Bgéji éyajmoyan ngom

Why you should learn your language…….or as one person asked me recently, why should I learn my language? I informed him that the Potawatomi People have a Potawatomi language given to them by their Creator…when folks ask him what and who he is, how does he answer them when they ask him about his Potawatomi heritage? How does he answer if they should ask why he doesn’t use his heritage language? What does he say to folks when they ask why he doesn’t seek to learn his heritage language? How does he justify not using his heritage language telling people who he is? Why doesn’t he use his heritage language in prayer? What does he say to people when they find out he is Potawatomi and does not know his own mother tongue?  For that matter, what language does he think those spirits speak, English or Potawatomi? What language does he think his concept of God speaks, you know the One who gave him life and also gave his people their heritage language?

A more interesting question for some of you……what language do you pray in? Are you Potawatomi like me? Do you speak Potawatomi? Are you aware there are language classes being conducted every week, four evenings a week, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evening from 7:00 PM until 8:30 PM? Do you do everything in your power to make it to at least one of those classes? Two would be better, three would be even better yet, but all four would be best! Monday and Wednesday evening classes are freebies, but Tuesday and Thursday cost you something, a small donation of $40 per month, which you don’t have to pay monthly since there are others who share that cost with you. You might end up paying that donation once a year in that case, but rarely more than once. Still, that is cheap when you consider the quality teaching you get for that mere pittance, when you compare the cost of concert tickets, movie tickets, or even DVD’s once or twice a month for some of you.

In addition, the Thursday evening class is on Neshnabé Spirituality with a good part of the lesson taught in Potawatomi with translations. If you are attempting to practice your tradition, or someone else’s (this is usually the Lakota or Cherokee, for some), why not learn your own language and cultural teachings in your heritage language and speak to your God in Potawatomi, not English or some other language which is just as foreign to you as English? Lets face it folks! If you are Potawatomi, your God does not speak English to you, nor do the spirits who assist Him for you, yes that is right, they all speak Potawatomi to the Potawatomi people!

God may have created all languages but if He took the time to create something very specific like you and me, the bear, the wolf, the deer, and other creatures, then he expects us to follow our original instructions, so start speaking Potawatomi… If you don’t know your heritage language, then begin to learn it and speak it when you pray and sing in your worship. Come to think of it, what language do you sing your songs in? I hope it is in Potawatomi if that is the language you speak or are learning…..better yet, start thinking in Potawatomi too as it shall help you learn in the thought process.

It takes a lot of effort to learn your mother tongue, but it can be done if you take pride in who you are as a Potawatomi person. I do! I want to say I am Potawatomi and pray in my heritage language, think in that language and even sing in it. I want to do everything in my mother tongue and when I pass from this world into the next, I want them to welcome me into that world using my Neshnabé name and in Potawatomi. Don’t you?

What will you do when you meet your ancestors in the next life, and you can’t understand what they are saying to you?  You don’t really think this life and this world is all there is, do you?

Do something about it now and learn your own language and cultural ways.

We have the means and the classes…..check out our web site at www.neaseno.org for online classes and cultural teachings on the Neshnabé Way of Life.

Some interesting and provoking thoughts from Neaseno……   

On Immersion Camps…

Can you really take a native person to an immersion camp and bring them home speaking another language?  Hmmm….

Many Native American children, some by choice and some by force, were once enrolled in mission schools and boarding schools.  They would be removed from their communities, and they would be unable to see their families for long periods of time.  The various folks at these schools cut the children’s hair, altering their physical appearance.  They exchanged the traditional clothing for clothing representative of the particular group running the boarding school.  They took away any personal sacred articles, disregarded them as idols, and replaced them with a new religion. 

And they IMMERSED them in the English language, or the Spanish language, if they were in Spanish California.  They were Immersed.  The children were told not to speak their own language.  They were either disregarded and ignored, or even punished with loss of privilege or even physically beaten if they spoke their own language.  They had to learn English or Spanish to survive.  They had to learn it to eat.  They had to learn it to get basic necessities.  They had to learn it to avoid humiliation and pain.  They had to learn it to survive. 

That was the original immersion camp…

That is what your elders, the generations before you, suffered…

Is there any wonder why our languages are in such decline? 

It’s time for REVERSE IMMERSION.  It’s not enough to run an immersion camp with language only, nor is it enough to run a culture camp with no language.  The whole thing has to be reversed.  A high quality native immersion camp should incorporate both the language and the culture. 

