Posted by
Hispanic Republican on Wednesday, January 02, 2008 4:54:36 PM
Much is being said about Hispanic participation in American
politics today. Are we going to show up to the caucus or the polls? What party
are we in favored of? Which candidate will Hispanics support? Will we play a
roll in politics this year? We will play in the political landscape?
The preference for a political party Hispanics in America
have is widely different based on our social background, country of origin and
economical status rather than values. Although most of us share common conservative
values, our interests appear to widely vary based on the elements mentioned
before. So, how do we unify our community to be in a position to exhort greater
influence on our leaders? How can we assure that policies and laws are made
taking into consideration our interests as Hispanic Americans? For starters we
must continue to defend what is most precious to us, our conservative values
and we must continue to advocate our Americanism.
Perhaps we need to consider that these ambitious, hard-working immigrants,
whatever their documentation, will write the next great chapter of a story
that's still deeply American, though with a different accent and even broken
but official US English language. If the optimists are right, much work remains
to be done to incorporate all immigrants fully into our political playground.
But one thing is certain; no one will stop us from having a voice.
We ended 2007 no closer to compromise on the immigration issue than when the
year began. People are waging a culture war – that's what the struggle over
illegal immigration is – not giving up easy. Some are not recognizing the
positive contribution that our community has provided to our country. What you
think of immigrants says a lot about what you think of America, and what vision
of her you are willing to defend. How we deal with the stranger among us says
not only who we Americans are today but determines who we will become tomorrow.
So when someone talks to you with a
slight accent or writes you an email that may be using English incorrectly,
remember at least they know a second language.
Our voices cannot be silenced; we are in the radio, printed
press, television, community centers, in our neighborhoods, churches, at the
workplace and all over America participating and changing the political
landscape of our country.
Some would like to quiet our voices, but we are here to play
and will continue to speak even if it is in broken English. “Although public
discrimination on the grounds of race, religion and social class is not now
publicly acceptable, it appears that discrimination on linguistic grounds is
publicly acceptable, even though linguistic differences may themselves be
associated with ethnic, religious and class differences”. (Milroy and Milroy 1985:3). For every worldwide
native English speaker there are three English speaking non-natives to these
countries. Three-quarters of the world’s mail is in English and four-fifths of
electronic information is stored in English.
Let me remind you American English has become THE global language. Some
linguistic experts say that Americans invent more words and phrases in a month
than other English speaking nations do in a year. Many believe it is this very
inventiveness that has propelled American English past British English in
worldwide popularity. But let me ask you, who should decide what's acceptable?
According to PBS “Do you Speak American” special, as more
non-native speakers converse with each other, hundreds of impromptu varieties of
English are taking on a life of their own around the world. “The polling place
would remain open to people who have trouble with English, but it also would
remind them that English -- or even broken English -- is the common language of
American democracy”. (English Is Broken Here, By
John J.
Miller,Bilingual ballots are bad for democracy,
Policy Review Magazine September & October 1996 – Hoover Institution
)
Social scientists estimate the number of varieties of American English range
from a basic three - New England, Southern and Western/General America - to 24
or more. Some researchers suggest the number is actually much higher. Many
Americans fear that continuous Hispanic migration, and large concentrations of
Spanish speakers, threatens American English. That fear is one motive behind
the so far unsuccessful campaign to make English our official language. “Do You
Speak American?” a PBS special report, argues that Mexican and other Hispanic
migrants are learning English at the same generational rate as previous
immigrants groups. By the second generation many can no longer speak Spanish.
So, making English the official language should not be an issue?
One
of the most interesting ideas encountered is that language change is driven by
women, who are said to be a generation ahead of men in adopting new
pronunciations and speech styles. Linguists see parallels between language and
fashion. ( Do you Speak American, http://www.pbs.org/speak/ahead/). So ladies,
my beloved Hispanic sisters, lets play a strong and active role in politics,
send our message loud and clear to our community, protect our family, our faith
and our future. Ah, and let’s do this while we are shopping for the latest
fashions.
Although the 2008 elections will not be the first time
candidates will be faced with the concerns of Hispanic voters, there is thankfully
enough of an increasing awareness of the importance of Hispanics in the
political landscape. As we grow in size in the population and become economically
stronger and more politically savvy, candidates likely will become sensitive to
our needs, our values and those objectives that are important to our Hispanic community.
Aren't we lucky to be part of a party, The Republican Party, that welcomes all immigrants? Even those that use incorrect English! Viva GOP...
So let’s play!