What do you call someone who only speaks one language?
An American.
Although its only a joke it reveals something about the United States in the globalized 21st century. While many politicians agitated to make English our official language, waging wars of attrition against dual language classes, multiple languages on ballots and on other official forms, the rest of the world seems to have a level of proficiency in more than one language. Why is this? Well, geography has something to do with it, many nations in Europe, Africa and Asia are located close together, giving people the opportunity to learn the language of their neighbors. There is also the fact of a colonial past, for example someone from Senegal would most likely be fluent in French, the language of the former colonial government and Wolof, a major language native to the land. But where does that leave us, we're next door to Spanish speaking Mexico and French speaking Quebec, Canada, why haven't Americans become the masters of more than one tongue? Xenophobia and jingoism have something to do with it, but a bigger factor may be the fact that many Americans don't travel much out of the country.
Only about 20% of Americans own a passport, which means only a few of us are hoping on planes and landing in Paris, Rome, Johannesburg and Dakar. Yes, the costs of travel are often prohibitive it is imperative that we place a greater premium on travel, not only to successfully compete in the global economy, but also for our own edification. The gift of travel is especially rewarding for people of color, in visiting the nations of the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa and Asia we can see people of various shades of brown running things. (We won't go into whether they can truly run things in post-colonial states that are economically tethered to the interests of their former colonizers just yet).
Instead of popping bottles for your 25st birthday, how about saving up for a trip to Brazil? Even if the only thing you'll be able to say is "Eu não falo o português" (or I don't speak Portuguese), you'll be on your way to being a citizen of the world.
An American.
Although its only a joke it reveals something about the United States in the globalized 21st century. While many politicians agitated to make English our official language, waging wars of attrition against dual language classes, multiple languages on ballots and on other official forms, the rest of the world seems to have a level of proficiency in more than one language. Why is this? Well, geography has something to do with it, many nations in Europe, Africa and Asia are located close together, giving people the opportunity to learn the language of their neighbors. There is also the fact of a colonial past, for example someone from Senegal would most likely be fluent in French, the language of the former colonial government and Wolof, a major language native to the land. But where does that leave us, we're next door to Spanish speaking Mexico and French speaking Quebec, Canada, why haven't Americans become the masters of more than one tongue? Xenophobia and jingoism have something to do with it, but a bigger factor may be the fact that many Americans don't travel much out of the country.
Only about 20% of Americans own a passport, which means only a few of us are hoping on planes and landing in Paris, Rome, Johannesburg and Dakar. Yes, the costs of travel are often prohibitive it is imperative that we place a greater premium on travel, not only to successfully compete in the global economy, but also for our own edification. The gift of travel is especially rewarding for people of color, in visiting the nations of the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa and Asia we can see people of various shades of brown running things. (We won't go into whether they can truly run things in post-colonial states that are economically tethered to the interests of their former colonizers just yet).
Instead of popping bottles for your 25st birthday, how about saving up for a trip to Brazil? Even if the only thing you'll be able to say is "Eu não falo o português" (or I don't speak Portuguese), you'll be on your way to being a citizen of the world.
1 comment:
i agree. I travel outside the US twice a year on purpose. I have been searching for a place to settle and i have not limited my self to US. We were explorers once and i plan to carry the tradition on!
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