Richard Rodriguez is the author of Aria. This is a text that outlines what it is like for a native Spanish speaker to have his/her language "taken away" from them. Rodriguez mentions how his life was when he was a child. For instance, he remembers how Spanish was spoken at home. How it gave meaning to his life. How it was so strongly tied to his identity. However, his school did not see the same importance in Spanish as Mr. Rodriguez did. In fact, they saw Spanish as a barrier to his education. It was their belief that speaking Spanish would only hamper him in society. As a result, the nuns who were teaching him showed up at his house pleading with his parents to only have him speak English. As authority figures within the church, Mr. Rodriguez's parents reluctantly agreed. This started a chain of events that would be extremely impactful on Mr. Rodriguez's life. For instance, life at home was severely impacted. Mr. Rodriguez mentions that family time seemed a lot more distant. Without the family speaking Spanish, there was much less interaction to be had amongst one other. This silence at home was not only uncomfortable, but also lead to a sort of loss of identity for him. While one identity faded away, Mr. Rodriguez gives mention of another one beginning to take a stronger hold in his life. That is, being an American citizen. Despite his loss of the language that he felt most comfortable with, he also gained confidence in another. That is, English. Previously, Mr. Rodriguez was an individual who found himself not the best at speaking English in public. He mentioned that sometimes he would mumble or not speak up enough. This however was mitigated by the nuns when they told him to speak loudly when he would talk in class. Even though Mr. Rodriguez would miss the part of his life when he spoke Spanish the most, he still felt proud of himself and who he had become.
Whether or not it was right or wrong to make Mr. Rodriguez speak Spanish is up for debate. However, it is important to always respect ones way of life and culture. For Mr. Rodriguez, the Spanish langiuage was something that held value in so many ways. When that is taken away from someone, it changes them. In this situation, Mr. Rodriguez was okay with it happening. However, it is important to think about the impact this may have on another individual who may not feel the same. Therefore, I believe that we should always try our best to fully accept people for who they are. Maybe some accommodations could be put into place to assist Spanish speakers and speakers of other languages. In any event, I think a good place to start is with having respect and understanding for people and whatever difference they may possess.
Here is a link to an act for Rhode Island legislature to support and access to the Bilingual Education Act:
http://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText/BillText23/SenateText23/S0549.pdf
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