Monday, July 5, 2010

Chale!: Proper Spanish/Nahua


I shared my first graduate class with an older man who specialized in colonial art and insisted on defending the "benefits" of colonialism. To him, the existence of a merit-based system of art workmanship in colonial Mexico proved that all aspects of colonialism weren't "so bad." One day, this student shared his experience taking Nahua language classes in Mexico from a white professor from Washington D.C. who had indigenous teachers as his assistants. The student couldn't believe that the professor had to "correct" the language skills of his indigenous assistants who did not know how to speak "properly." 

As a Chicana, I grew up constantly hearing about the importance of speaking "proper" Spanish and English. And while my first generation parents or language purists might never understand, among my chicano peers pochismos are some times the clearest way of expressing yourself. I couldn't understand how the Nahua learned by a professor in Washington D.C. is more legitimate than that spoken within indigenous communities.

Yet, after class I was the one who was criticized by another student who insisted that I should not have responded to the comment because the first student just "didn't know any better" given his background. Apparently, I am the one that needs to be more open-minded...

8 comments:

  1. Readers: this post comes from the west coast.
    Image added by me, pocho enough.
    thanks for reading.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Typical shit! Always a white man teaching a native how to be "authentic"...

    ReplyDelete
  3. This post comes from the west coast.
    thank you!
    Image, added by me, pocho enough.
    please feel free to comment or submit posts.

    ReplyDelete
  4. This post comes from the west coast!
    thank you!
    Image, added by pocho enough

    ReplyDelete
  5. THis post comes from the west coast!
    image added by pocho enough

    ReplyDelete
  6. oh WOW... that's not the first time i heard some of these fools try to defend colonialism in class for "the positive things it did." I do stuff with public health so it's particularly pronounced... "we delivered them/ya'll from disease." it's like fool, you brought the disease and created the conditions under which it thrived then handed out pills to treat five people and pat yourself on the back. that's like me shooting you in the face, calling 911 and then expecting an award because my call saved your life...

    ReplyDelete
  7. intellectual gansta and JT, yes, and yes!

    ReplyDelete