1. Physical appearance.  That which was changed long ago is going to have to be symbolically restored.  You can’t just re-grow hair, not that fast, but some sort of visible mark needs to be incorporated.  Humans are visually oriented, and they think in symbols, and a symbolic gesture of the physical changes will mark that person.  It seems strange, but if you think about it, it is a rite of passage almost, and the missions and boarding schools used this technique to the extreme at one time.  A hairpiece, a token, something physical that connects the language learner with the language learning experience, will cause that language learner to relive those language memories every time it is touched and handled, this is something that has not been considered before….
2. Clothing.  We’re not talking powwow regalia here, nor are we talking reenactment.  Most of that is glass beads and European finery refashioned to somehow look natural.  We’re talking about simple changes.  A ribbon shirt for the men and a long skirt for the women.  Something to again physically mark the person, giving a visual cue to their brain that something is different, and a different mode of thought is necessary.  Something that causes the brain to relive language learning moments every time that shirt or skirt is worn.  Why?  Because until the Neshnabé culture is incorporated into the heart, incorporated into the being of a person, they are going to need those physical marks to remind them.  Once that incorporation is complete, and a Neshnabé thinks and acts like a Neshnabé, the visual cues and physical marks are no longer necessary.  
3. Religion.  We’re not talking forced conversion here, nor are we talking about beating the religion out of anyone.  What we are talking about is a basic appreciation for the spiritual nature of the Neshnabék, in a non-threatening way.  Remember, this is REVERSE IMMERSION, reversing what was done to cause many of our people to fear their own culture as laden with devil-worship and idolatry.  Many of our people don’t really know the truth about how the Neshnabék truly worshiped their creator and respected the rest of creation.  It’s time they learned, and if they are truly committed to Christianity or any other religion, the truth and the faith will work together, and they will simply gain an appreciation and understanding for their ancestors and their current relations who may chose to walk the Red Road.  And maybe some of these powwow dancers will begin understand what those dances were supposed to represent at one time, and not dance just for the prize money. 
4. Language.  This is the focal point.  This is the center of the whole thing.  Why? Because this is what they attempted to force out of us long ago.  You think they didn’t understand then how important language was?  Why do you think they fought so fiercely in Europe over translations of the Bible?  They knew how important language is, and they knew that if they took it away from the Native people, the culture would die.  SO REVERSE IT.  Bring the language back in its cultural context, to describe the physical appearance, the clothing, the foods, the spirituality, the traditions, the songs, the prayers, the stories, the speeches.  Use it to instruct in native cooking, native crafts, native Everything.

http://www.anishinaabemdaa.com/language-camp.htm#schedule  Reverse Immersion camps do exist!  The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians has been sponsoring this for 15 years!  AND THEY WORK.  Kenny Pheasant and the other fluent elders of the Ottawa and Ojibwe nations have been advocating this for their people all this while!

Why aren’t the Potawatomi doing this?  If our primary objective is to record and preserve the language, THEN WE HAVE ALREADY ADMITTED DEFEAT.  The primary objective should be to use, use, USE the language!!!  NOW!!  While our Elders are still HERE!!!!

These Potawatomi bands have managed to get together for the past 13 years at an annual gathering, and for the past 5 years at an annual language conference.  It is therefore entirely possible that they can get together, fund, and hold a Reverse Immersion Camp, incorporating language, language, language, and culture, funding their fluent elders to come together and teach, and helping the people come back to their roots, helping the people remember that they are Neshnabék. 

Iw énajmoyan

Nin se Neaseno

Hau, mégwa gi Neshnabémwik wi mawjeshnowat ibe kiwédnon gaga éwi yajmoawat

ékendemwat ode zheshmowen……..cho she nwi zhyasi ibe ode pon…..wi zhyéwat

gode nizho dések wa je wabdemwat, mine ébsedwat anet ékigdowat gode zheshmonajek

ibe kidwénon.  Hau, i yé bgéji ékedyan ngom……..

Hau wabek wi zekso’awat o ga je mbot wnago……..i ye i ga kedwat gi ksenyaniyek eyajmowat ngom egi shegnanowat shote. Gi mkche jiwenmo o mdemoze ga je mtoset shpemek wnago. Wegwendek wi nweshmo’awat ngoji pi ibe kiwednon gi wnijksenyaniyek……..nin se, nde kiwades ngom emikwendemyan jayek gi kekyajek ngodek egi bmadsewat ngoji wegwendek ga pa ndeswat gode Bodewadmik.

Hau iw se mteno enajmoyan ngom——Neaseno ndesh ne kas.

Hau, bo zho mine,

After taking some time off to get other things arranged and organized, I am now back to share some thoughts with ya all. First off, our beautiful language…..kyet nam she nde zabendan ode zheshmowen egi mingoyak mno wi pi…….

