Kiara Nevarez 

September 19, 2019 

Word Count: 396 
Critical Reading Log 
Anzaldúa touches upon several points and ideas through various anecdotes and examples. 
Pinpointing one is difficult. But I believe that one of her biggest points is the oppression of her 
language, Chicano Spanish. Not only by English speakers in America but also Spanish speakers 
from Mexico. Anzaldúa states how “even [her] own people [​los]​ ​quieren poner candados en la 
​ hey would hold [her] back with their bag of ​reglas de academia”​. In Spanish, Anzaldúa 
boca. T
reveals how those of her culture turn her and her unique dialect down.  
They place locks on her mouth through all of the alienation and surface level judgements 
that they place on her. By just judging her based on the language she speaks, they lack the 
incentive to delve into her personality. Throughout the passage she gives examples pertaining to 
the claim of how her language is oppressed, even by fellow Spanish speakers.  
In the paragraph that follows, Anzaldúa provides the word that fellow Spanish speaker 
used to call her out for using a different dialect. Since Chicano Spanish seems to weave in both 
English and Spanish, so other Spanish speakers believe that Anzaldúa and other Chicano’s are 
“cultural traitors”. English to them is the oppressors language, and Anzaldúa represents in this 
example how Spanish speakers in America were not willing to integrate with those they believed 
to be oppressors. 
However, even the English speakers turn down the Chicano speakers. So both Spanish 
and English speakers turn down Anzaldúa and her Chicano brethren. In that sense, the claim 
initially mentioned in the first quote can also relate to the English speaking oppressors.  
Anzaldúa also included examples of this in her text. Early on she tells an anecdote of 
getting in trouble in school for speaking Spanish at recess and also for attempting to correct the 
teacher on how to properly say her name. The teacher proceeds to tell her that she must speak 
“American” if she wants to stay in America, a statement that belittles different languages in 
America.  
 I can relate to Anzaldúa’s problem of oppression because of how I feel less than capable 
in Spanish around Spanish speakers and even English around my fellow classmates. Expanding 
the initial oppression I felt in being mocked by my Mexican family when speaking Spanish to the 
insecurities I have using educated English makes me feel like I can relate to Anzaldúa’s conflict.