Language, Empathy, Critical Thinking, and Nationalism…

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So, right now, in a diversity class I’m taking, we are studying the immigrant experience—specifically the experience of Hispanics and pacific islanders (we have big local populations of both).

In addition to our textbook material, we were asked to view several videos and journal articles on the subject. Stuff like this:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVZcgc2LlVk[/youtube]

and this:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfUc90hdDTw[/youtube]

Afterward, in an effort to develop a bit of empathy, we were asked to respond to this:

So, most of my classmates answered this question as if they were Hispanics coming to America. That’s fair enough, I guess. What I found very interesting is that most of them stated that they would study the culture of the new country and learn the language BEFORE immigrating… A lot of them also said doing this would be a ‘sign of respect’ toward the new country.

I was gobsmaked by this.

I mean, sure in an ideal world this might be possible, but in the real world, how many third world refugees have the ability to study foreign cultures and languages? Further, how many illiterate middle-aged immigrants have the ability to learn a foreign language while also supporting themselves and their family?

Personally, I think most of my classmates posted the way they did because they watched the first video (posted above), which reinforced their natural biases, and then posted without watching or reading anything else…

The thing is, the whole purpose of the class is to self analyze and identify personal biases. In my opinion, most of my classmates failed to do this.

Am I wrong?

Sure, language is a big part of Nationalism, as Huntington observed…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SNicJRcUqs[/youtube]

Russia is using language (protection of Russian speakers) as an excuse to invade another country right now….

However, I don’t think a few million Spanish speakers is a threat to USAmerican national unity/identity. Most Mexican immigrant descendents speak English and lose Spanish by the 3rd generation. And that’s really the only major dividing factor between Hispanics and the rest of us. We’re all nominally/culturally Christian (even you atheists), and products of western civilization.

Issues of language certainly carry a huge emotional charge and make-up an important part of culture, but I cannot accept that language trumps everything… Especially when good translation technology is as ubiquitous as the smartphone.

With English language it's a little different. If you want to travel anywhere, English is the passport language. If you are a native speaker, you have a certain advantage. You need not learn much about a foreign land so long as you speak it and stay in the major cities.

Language is extremely important when moving to another country. I moved from England to France and only had basic French on my arrival. That made life extremely difficult initially. It is necessary to deal with lots of bureaucrats and to ensure your actions comply with the law of the country - common sense doesn't work here apart from the obvious stuff like not committing murder or stealing. Laws regarding buying a house or simply renting a property or inheritance may be vastly different to your homeland. Employment law may be very different too and you can easily break the law by accident but here as anywhere else "ignorance of the law is no excuse". You will need to open a bank account, register with a doctor, deal with tradesmen, deal with telephone calls - some of which may be very important and some are just telesales - you need to know the difference.

Unless you can speak the language of the country you become a sort of refugee, stranded and on your own. I've seen other Brits who ended up not being able to cope with learning the language and they either try to form little British ghettos and make mini-Englands here and there or they simply leave France and return to England.

I've made considerable effort learning French and that helps me to integrate much better. Unless you can speak the language you will always be treated as an outsider. You may also face hostility from the natives too, especially if you are seeking work there or any sort of financial benefits - you may be viewed as parasites, come to improve your lifestyle at the expense of the natives.

Aside from language, there is also the question of cultural values and issues of politics and religion. If your own values differ significantly to the country you move to you will also likely face exclusion and hostility. Different countries have a different work ethic too. Some expect considerable devotion to your work at the expense of your family and home life and others are more family centric. Even things like standard working hours vary enormously. In England lunch break is typically half hour for manual workers and one hour for management. The hours are 9 to 5. But in France lunch break is typically two hours long and even most of the shops close between around 12 to 2 PM. The working day is longer too, with people finishing at 7 PM.

Attitudes towards bureaucracy and administration vary country to country too. France is drowning in paperwork and officials with no obvious purpose other than to slow things down and to pass pointless documents on to other faceless bureaucrats. So something that may take one day in your country may take weeks, months or even years in another country! You may need to bribe certain officials to make things happen too! If you can't even speak the language you don't know what is happening and have no recourse to seek any help you just face endless frustration.