Our language is what describes us, it is what describes our world, our universe, our ceremonial lives, our eco systems, and the many other things we take for granted in this world of ours. I never want to take our world for granted, I don’t want to take this life for granted, I will not take my language for granted, any more than the air I breathe, for it is the air I breathe, it is the food I eat, it is the family I love, it is the mate I love, it is everything I care about and live for, am ready to die for and certainly all that I love for. I cannot stress how important this language is to me……

Today we lost yet another beautiful elderly lady; Mary Wensaut. I wonder if anyone else will really miss her and the huge gaping hole she will leave among our Potawatomi speakers. We are so very few these days, some have said about 44 speakers left in the entire world, but I beg to differ with them…….we have about 15 speakers left that I count who really speak this Potawatomi language. There are 5 of us who are actively teaching this language and perhaps 5-6 more who are not fully fluent yet, but will be if they give themselves time to learn to speak fluently.

We have some Canadian speakers left but they speak Neshnabemwen, which is not pure Potawatomi and if we, who still speak this language don’t take drastic steps to teach and share this language, it will die out. The Neshnabemwen language will be the only thing left that remotely resembles the old Potawatomi language. I do not wish to minimize that sacred tongue they speak in Canada, Grandmother’s Land, but we must not allow our original language The Spirit gave us to die out.

With the passing of another elder, we come that much closer to losing our precious mother tongue, Bodewadmi. I have witnessed so many beautiful elders leave us in the years I have traversed this sacred altar called Mother Earth. There was a time when we spoke only Potawatomi in our home and there were other Native languages we spoke as well. Those days are past and it seems there are no new speakers coming up who are learning to speak these languages. We hear of classes here and there, on line classes we have made available, books for sale with CD’s and DVD’s, but there still are no new speakers coming up through the rank and file of Potawatomi people. Many people would rather not even take classes to learn their language, even when we make it so readily available for them on the internet and through many other outlets, such as Amazon.com, and offering language classes through tribal programs as well.

When will the people take pride in who they are as Potawatomi and learn their language so it doesn’t get lost? When will they sacrifice their time and spend it “burning the mid nite oil” so to speak, to learn this language? When will the people spend their substance to do all in their power to learn their language, thereby saving it for their use? When will language become their world?

Iw enajmoyan…….Nin se Neaseno. 

Folks, do you realize that the youngest fluent speaker of Potawatomi is in their late sixties?  We are losing our elders rapidly, and I wonder sometimes at the response to this crisis.

In their zest to preserve the language, the younger generation has begun writing grants and gathering materials in an effort to keep the language alive.  An interesting thought occurred to me today regarding the ANA grants that are currently being used for language preservation and curriculum development:  Why are some of our people dealing with elders as though they were already dead?

Why aren’t our elders asked to sit in on these planning sessions for grantwriting?  They are asked only to send a letter of committment, agreeing to the plan already drawn up, but not asked for their suggestions or opinions.  Our fluent speakers learned this language as children, wouldn’t you think they would have some valuable insight as to how to teach it???? 

Our various native cultures, in particular the Potawatomi culture, have a system of respect for elders and those who possess traditional knowledge.  It seems that this business of getting grants to preserve this language has used money to bypass the respect due to these elders.  Some language students have hinted at the attitude that the Language must be preserved at all costs, and through any means possible.  Don’t you understand that the language and the culture are inseparable????  A language cannot exist without a culture!  A culture cannot exist without a language!  If you attempt to preserve the language while circumventing the cultural norms, mores, sanctions, and taboos, by disrespecting elders, stealing their materials, not compensating them properly for their time, not recognizing their place, and claiming that you have learned the language all by yourself and not giving credit where credit is due, then you have won the battle but lost the war!! 

OUR ELDERS ARE STILL HERE.  They have not disappeared, nor have the language they speak or the culture they practice.  Don’t treat them like they are already gone.  If we forget in our haste to preserve the Potawatomi language that we are NESHNABE, then we may forget to follow our cultural teachings.  What is to stop someone from printing out webpages and passing the material off as their own, perhaps selling it in various places?  What is to stop someone from taking classroom material from an elder, and using it elsewhere as curriculum in an unrelated grant, without credit or compensation to the elder?  What is to stop someone from stealing office supplies, curriculum materials, or incentive materials, and selling them for their own profit?  OUR CULTURAL TEACHINGS, THAT’S WHAT.  WE ARE TAUGHT THROUGH OUR CULTURE NOT TO STEAL FROM THE PEOPLE, AND ESPECIALLY NOT TO STEAL FROM OUR ELDERS. 

