Closing the language gap

By Tina Ray
Opinion Editor

I wish I could write this article in Spanish. I’d like to hope that one day I would learn the language, not only to write it, but also to speak freely with the growing Spanish population.

I’d like to learn Spanish to show fellow Robesonians that I value their culture enough to learn their language. I’d like for them to know they’re not so isolated in society and that someone cares about exchanging pleasantries with them.

Quite honestly, I would also love to learn Spanish because I’m nosy. Sometimes, it galls me not to understand what two grown people around me are saying. I feel like “monkey in the middle,” the game I played as a child.

As a mother, I’d like to understand Spanish mothers as they communicate to their children.

The factor that bothers me most is that I don’t understand basic Spanish that’s printed on billboards, much less advanced Spanish that’s printed in magazines and newspapers.

It appears that, outside the increase of Spanish speaking people, we are all well on our way to becoming a minority in America. In recognition of this sobering reality, it may behoove us all to learn the language, regardless of our motivations.