Just three and a half years ago, in 1995, a Texas judge ruled that a mother was committing child abuse by speaking to her daughter in Spanish at home. He claimed that she was dooming her child to a life of poverty and alienation; it was unfair for the mother to impede her daughter's ability to fully act as a citizen.

Luckily, in appeals, this ruling was reversed in favor of the mother. What the case highlights, however is the stigma attached to communities trying to retain their native language. In my own family my father perceived this stigma and didn't teach me Spanish; he feared that I would have an accent. My Norwegian grandmother made the same choice with my mother. Some of my Filipino and Chinese friends have had similar experiences. Linda Chavez from the Center for Equal Opportunity (CEO), who spoke at Maury Auditorium a few weeks ago, would applaud these choices because they follow the Center's view that a quick assimilation of all immigrants into the mainstream, English-speaking culture is in the nation's best interest. And forget about bilingual education: only total immersion would do for the CEO. But the value of completely distancing oneself from his or her cultural heritage is questionable, especially when we see the number of "assimilated" kids trying to learn about their parents' culture and first language.

Multilingualism is something that we've been dealing with since the inception of the country. Germans, Poles, and Italians were all linguistic minorities during their great immigrations to the U.S. In the late twentieth century, in contrast, we see a larger portion of communities of Hispanics and Asians retaining their respective languages and cultures. In February, Pablo Davis, the newest Assistant Dean of Students, lead a Roundtable discussion on bilingualism and its impact on the nation. On March 9, I had the opportunity to interview him about this discussion and his perspective on the issues of bilingualism and bilingual education. Growing up bilingual with Argentine parents outside Washington, D.C., he has plenty to say concerning these issues:

Brandon Estela: So, tell me about bilingualism.

Pablo Davis: Well let me start off by stating that I am very much in favor of language rights. I've noticed that there is a lot of tension concerning language rights that has surfaced over the past decade or so. This is evident by an increasingly vocal pro-English side trying to mandate an official language. But I have to remind you that this is a debate with a long history. Bilingualism is old in this country; and, while it might be best for the nation to have a single language, I don't agree.

BE: Why is that?

PD: Multilingualism is as old as apple pie in this country. Anyone pushing the idea of any sort of official language is misguided: you can't wrap a flag around official languages. The forefathers recognized that there were a number of linguistic groups in colonial America and they didn't say anything one way or the other. Although bilingualism is often a personal matter, the government should be able to operate so that language rights of a certain population can be respected.

BE: What do you think about the idea of the danger of separatism? In an extreme scenario could anything like what is happening in Quebec happen here?

PD: To a certain extent it has already happened. There is a parallel between the French Quebecois and Hispanic Americans here in the U.S. Before the Mexican Cession, and before the British completely took over Canada, there were established communities of Mexican and French settlers. Both of these communities were overtaken through warfare and were never destroyed. This is a fact of conquest and empire that we can't ignore.

BE: But it seems as if this is something that most people do easily ignore.

PD: Many people feel more comfortable looking at Spanish language rights through the lens of an immigrant. They might point out that Germans and other Old Worlders had to learn English, why can't they? However, Spanish speakers don't quite fit that mold because, as I mentioned before, these communities were already established before they became part of the U.S.

BE: How do you account for Spanish staying around for so long when other languages seem to have disappeared?

PD: If you look at Hispanic communities today you would see a strong resemblance to German communities around the 1850s. There were many established communities that maintained the traditions of the Old World. But there were more. There was continual contact with Germany and German culture through immigration. However, once immigration dropped off, we saw a gradual breakdown of these communities as the Old World gradually became forgotten. With Hispanic communities, on the other hand, there is still continual contact with these peoples' countries of origin. This injects new blood into these communities.

BE: Which way do you think the debate concerning bilingual education is swaying?

PD: It seems as if it is something very fashionable to bash; even those sympathetic towards it sometimes appear slightly ambivalent. I must point out that evidence does show that it is helpful. What is at issue are legal rights and educational principles. All students should have the right to adequate education. The principle of bilingual education is valid: it is generally conceived as a transitional educational period. While learning this country's dominant language these kids shouldn't be falling behind in academic subjects. And consider the psychological aspects: the self-worth of the student shouldn't be pummeled just because he or she is learning a language. It takes time to learn the language and we shouldn't forget that. I would be wary about blanket statements claiming that bilingual education has failed. The linguistic and educational research does not support this assertion. What is most likely the case is that bilingual education has suffered from insufficient resources, especially for teacher training, books, and materials.

BE: Why do you think people advocate or insist on an official language?

PD: The United States has had identity issues and fears that seem to continually re-emerge. In the 80s and 90s we have seen a set of fears that seem to crystallize around language. But these people who are afraid that English is losing its influence just need to realize that English has accomplished what no other language has accomplished before. It really has become a world language.

BE: Then why are they still so defensive?

PD: People are very protective of their languages. One of the ironies in this issue is that in Spanish-speaking homes you hear the opposite: grandparents are lamenting the loss of the native language. I don't think that there will ever be an official language. Lately we have seen greater acceptance of other languages like Spanish. Businesses are actively courting this segment of the population. The stigma of speaking Spanish seems to be wearing off slightly. There is even a special Grammy for Latin music now. In the political realm this is how I see it: democracy should safeguard minority rights and language rights so that all citizens can participate in our government.