Wdetanmowen - Respect.  We are taught to respect our elders.  Not to steal from them in various ways, not to shunt them aside, ignore their input, forget to compensate them for their efforts. 

Most elders are ready to share what they know, because they see over the wisdom of their years the immense loss to our people caused by the loss of our language and culture.  Most elders are ready to pass on to the next generation these precious gifts that they received from their elders.  THEY ARE WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO APPROACH THEM IN A CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE WAY, BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT THEY HAD TO DO IN THEIR YOUTH TO LEARN WHAT THEY KNOW. 

We speak on and on about the Seven Grandfathers, but do we use them?  Do we practice them?  Or are they just words that we memorize so we can sound like we know something?   Try approaching a Fluent Speaker with a little Respect once, maybe a little Humility, and you’ll learn alot more about language than you will with an ANA grant.

Granted, ANA grants are useful for funding projects, and are necessary in this day and age.  It’s not ANA who is doing this to our elders.  We speak of some of the people who have applied and used these grants but who have forgotten who they are as Native People.  That money cannot replace the power of Respect, Humility, Wisdom, Bravery, and all those special gifts that once made the Native Nations great.  Nor can it replace our Elders.  In this time in which we live, we require money to kickstart our projects into motion.  But we cannot forget that which makes us NESHNABE, and remember to include our Elders, in the planning, application, and implementation processes. 

Some have complained that they cannot find Elders who will work with them.  Maybe if you changed your approach and your attitudes, you might find the answers you seek.

Ahau, iw énajmoyak odo pi.

We are back from the Potawatomi Gathering 2007 which took place at Crandon, WI this year, and the 5th Annual Language Conference that was held at Carter, WI, just prior to to the Gathering of Potawatomi folk. Both events were well attended and much was learned by all who took part in the Language Conference, as well as many Potawatomi folk gaining a better perspective of themselves, as a nation and as individuals, within their respective reservation areas and tribes.

I would have liked to have heard more from the Language Teachers, especially from Billy Daniels, Jim Thunder, Peter Pemma, Mary Wensaut, Mary Daniels, Lillian Kelty, Marian Perrot, Donald Perrot, Lillian Rice, Cecelia Potts, Stewart King, and other fluent elders, instead of the speakers they did schedule.

Some of the beginning speakers are good, but come on now, they are not completely fluent, and why can’t they pay their dues first, as the original fluent speakers have done?
The Language Conference was good, but for me: I wanted to hear from other fluent speakers like me, and be able to talk shop with them, instead of always catering to the Language Learners, who are still doing just that, still learning!

I think the Language Leraners should still be listening to us, the fluent speakers, and what were the Ojibwa speakers doing there from Bay Mills College? Are they suddenly Potawatomi, or were they speaking Potawatomi? I think not!

Yeah, the Learners should leave the speaking to the fluent speakers and listen, learn more before they venture out to speak, because much of what they teach and try to share is wrong, not quite correct, thus making it wrong……

They may mean well, but meaning well and getting it right are two different things. Listen and learn well, so they can pronounce it right, before trying to teach others is what I say!

If anyone differs with that, tough luck!
I want my language taught right, by fluent speakers……
just me—-Don.

Much has been written about native beliefs and the way we native people worship. It has kept many an anthropologist, sociologist, social-psychologist, and many of the other Ologists busy for some time studying and probing our native psyches and collective awarenesses, trying to find out who we are, what we were, and whether or not they could ever accept us, and incorporate us into their melting pot of America. Many other cultural groups have been studied with the same scrutiny and expediency and have been accepted, to varying degrees; the Irish, Italians, Polish, Jews, Scottish, Germans, Russians, and the Blacks have been grudgingly accepted into various parts of Corporate America only through their sheer tenacity and confrontive personalities, but are still viewed as unacceptable in White social circles. For example, salt and pepper relationships, as they are often called, are still frowned upon, and the black who uses his/her political or economic clout to gain access into White mainstream organizations or social clubs, is only grudgingly accepted. The Native American has not tried to climb the social ladders or achieve any social prominence, even if they attain any degree of status in the entertainment industry, which has grudgingly admitted them in as actors and actresses. At one time, they were only included as extras, stuntmen, and technical advisors, and even then, some White expert had the final say over what they might advance. In short, most Native Americans do not seem to be too concerned about being accepted into White America, and generally have no interest in joining….

