The Bilingual Versus English Only Debate Continues
“¿Háblas español?”
“Si, señorita. Claro que hablo español.”
“Ah, qué bueno…”
Some people think it’s insulting to speak Spanish, yet, others depend on this language for survival. It even became an in issue when the U.S. lost to Mexico in the Gold Cup when at the finale last week: the ceremony was conducted entirely in Spanish and not in English. Angry and racist comments were posted below stories on the Internet to underscore the difficulty with this issue.
Whether you were rooting for the United States or Mexico is beside the point. Of greater relevance and importance is the issue of mandating for only one language to be spoken-anywhere. When I needed two years’ worth of a foreign language in high school, I decided to enroll in French. At the time, many of my peers viewed any foreign language class as an inconvenience and some would even refer to them as “blow off classes.” Just as long as we earned graduation credits most us were satisfied. Whether we learned a new language bore little to no significance.
It is no longer a choice to speak strictly one language. As the old refrain goes, “Ser bilingüe vale por dos.” Or, one who speaks two languages is worth two.
It is evident that this old, but profound Spanish proverb bears much weight professionally. I thank my parents for instilling the importance of speaking Spanish at an early age where without such guidance my employment opportunities would be limited and bleak. On the flip side, I have experienced some awkward moments with native Spanish speakers; when speaking in Spanish, I usually get a reply in English.
At first, I did not think much of it, but as these occasions turned from infrequent to frequent I couldn’t help but wonder, why would they reply to me in English? Do I have an accent when I speak in Spanish? Or, in an attempt to be more optimistic, perhaps they just want to practice their English?
Whatever the reasons may be, I try to not take it personally. Yet I would be lying if I said it didn’t bother me. The ongoing English-only-versus-bilingual debate continues, yet I am comfortable in my own skin to understand that if I choose to speak Spanish or English I am already at an advantage when compared to the monolingual. This privilege and luxury will only serve to be advantageous now and in the future as it has for me in the past.
Follow Francisco on Twitter @SeguroCepeda
