I Do Not Want To Translate All Latinos For You

I am not the national spokeswoman for all Latinos. In fact, I have never claimed in any even ambiguous way to represent Latinos at all. As a matter of fact, I have gone out of my way to note that I represent only my own experience and constantly seek input from our readers about theirs. Yet, that does not seem to stop people from asking me to “translate” all Latinos or “Latino issues” for them.

For example.

Recently, I was asked to explain our country’s immigration conundrum by a white gentleman for whom I had respect and even liked. He reached out because of my affiliation with NewsTaco, he said, and wanted me to explain why illegal immigration happens, noting that he loves immigration, but hates illegal immigration. I shared my opinion that it was a complex issue colored by racism (Chinese Exclusion Act, Operation Wetback, etc.) and the fact that our immigration laws do not reflect our current globalized world. This issue could only come close to resolution via comprehensive immigration reform, which isn’t going to begin to happen until the recession is well over, I told him.

What I thought was a pretty balanced answer was not enough, and I began to feel like I was being asked, “Could you explain those people  to me?” I do not think the gentleman in question meant to communicate this, but I’ve found that white men are rarely aware of all the privileges they are bestowed in our society, or the arrogance that pairs with it. I hate that I have been asked once — let alone multiple times by various people — to serve as some sort of unpaid, duty-bound liaison for Latinos.

What the heck? He didn’t ask for my opinion, he asked for an explanation.

It amuses me to think of parallels to my experiences, so as to illustrate the ludicrous nature of these interrogations.  But, the funny thing is, when you try to ask broad questions about any other ethnic group, they begin to sound, well, racist. So, while I know that i’m often the harbinger of racialized thinking, if we take my experiences and apply them to any other group, it’s almost like racism: Why are whites like that? Can you explain African-Americans to me? What about those Asians?

None of it makes any sense.

I will admit, though, that life would be a heck of a lot easier in the U.S. if we had a spokesperson who could explain things to us about different people with little inconvenience to us (even if it’s an Internet search). The thing is, if we had this here, it wouldn’t seem very much like the United States at all. I’m sympathetic to curiosity, but I have no patience for this idea of making all people in one group so much the same that we can all speak for each other.

So while I may not be the spokeswoman for millions of people, next time, I will more than gladly share my own thoughts with you.