When I read about this debate, I think of my Greek aunts who came to the US at an age where learning a new language is a much greater challenge than for kids. They learned basic things; they could do their shopping, pay their bills, etc. But their social lives were in the Greek community. It really went far beyond the ability to speak English or not - it was also about common experience and challenges, a real understanding. (Just as I can talk about a typical day here in Istanbul but unless you've lived here, you only get a superficial idea of what it is like.) Anyone outside that community who really wants to understand them will have to make the effort. Some might, some might not; so be it.
I can only imagine what my aunts' lives would have been like if they had been forced to speak English, slapped every time they uttered a word of Greek. They might have learned more English and been more "functional" in a way but they would also have been isolated from those people who could truly and deeply understand them.
And I think, "what would be the motive for forcing them to speak only English?" Several possible answers come to mind:
1. A belief that English is somehow superior.
It's surprising how much you run accross the attitude that one language is 'better' than another.
2. The desire of the majority to interact on their own terms.
It is frustrating to want to communicate with someone whom you can't understand and who doesn't understand you. It's such a natural desire. But if you really want to communicate, it's a two-way street; that's true even for people who speak your own language, and how often people forget even that. I think many hearing people assume that being a deaf American/Turk/whatever is just like being a hearing American/Turk/whatever, and don't really think about how profoundly different one's experience is. Just as many people think that "respect for other cultures" as something interesting in a touristic sort of way but never consider how stuck they are in their own cultural way of viewing the world and other people. They just assume that what they know is "the right way."
2. a belief (even if 'well-intended') that if they could only be "like us" their lives would
be of higher quality.
It's so easy to project your (perceived) needs on another and then say "oh how sad, they don't have that." Heck, I've had people express disbelief, even concern, that I've never owned a television set, and argue why I should have one. They go on and on about what I'm missing, without thinking about what they are missing by focusing so much time a day on the TV.
My aunts were quite happy. They had a decent income, close friends, a community who accepted them and loved them. All the things a human needs to be happy. As well as the ability to function quite well in American society, even if not in the same way as Americans. Yes, they would have felt out of place in many areas. But they definitely had places where they felt perfectly at home. So when one feels inclined to pity another because they don't function in the way they do, they need to stop and consider what they also don't have and the view of the world that they themselves have never experienced.
Sooo.. (wrapping it up here):
I'm all for learning to deal in a foreign language, it's clearly helpful. But everyone's ability is different, and everyone's need and desire is different too. As long as one can cope and is happy in this life, who's to judge how one copes or what makes him happy? It seems to me that having a community, having real communication with people who understand you is much more important. The eagerness of deaf kids to pick up sign language, mentioned above, seems to be very clear evidence of that need.
Our country feels shame about the times when Native American kids were punished for speaking their languages. To deprive kids of free communication when they're growing up seems nothing less than cruel.
This is a very thought provoking post.