Some things can be a complete legal nightmare. In Spain they have a law nicknamed "land grab" whereby a building constructor can literally steal your land and build a house on it for which you get no compensation, then to add insult you are required to pay for drains and services to be connected to the property! It totally defies (my) common sense, but that is where foreigners make huge and costly mistakes when they move to another country without doing their research. Again, if you don't speak the language you are well and truly screwed.

What I meant was traveling around or going to school in a place where the language is different. You can go with just English so long as you stay in urban areas, and do pretty well. Some universities courses are taught in English and it's easier to find speakers in metropolitan areas.
If you plan to move someplace permanently, it would pay to be fluent in the local language unless you are in a location where nearly everyone speaks English. Like with most places, the more rural you are, the less likely you will see anything but single language speakers.

Hmm, interesting. My response in the class discussion was that I would look for an immigrant community and live/work within that community as much as possible while also trying to learn the local language to integrate better/get better jobs...

I think this would be the way most immigrants would behave.

It's interesting that most of my classmates couldn't get this. Seeing lack of language skills as a choice rather than an obstacle for immigrants and an insult to the host country.



The good thing about the US, and something that makes a lot of English speakers angry, is that you can request government forms in your native language and even get an interpreter when dealing with government offices/bureaucrats,,,

Yeah, English is the default language for academia and business in most places. If you're only gonna know one language, English is the one to know.

Absolutely none of the forms/paperwork in France is in anything other than French. They do this as a matter of principle. Shortly after I moved to France the French government launched a scheme offering free French lessons due to the large influx of Brits. Telephone numbers were published in each region for us Brits to phone to book places on these courses. One catch though. The person who answered the phone only spoke French and not a word of English! So, erm, it was necessary to speak French before you could phone up to book lessons to learn how to speak French. That is very typical of the French way of not thinking things through. I never did get on those free courses; can't help wondering if anyone did or if the initiative just died. I ended up making my own arrangements - I'm an autodidact and entirely self taught.

Melting pot countries should respect people's native tongues. America has no real national identity. We are all simply people who came from other places. Many of us speak English but it shouldn't be required for everyone. Let them speak their own language.
One day our language might evolve into an American one that only we speak, like French did from Latin.

That's all well and politically correct, but when you've just skidded off the road and into a tree and phone emergency services you need to be able to communicate what has happened to you, where you are and possibly receive instructions on how to handle the emergency... Granted this is an extreme example, but if you are in a country where 99% of the population speaks language X you would be a fool not to learn that language instead of relying that someone you need to speak to urgently can speak your language. On a more mundane level, just going into many shops and asking if they've got any XYZ in your native language instead of the predominant language of the country means that you may play a frustrating game of charades with the shopkeeper or leave the store empty handed.

Here in a supermarket in France a few years ago I was embarrassed to hear an American woman shouting at the top of her voice at the delicatessen counter "DOESN'T ANYONE HERE SPEAK ENGLISH!! !" then she stormed off. I couldn't help thinking to myself "stupid cow; this is France, they speak French!". Only a small percentage of the population can say more than a handful of English words. "Hello, goodbye, please and thank you" and most are done. The older generation don't even know those words! Younger people tend to know a little more English, but struggle with more than the most simple of sentences.

The government shouldnt suppress diversity ( cultural, or linguistic). But it shouldnt subsidize diversity either. If immigrants come over here and want to succeed there is nothing unfair about encourging them to jump through the hoop of learning English so they can fit into the workplace, and be civic and so forth. If it matters to members of nationality X to cling to that identity thats fine. Just be your diverse self on your own time.

That Spanish land grab law sounds like the worst law since Hammurabi invented law codes!

Outrageous.

Maybe the EU should pressure them to change it.

You'd be hard pressed to get by with English in many places. Some French, Spanish and Arabic are good because they have wide coverage.

As for living somewhere, well, anyone with any sense will make a significant effort to learn the local language. You only hurt yourself and your options by not learning it. You might even put yourself in danger. It's like being intentionally deaf.