Rodriguez, "Aria"

Quotes:

"'Is it possible for you and your husband to encourage your children to practice their English when they are home?'" (Rodriquez 2)

      My first thought after reading this quote is "well, is it possible for you [the nuns] to encourage them to practice English in the classroom?" I can't help but feel sorry for Richard in this instance. At school, he gets in trouble for not speaking English well enough (when that is the exact place he should be learning it in the first place), then the nuns come into his house and tell his own parents that they need to encourage him to speak English...in their own home where Spanish is the main language! Not only does he now feel uncomfortable speaking English, but now he feels uncomfortable speaking Spanish because he no longer has an environment for him to do so. 

"At last, seven years old, I came to believe  what had been technically true since my birth: I was an American citizen". 
       
      I didn't know how to react after first reading this line. I had to re-read it a few times before I finally understood the meaning behind it. This young boy, was so uncomfortable on a daily basis not being able to speak his native language, not only in school, but at home, where it is also his parents' native language, that he didn't even believe he belonged in this country, or that he was a part of it whatsoever. Not only does that make me upset, but I genuinely feel bad for him, because I can't even imagine what it feels like to always feel like you don't belong - especially in the country that you were born in. This reminds me of the SCWAAMP activity we did in class, because two of the main ideologies are White-ness and American-ness. 

"I no longer knew what words to use in addressing my parents. The old Spanish words I had used earlier, I couldn't use anymore. They would have been too painful reminders of how much has changed in my life.  On the other hand, the words I heard neighborhood kids call their parents seemed equally unsatisfactory. As a result, I never used them at home. Whenever I'd speak to my parents, I would try to get their attention with eye contact alone"

     I think that this quote is one of the most powerful in the article. He has become so distant from his parents, that he doesn't even know what to call them, and doesn't feel comfortable calling them anything at all, either in Spanish or English....all because he was forced to learn English in an awful way, and simultaneously forced him to not be able to speak Spanish either. Essentially, it is like he lost all form of communication entirely.

Talking Point: In an extremely interesting Ted Talk, Patricia Ryan talks about language, and our [the world, not just our country] focus on English, versus incorporating other languages as well. I think everyone should watch it, it is really eye opening, and ties in perfectly with the Rodriguez and Collier articles. Another Ted Talk, by Jay Walker talks about the world's "English Mania", and I can see connections to Delpit as well in this talk.