Language and Culture Journal

Journal 10: Language and Multiculturalism

There are many different languages spoken on the planet, but business is conducted around the world in English. The only problem with this is that outside of business, those who speak broken English are often looked down on as inferior and second class citizens. History has shown this through the many times that it has penalized minorities for not speaking the same dialect of English as the country at that time. Even throughout parts of the United States, it is looked down upon if you have certain dialects of English. You are considered a redneck if you speak with a southern accent, and the stereotypes do not stop there. There are so many that it affects the way that people are viewed for jobs, education, and as customers. It is wrong. I don't understand how English could not be multicultural. Everyone should have their own accent and not looked down upon for it. English is a language built upon other languages around the globe. Imagine all the different accents that went into the creation of it. Why shouldn't it be spoken with flavor and variety in culture? We did the chitlin test of intelligence that was used to discredit those people who were African-American in origin, or considered too dumb to vote. Lets just say that I did not pass. I would be considered "culturally deficient." That is quite funny to me considering my history and family origin. I am a great part American Indian belonging to a tribe here in Michigan and Canada. I am a large part also Irish. My family owns a castle in Ireland. On top of that, I have cousins that are African-American, Mexican, Cuban, and who knows what else. To me people are people. People speak the way they speak because of where and how they are brought up. I think that the differences in speech do not say negative things about a person, but rater that it says they have a different heritage or life experiences that could be interesting to know. This is one area I just don't understand. I think differences in culture and language is fantastic, because that means I get to understand something new and see the world from a different point of view.

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