One memory of when I experienced prejudice happened in middle
school when a girl in my class told me that I should speak English because this
is America. I was speaking with a friend
of mine in Spanish and she made it very clear that this was not acceptable. I remember feeling a range of emotions when I
heard this. Mostly, I wondered where
this young person learned to have such strong feelings about other languages
and cultures. I felt offended and
shocked.
This incident diminished equity. The girl was trying to make
my friend and I feel like we were wrong.
She did not treat us with respect or fairness and instead tried to make
us feel inferior for not speaking the language of the dominant culture, her
culture. She then tried to justify her
statement by reminding us of where we lived and thought that we should only be
using the language of the dominant culture.
I think what would need to change to turn this incident into
an opportunity for greater equity, is that girls experiences. There would have to be a change in the
cultural environment where this took place.
More diversity could have made a significance in this incident as well.
Rosana,
ReplyDeleteIt is experiences such as this that cause some children to turn away from their family culture and language in an effort to avoid continued biases and oppression. I am hopeful that as we move to a better awareness of and support for diversity within the field of education, that opportunities for students to discuss and explore the issue of diversity will become common practice and experiences such as yours will begin to diminish.
Sandra
Rosana,
ReplyDeleteThat is so upsetting that you experienced prejudice when speaking in your home language. As educators, it is so important that children feel accepted and their home language is encouraged in the classroom. My sister is a Universal Pre-K teacher and she has children that speak multiple languages. She has a bilingual co-teacher in the room for children that speak Spanish and a teacher in the building that speaks Polish. My sister has taken the time to learn phrases in children's home language so that they feel safe and accepted in her program. She also added books in children's home language to the classroom as well as labeling materials in all languages. I wish all teachers would do this for bilingual children.