I have seen many people try to take away what we're truly inside.We come form another country where you only speak one Lagrange and those people don't like it.Being bilingual has been turned against many people and i think that's intolerable!
Being bilingual has been turned against many people and i think that's intolerable!
Really? Funny, because around here being bilingual is a huge plus. You have to take a second language in school and a lot of jobs require you to know more then one language nowadays.
I think your looking at the wrong cause in this situation. Most bilingual people in the U.S.A. are foreign and still trying to achieve the "american dream" and thus are indeed the "lower" class (at least economically). Since very few Americans who are americans at 3+ generations back, have even a slight understanding of more than one language, those that are actually bilingual(and foreign) seem to all be labeled as "lower" class, because they are the only ones actually bilingual.
If you live in Japan and you know English, you are apparently instantly cool... Not that it matters in college, but yeah... You can easily mistake "bilingual" from "foreigners", because the foreigners have NO CLUE about their current location and/or their customs and can easily be in the lower class, whereas if you are just bilingual, it just means you know a second fluent language and you know a good lot about the customs of your current location. The foreigners are just trying to adapt. I remember my first year in Sendai... Horrible.. Made me want to live back in the US, but then US reminded me of pollution, so I second-guessed myself.
There are various countries that have ethnic and racial tensions writ into their culture, and language will go hand in hand with this. Malaysia (historically speaking) is one such example, in which there are separate schooling systems for different cultures.
However in countries that are more multicultural (e.g. Australia), the more languages you speak the better. Especially if it's Mandarin or Cantonese.
There are two different types of bilinguals in my book. Those who know one language in their own country, and then learn another, and then those who learn one language in their country, but move to another country and in the process there, learning another language.
I'll use an example. An American learns English in America, but then learns Spanish in their American school. These are the people that some may think, "superior," to the other type.
Type 2 is a Mexican learning Spanish in Mexico, and then moving to America, and gradually learns English while in America. THOSE people are what some may link to, "lower class."
I find it rather funny that americans should have the oppinion that bilangual people should be of a lower class, since America is such a mixed country. Oh well. In Danish schools it is custom to learn three languages: Danish, German and English. Any - second or more generation knows these languages and their native (their family's native) language. Many danes should be able to understand some Swedish and Norse as well, though not New Norse. Some might know France or Spanish also, since France is taught in school, and both France and Spanish is taught in Highschool.
Well, here in Los Angeles, it's partly true. If someone is bilingual English-Spanish, then many pass a judgment about them that their family bust be "border hoppers". Even though isn't always true, it has become a stereotype here in Southern California.
I'm bilingual and that's never hurt me. Maybe because I speak english...
I think it's mean to even consider the fact that someone is of "Lower class" than you. When people think of classes, they think of material things, like Money, popularity, items and so on. What matters is what the true heart is and how you treat others. As is written in the Bible, All are equal. Sure, you can be proud of all you have, and if it's a lot, then you're lucky, But Never ever ever ever ever ever ever compare yourself with others by material matter.
The people I know who are bilingual are among the most intelligent people I have met. I know a girl who speaks 7 languages fluently (Croatian, Bosniak, Macedonian, Greek, Slovenian, English, and German). She's a straight A student and in medical school.
Another friend of mine knows Lithuanian, Estonian, Russian, and English. She's also a straight A student. She got a 4 year degree in psychology in just 3 years and is now working on a Masters.
Finally I know another girl who knows German, English, and French. She owns a radio station in Germany and is rolling in money.
Maybe it's just me, but the more languages you know, the better off you seem to be.
I wouldn't say the better off you are, but if you think about it, you have more chances to have a life in a country that you know the language of.
As is written in the Bible, All are equal
I don't know where it says that in the Bible, but I do know that it is in the Declaration of Independence. And I wouldn't tell everyone to follow the Declaration because it only involves the US and Britain, although Britain doesn't declare it.
What matters is what the true heart is and how you treat others
What matters is what the true heart is and how you treat others
We all know the world will never be like that.
"Daoism: where there is light, there must be shadow."
I was born in the US, gained my native tongue there, moved to Japan to get into a university, learned Japanese (A GIANT HASSLE: I hate learning another system of writing, but it was necessary!), then took a job there while in college. In Japan, if you know English, you are up in the higher class. They get 6,500,000 Yen a year (1 yen = 1 penny)
Anywhoo, it all depends on where you live that determines your social and financial caste, some countries are just worse than others.
Oh man i lost control of the thread. I'm form Florida but my parents form Mexico.I learned Spanish first and some teachers hated me for that.I just became a monster when that happened.
I think its a good thing, I live in wales so I speak welsh, but if I couldn't speak english I wouldn't be able to post here, welsh is a lot like german if i hadn't wouldn't be able to talk to germans on holiday. Bilingual people get better jobs, can get more diverse jobs and it can just make you a more open person as all cultures are different and the more languages you speak the more you can experience.
Oh man i lost control of the thread. I'm form Florida but my parents form Mexico.I learned Spanish first and some teachers hated me for that.I just became a monster when that happened.
They are ridiculing you because you have a Mexican heritage? Oh man, not Florida too.. I hear Indiana is hitting them too... Hey Juan, be Trilingual and come live in Japan, it's better =)
