Jennifer Hernandez

Composition 1
October 24, 2019

MWA 2 Discrimination Against people who aren’t Monolinguist

Approximately twenty percent of the American population can speak more than one

language (Language Line Solutions). This is equivalent to one in five people in America

speaking a language other than English. In America, monolingualism in English is emphasized

due to the American culture desiring newcomers to assimilate into the “American” way.

Individuals in America who speak other languages when they are out in public, at home, or work

predominantly only English speakers discriminate against multilingual speakers due to the fact

they are not following the typical American way of life. While there is no official language in

America, people tend to assume that English is the official language, but this is not the case. In

today’s social climate it has become more prevalent for speakers of other languages to be

targeted and discriminated against due to their bilingualism and multilingualism. English is the

most prominent language in America and U.S born citizens who do not speak another language

see there is an issue with multilinguistic and do not agree that there should be multiple languages

in this country.

With a simple Google search, you will find hundreds of incidents that show citizens

being discriminated against due to the fact that their only language is not English. Just this year

there have been multiple incidents of this type. For instance, presented by NBC News, “A white

costumer at a Mexican restaurant swearing at Spanish speaking manager”. February 19, 2019, in

West Virginia a white woman swore and told a Spanish speaking manager “English is our first

language, so you need to speak English” and then continued to say, “get the f--- out of my

country” (paragraph 2). This shows the discrimination against bilingual speakers as wanting
everyone to assimilate to the American way, as people believe that English should be the only

language in America. Although the English language is deeply rooted in our history and widely

used amongst citizens, it is not the only nor the official language of this country. Over hundreds

of articles came up with the discrimination of multilinguistic and the problem will continue to

grow because of the fact that U.S born citizens do not truly know the importance of other

languages in this country.

With the discrimination of bilingualism and multilingualism, people tend to overlook the

importance of knowing these other languages. As detailed in the Ted Talk “no child left

monolingual”, Kim Potowski shows the importance of bilingualism and multilingualism. The

beginning of her lecture explains how immigrant grandparents would not be able to speak to

their grandchildren. This being due to the children not being able to learn and speak their native

language in America based on the reason of Americans wanting everyone to be monolinguistic.

Americans do not see the problem that knowing and learning more than one language enhances

the minds of young children and even adults who want to speak a new language. When learning

a new language, it opens up the mind and makes the human brain use parts that are not normally

used when one is just speaking one language. Another point that is presented in Kim Potowski’s

Ted Talk is that bilingual education does not enhance the child’s Spanish language it is an easy

way to move a child into the English language and American way. Potowski also describes

another type of education called “two-way immersion” (Potowski). Two-way immersion is a

program that makes a child feel comfortable speaking their native language and once the child is

older their classes become half and half. At this point, students can either speak English or

Spanish and their classes are not trying to assimilate a multilingual child into the American way.
 The ability of children to be bilingual or multilingual helps with their cognitive

development. An article from Tessa International School explains the importance of a child

learning another language, as it helps sharpen a young mind. Another reason is that bilingualism

helps a child use their mind in a more complex way, as this will make it easier for them to

perform tasks throughout their life. Another example in the article explains the benefits of social-

emotional development for children. The article states, “Being bilingual and multilingual

supports children in maintaining strong ties with their family, culture, and community”. This is a

focal point as if monolingualism keeps a child from their native language and it deprives a child

of a cultural and linguistic experience.

As society progresses, it will be more beneficial for the citizens of this country to be

multilingual rather than monolingual. To continue on this path of discriminatory and

disrespectful behavior toward individuals who speak languages other than English puts our

nation at a disadvantage. Without the use of other languages in this country our history would

have had a different outcome. With being multilingual it helped the military win wars, as for

example World War Two with Navajo code talkers. This was important due to the United States

having secrets and plans of attack hidden from the opposing countries, the war was won because

the nation was multilingual instead of monolingual. Without other languages, the U.S would not

be able to trade and market with other countries. Being monolingual would completely cut off

the United States from every other country and there would be no room for growth for the

country. The United States would stay at the same intellectual level and would fall behind due to

not being able to collaborate with other countries because we only know one language. People

who discriminate against those who are multilingual in this country do not realize the
disadvantage they would put the country at and how low they would make the intelligence level

of the county.
Bibliography

 Acevedo, Nicole. “White Customer at Mexican Restaurant Swears at Spanish-Speaking

Manager .” Https://Www.nbcnews.com/News, NBC News , 19 Feb. 2019, 11:55,
www.nbcnews.com/news.

 LanguageLine Solutions Team. “Census: More than 20 Percent of U.S. Residents Speak a
Language Other than English at Home.” Census: More than 20 Percent of U.S. Residents
Speak a Language Other than English at Home, 20 Sept. 2017, 2:16,
blog.languageline.com/limited-english-proficient-census.

 Kreps, Jamie. “Language Spotlight Series: The Importance of Bilingualism in Early

Childhood Education.” Tessa International School, Jamie Kreps
Http://Tessais.wpengine.com/Wp-Content/Uploads/2017/12/Logo.png, 23 Jan. 2019,
tessais.org/importance-bilingualism-early-education/.

 Talks , Tedx. “No Child Left Monolingual.” YouTube, YouTube, 3 May 2013,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSs1uCnLbaQ.