[First of a Series on Diversity]
Yesterday I had the pleasure of participating (well, specifically standing and being part of an audience) in a “symbolic ribbon cutting” (I wonder why there was no actual ribbon or scissors… but, I digress) of our new Electric Vehicle Charging Stations on Capitol Hill, Atlanta (great for the environment!). This blog has nothing to do with this event but, it does have something to do with English as a second language and how speaking with someone at the event temporarily took me aback and got me thinking about this common condition of millions of Americans. To define what led me to further thoughts, while standing there one of the principals of the company which we hired to install the units and with whom I had been corresponding (but never had met) said to me in a surprised almost incredulous tone, “You’re Rey?” “The one and only, I retorted.” He did not say this but I believe he thought the Rey he was going to meet was a woman but he seemed to be more surprised that I was Hispanic for he then asked me in a manner I have heard many times before, “Where are you from?” I politely inquired (as I have done on countless occasions), “On what level do you mean that? Do you mean that as to where I was born?” I proceeded to tell him (honestly, somewhat defensively) “I was born in Colombia, South America [not Columbia, South Carolina – to lighten what my daughters say is my intimidating tone]; was raised in Fort Lauderdale; and had my maturing years in the central and north central parts of Florida and mostly consider myself a Florida Gator!” I smiled. His next statement was revealing as to intent, he said, “Well I detected an accent but it sounds like a Spanish accent twanged with southern English.” I joked about what he apparently heard by telling him it must be my thirty years of living with my Alabama-accented wife and now embracing Georgia southernisms. He proceeded to tell me a story about his self-titled “redneck Asian doctor in Texas” which made an uncomfortable moment worse; luckily we were saved from further depths by an assistant of the event asking him to move his loudly festooned company vehicle to a less prominent spot.
As I stood there evaluating what just happened, it got me thinking, first, about how difficult it is to dilute or control our first language tendencies because they hold our developmental stages both physically and emotionally. I spoke only Spanish until I was eight years old. Secondly, that our audiences will make assumptions and create value judgments based on the dialects heard. Third, that we even dare to assume relative intelligence quotient differentials based on how people sound. Fourth, that I accept this common happenstance as a mild form of prejudice. Fifth, that it seems people assume that dialects, accents or nuanced speech imbue the holder with indelible characteristics. However, I also accept the fact that provided there is no malice behind observations the listener is simply trying to place familiarity in order to create a lasting connection. In the business world, however, to properly connect, we tend to be actively generic rather than unique. This is especially true of our speaking habits. (Why do I suddenly feel like Professor Henry Higgins?) So the whole event had the tangential effect of momentarily making me somewhat self-conscious and introspective about the nuances of accents and the effect on our audiences.
So, now, let’s get back to the permeating thought of English as a second language. English is one of the most difficult languages to learn because of its many formal and informal rules of speech, silent letters, situational conditions, and the variants caused by regional dialects. Yet, here was a man asking me to define myself based on my speech patterns and sounds. Unscrupulous persons could use the ability to discern nuances in accents as a powerful weapon. It is easy to divert thought and reason by refocusing conversation to a personal trait, e.g., one so innocuous on the surface like an accent. Now, those of you who have not had to adopt English as a second language or have no regional accents may find all I have stated as unfamiliar territory. However, to those who have worked hard to fit in both culturally and through speech, being “exposed” creates a sense of insecurity even when the intent was just satisfying curiosity. So to focus all this on our respective worlds, I assume that the desire to “fit in” is universal and whenever we are singled out it makes us uncomfortable. We wish to express our adult role in the most effective way possible and this includes how others hear us. This is important to know and be aware of as more and more of us are thrust into extremely diverse workplaces and have to address the worldwide economy we are experiencing through the necessary infusion of persons from many parts of the world.
“All the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players...”- William Shakespeare
Rey Palma
10/21/13