Tearing Down the Language Barrier

For reference: http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/news/story?id=2119529

The above link goes to a story where a Little League umpire order the players and coaches to speak in English only. The coach of the team whom the order was directed at left the game in protest, and claims that his players were demoralized by their inability to speak in their native language.

That is partly a crock.

The ruling may have hindered the team's communication abilities, but do you really think they were demoralized by it? No. It might be a bit of a distraction, but I don't see the demoralizing effect of not being able to speak Spanish on a bi-lingual team. (The article references that the players all spoke English, some just don't do so very well). So the team speaks in English, no big deal-- if you can't find the word you are looking for in English, drop in a Spanish word, and if the umpire takes offense to one or two words, then he has the problem.

And I'm sure some of you out there in the world are thinking-- these kids are in America, why can't they speak American (English)? Quite simply, they don't have to. We have no official language (Canada has two). I believe (I could be wrong about this-- if you know for sure, please tell me so I can learn) there is a provision that requires legislation to be in English, but Spanish (and several other languages) has become widely accepted when it comes to legal documentation.

Yes, I have a bias towards English, as it is my natural language, and it would make things much easier on myself, and many other Americans if English were instituted as the official language... but that is just selfish thinking.

Do I agree with the umpire's decision-- not fully. You have to permit the team to communicate with each other. But you can also limit what they say to you. As a hockey referee, I have been faced with the issue of teams from Quebec playing, and speaking fluent French. The only thing I could do at the time was instruct the players that any comments directed towards me were to be in English-- not being able to speak French, I would assume anything said to me in French was being said so I could not understand it-- you know, dissent. But you have to check with the team before the game, and make sure they understand why.

Since then, I have lived in Canada, and spent most of my time roaming around French-Canadian towns. Unfortunately when you play hockey in these towns, you pick up the wrong end of the language. I always like to say, I know enough French to start a war... and not nearly enough to end one. And with that education, my stance on French-speaking teams has loosend to the point where I can tell them-- speak all the French you want, but if I recognize a word you're saying, you're in trouble.

Think about the heritage of this nation. Who are we? Where did we come from? This nation was started by the English, the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, and the Swedes-- that's five different languages at the very beginning. Not to mention the native tribes of the land and their languages. And we have remained a melting pot society, we continue to be a haven for those who wish for freedom, and we have added to the list of nations of where our bloodlines began-- the Germans, the Irish, the Chinese, the Italians, and the Poles... and that is just the tip of the iceberg. Why should we change the rules for people coming into the great nation-- just remember your family came from somewhere, too.

I think picking up my grandmother's genealogy has helped me to understand all this. Just looking at the birthdates and birthplaces of my ancestors I have bloodlines in about a dozen nations-- Germany, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Sweden, Canada, England, and a few other nations that come up once of twice, and I'm not totally sure how they fall into place.

But if we are turning our backs on those who are new to this land, aren't we just turning our backs on our ancestors? Branch out, take a little time to learn some Spanish from a co-worker or a neighbour. These are some of the things that can bring us closer to peace in our time.