and asians, as well as people from eastern Europe (many fled before the fall of the USSR, and were located here by a local church-sponsored refugee program). I don't expect the influx to alter the language beyond recognizable English, because:
(1) the groups speak different languages and compete with each other as well as English
(2) English tends to absorb foreign terms in popular use
(3) the numbers of immigrants is still not high enough to reach critical mass. Less than ten percent of the population, I'd guess.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 544
addict
|
|
addict
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 544 |
Personally, I embrace the growth of Spanish throughout the US, but like consuelo, I've spent a lot of time in Latin America and speak Spanish. The San Francisco area has a huge Hispanic population, and when I go to the neighborhoods that are pretty purely Mexican or otherwise Latino, I love it - I feel like I'm back in Latin America, with all the different cultural, linguistic, and other aspects that come with being there.
I don't feel that English is really likely to lose its dominance in the US, but I definitely notice that speaking Spanish comes in handy more often now than it did 10 years ago. What I don't know is whether this trend will continue, and we'll move more and more towards a bi- (or more) lingual society, where speaking Spanish will become more and more useful as the pockets of Spanish grow and grow, or whether we'll follow the historical model of assimilation, with English staying on top.
|
|
|
|
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,318
Members9,182
| |
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
|
|
|
0 members (),
719
guests, and
2
robots. |
|
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
|
|
