Becoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender (Devor
Melvin Richardson
Professor Shana Smith
English 112 (D22P)
March 21, 2013
Machin Rifamos
(The Rise of Brown America An argument essay by Melvin Richardson) “Resistance is futile” is a resounding statement first exclaimed by the alien race called the Borg in the Gene Roddenberry long running television series Star Trek. “Why do you resist? Asked the Borg commander, Ryker replies “I like my species the way it is”! Borg commander counters with, “We only wish to raise quality of life for all species”. This is the last thing you heard before your kind was assimilated and your unique cultural and biological essences absorbed. If you have heard or read this statement before, it’s because it has been the theme of White America since its inception and so has appropriating and assimilating cultures, with racism, class warfare, and loss of ethnic identity as unfortunate by-products. The Xicano (Chicano) was able to evolve and retain their cultural identity and ethnicity by creating a border dialect or language (a Patois) which supports the view of the essayist Gloria Anzaldua’s “How to Tame a Wild Tongue.” This dialect is viewed as sub-cultured jargon in their homeland (Mexico) where Standard Mexican Spanish is spoken and the Working Class English is demanded by their adopted host north of the border, America. Ultimately, the appropriation and assimilation of borderland Mexicans (Hispanic Americans) did not occur as did the Native American Indians or the African Americans that occupy the rest of the nation. However, these Hispanic Americans, who are considered second class in their native home (Mexico) and 3rd class by the U.S. For use many years use of the Spanish language declined in the Chicano Nation because of the immigration of Anglo-Americans and the brutal efforts of the U.S. imperialists to eradicate the Spanish language.
Further analysis reveals, the link between language and identity with respect to community cohesiveness effects self-
Professor Shana Smith
English 112 (D22P)
March 21, 2013
Machin Rifamos
(The Rise of Brown America An argument essay by Melvin Richardson) “Resistance is futile” is a resounding statement first exclaimed by the alien race called the Borg in the Gene Roddenberry long running television series Star Trek. “Why do you resist? Asked the Borg commander, Ryker replies “I like my species the way it is”! Borg commander counters with, “We only wish to raise quality of life for all species”. This is the last thing you heard before your kind was assimilated and your unique cultural and biological essences absorbed. If you have heard or read this statement before, it’s because it has been the theme of White America since its inception and so has appropriating and assimilating cultures, with racism, class warfare, and loss of ethnic identity as unfortunate by-products. The Xicano (Chicano) was able to evolve and retain their cultural identity and ethnicity by creating a border dialect or language (a Patois) which supports the view of the essayist Gloria Anzaldua’s “How to Tame a Wild Tongue.” This dialect is viewed as sub-cultured jargon in their homeland (Mexico) where Standard Mexican Spanish is spoken and the Working Class English is demanded by their adopted host north of the border, America. Ultimately, the appropriation and assimilation of borderland Mexicans (Hispanic Americans) did not occur as did the Native American Indians or the African Americans that occupy the rest of the nation. However, these Hispanic Americans, who are considered second class in their native home (Mexico) and 3rd class by the U.S. For use many years use of the Spanish language declined in the Chicano Nation because of the immigration of Anglo-Americans and the brutal efforts of the U.S. imperialists to eradicate the Spanish language.
Further analysis reveals, the link between language and identity with respect to community cohesiveness effects self-