October 25 Blog Post response

It seems that most people fear rather than fully embrace other cultures. If Ebonics becomes a recognized language it does not mean, in my opinion that it would or even can take over the dominant language. We learned that all languages inevitably change and evolve, as all language, English is no exception. English has borrowed from Dutch, French, German, American Indian, Creole, African and other languages. It therefore carries with it more than the dominant culture, but also the above cultures as well.
These adopted cultures are expressed through English on a regular basis. Words that expressed food, fishing, hunting, as well as the tools used to build communities, which in turn fused the American culture together. Consequently, those words and the culture that originated with them make up the fabric of the American society.
Perhaps consulting with African Americans and American Indians regarding their language is a place to start, if it had not been already done. Then, the decision to allocate resources to either revive a language or make room for others should be considered. Since the use of language communicates one’s culture, I think that we need to look at how many people in a given culture speak the language and wish to use it to pass on their way of life.
Is a way of speaking a language or dialects? To me it ultimately does not matter what label we give it. I think that we need to acknowledge those around us that contribute to our way of life and want a place to express the main characteristics that makes them who they are. The history of the provenance of languages gives its users a sense of their place within the dominant culture. It also gives them the sense of its importance. American Indian and Ebonics or Spanglish languages all blended with English under different circumstances. American Indian as all languages was a native and born out of survival and necessity, to communicate the speakers’ needs and express their belonging to their tribal societies. Ebonics, as we saw in class developed under rough circumstances and their speakers used it to create connections with those who did not share the same tongue in order to build relationships that could help with their survival. The relationships were not based on common societal values, but developed later as pidgin evolved into Creole. Spanglish was also born out of struggle between Spanish speakers and English speakers. The immigration issues that were recently debated shows that the dominant bloc is resistant to change even though it is happening. Cultures change and evolve as languages do.