Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
No, more like the white conservative is not the default culture in this country. We've always been multiracial and multicultural, only those "other" cultures were oppressed by the mentality Brokaw subscribes to.
Correction, we have always been multi-racial in identity but not multi-cultural per se. We have an identifying culture which includes the English language and all others are just minority cultures living among us. We are not known as a Hispanic, Asian, etc. country in identity.
Speaking ones native language in an ethnic business neighborhood is one thing speaking it exclusively in public when one knows English is quite another. Hispanics are the ones most guilty of the latter so there that answers your question.
Most groups will speak their native language when speaking with someone who has that same native language. There are more Hispanics so you encounter it more with Hispanics. Do you enjoy listening in to others conversations regardless of if they wish you to hear? Why do you give a damn what language people are speaking?
When my wife encounters another visayan she will speak that language. Doesn't bother me none.
So what? English is what identifies us not Spanish, etc. English is our de facto national language like it or not.
But that isn’t the case in certain areas. There are pockets of the United States where other languages are more commonly spoken and heard than English... like it or not.
As far as people speaking Spanish in public, I’m not sure why this would affect you. If you go to a big city like NYC or DC, you’ll hear many more languages spoken than just English and Spanish. In my fairly small city, I hear Russian or Ukrainian spoken when I go out. If I go a little south, I hear a lot of German. It doesn’t bother me in the slightest. Why would it? I don’t need to know what strangers are saying to one another and neither do you.
I think all immigrant groups eventually assimilate and one can clearly find millions of Hispanics who have indeed assimilated.
It might help to remember that Hispanics are currently the biggest volume of new arrivals, so it is inevitable that you are going to find a good many that have not. At least not yet.
What Brokaw said is not racist, but rather critical. And it was hardly an angry diatribe. What he is criticizing them for can be remedied. Were he racist, that would not be true. Criticism, whether accurate or not, is something distinct from racism and people confuse the two with frightening ease.
He is partially correct, but he would have been correct in 1915 talking about Italians or other groups.
Not the same thing and I have already explained why. We had diversity in languages when the early immigrants arrived. The Italians, Germans, English etc. We didn't have millions here illegally from one lingual group either. Sure many Hispanics have assimilated but many haven't also. Where I live I feel like I'm living in Mexico and it's a combination of those both here legally and illegally. Spanish speakers are adamant about retaining their language out in public. Most prefer it even if they know English.
Chinatown? Miami? Eating lasagna on Christmas Eve? Going to a temple? Going to a Catholic Church? Going to a nondenominational evangelical church? Stay at home mom? Working single mom? Living in a big city, living on a farm? Owning a house? Renting an apartment? Living in a trailer park? Living in a McMansion? Living in a log home on a mountain? A concrete block home near the beach? Owning their own business? Working as a nurse? Working as a laborer? Putting their fork down between bites of food? Enunciating words like northerners? Drawling words like southerners? Wearing a cowboy hat or a baseball cap? Jeans or dress slacks or sweatpants? A tie or a T-shirt? Calling athletic shoes sneakers or tennies? Drinking soda or pop? Celebrating Hanukkah or Easter or Ramadan or Chinese New Year or St Nicholas Day or Halloween or Cinco de Mayo or none of the above?
There is no “American culture.” The USA is filled with people from all countries, of every color, religion, and persuasion. We all live in “real America,” not only those who reside in one particular state. Yes, those living in NYC or Honolulu are every bit as American as those in rural Texas and Wyoming. I know it can be scary to realize that people not exactly like you have the same rights that you do. Have a cookie.
The major issue is language. I posted numbers previously and don't have time to dig them up again, but some states with a high population of Hispanics have children in school who do not speak any English at all. That's an expensive issue, as well as a societal problem.
Speaking ones native language in an ethnic business neighborhood is one thing speaking it exclusively in public when one knows English is quite another. Hispanics are the ones most guilty of the latter so there that answers your question.
You’ve clearly never ridden a NYC subway.
And your determination to paint Hispanics as “most guilty” borders on the pathological.
LOL I wish you could see just how wrong you are by making this claim. All I can say is I have a unique insight into the Hispanic culture and I can assure you that "assimilated Hispanics" do not look upon their fellow countrymen as "vermin". However, with that being said you will find it quite common for some to look down on or feel superior to people coming from countries other than their own such as Mexicans looking down on Salvadorians, etc. That's very prevalent but it has nothing to do with assimilation or the lack thereof.
I will also tell you it is well known within the Hispanic community that assimilation, learning English, etc. is of great benefit to them and most strive very hard to do so regardless of the lies Trump and his gullible supporters would have you believe. Instead of hating on people who might not be as good as you at speaking English, why don't you take the time to learn another language? The world is multilingual so learning another language, whether it be Spanish, Chinese, German or whatever will only serve to benefit you. Hell, it might even encourage you to be a little more tolerant of those who come from cultures other than yours.
Why should native English speakers have to learn another language in their English speaking country? No, for the most part learning another language is a waste of time. If you don't use it you lose it. One can be tolerant and learn other culture is they want to without having to go to that extreme. Ever heard of books or traveling out of the country?
Immigrants should assimilate to this country's national de facto language not the other way around.
The German-speaking Amish. French-speaking northern Maine.
So puzzling why only the Hispanics are targeted. Hmmm.
Sheer numbers. The fact that in some areas you cannot get a job dealing with the public unless you can speak Spanish. Some geniuses have suggested we change American English into a combination of English and Spanish - Spanglish.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