The subject of our religious beliefs have been a matter of study for some time now and folks who have made the efforts to explore the tenets of our religious ideals and ways, are still in doubt as to what we are, who we truly are, and who we worship. Linguists have added to the studies and even though many have learned various languages among us, they too, are still in limbo, as to what our languages encompass and who we address. From the early Jesuits and other religious leaders who sought to understand us through our languages, much data has been accumulated and translated, in an attempt to incorporate us into their religious scheme of things, to evangelize, and convert us. All of these efforts have not met with much success, as we still have scores of Native People who insist upon worshipping in their own way, and following their own teachings, and since the 1950’s, there has been a resurgence of Native People finding their own religious roots   

I want to share some things with you this afternoon about my language. We have no word for culture, nor do we have a word for tradition, or traditional, or for that matter, Indian. In fact, many of the words we take for granted, which the linguists and others have told us mean, don’t really mean that at all. If we took the time to examine many of the definitions of various words from the Potawatomi tongue and saw what they mean in the literal context, we would be surprised. Our language is sacred, it is what we were given to bless God and man, as well as all of creation. It is what our Creator gave us to speak with Him/Her. Even the words we utter, which supposedly refer to our concept of God, do not refer to a Him, but could mean Her.

The linguists, bless their souls, mean well, but have taken over just like the early religious leaders of their time did, the Jesuits and others who came to convert us, and now mean to tell us what our words and language mean. These people, with all their military might,  couldn’t conquer us, could not break us, nor could they defeat that Neshnabé spirit of us, that kept searching for its own, and eventually found its way through the various ceremonies our elders and spiritual people kept alive for us. We had prophecies told us in that magical, mystical language of ours, that was meant for this time and day, which foretold of the rise of the Native People once again. Though many of them searched our ways and language, they neglected to ascribe truth, wisdom, understanding and prudence to what they discovered about our language. Our language contained it all, if only they had been receptive to what they saw and sometimes heard, through the various elders who faithfully told them what they could.  

We don’t need linguists, priests, rabbis, ministers, senators, congressmen, social workers, judges, lawyers, their teachers, or anyone else to tell us what our language contains for us. We need to return to our own ways and we need to recognize the wisdom of our elders, stop giving it lip service, but really respect them for who they are, what they are, and what they know, about our language and all it has to say to us today.

Iw énajmoyan ngom……kyét nam épich mno wéndem édazgenjénéyan ode neshnabé zhechkéwen mine ode neshnabé méndokaswenen mine i neshnabé zheshmowen.

folks:

i remember when i was in the service and the many trips we made to foreign countries where we had to speak another language in order to communicate with our peers over there, if we wanted something to eat, or drink, or just seeking directions. i found it interesting to do this and i found the people engaging. i never thought it was a bother to learn some expressions to make myself understood and when i made subtle mistakes speaking a new language, no one made fun of me, but patiently corrected me and taught me to say it the right way. i never felt threatened in any way by anyone i met.

it is my beleif many american politicians and people who favor the”english only policy” the government wants to adopt feel threatened in some way by having all these foreigners among us, and having to learn some new words and customs to interact and communicate effectively scares them a little. they are no longer in control. i have traveled in some places where the american was considered “ugly” and “controlling”. i have also felt at times, that i didn’t want to be identified with americans, and did not want people referring to me as an american indian. i used to tell them i was neshnabe, not american, and that iwas here in america before america ever was.

the whole concept of america and democracy is a borrowed policy and the american writers of the constitution could rightly say they borrowed their whole idea of democray and freedom from the native people they met, especially the haudenoshaunee people. benjamin franklin and many others were very much impressed with the league of the iroquois and they had many meetings with these folks, as well as with other native nations, whom they emulated, in terms of framing their new democratic government.

why did they keep slavery?

why did they take so long to give their women the right to vote?

why did they not allow free trade and commerce to the common people too, these framers of the constitution?

and now they want to foist an “english only” policy on the rest of the country?

i love my language. it is the tongue given to me by the creator and he/she expected me to use it. why else did he/she give it to me? i do not want to lose my language. i don’t know about others among our rank and file, but if we don’t do something to learn our language, we are not going to have it much longer. i am going to be 68 years young this year and it will not be much longer before i go the way of all flesh. what will happen to our language if my children and the folks i so courageously teach today, if they don’t learn the language of their forefathers, after i pass from this scene? it does make one wonder, eh?

hang in there and learn all you can while there are still people alive who can teach you……..

neaseno ndesh ne kas, iw enaj moyan ngom…….. 

English only?

Several states are trying to make English the official language, requiring that all business be conducted in English.

What a shame. 

Do you realize that if English were the only language, we wouldn’t have the states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Mississippi, Ohio, Alaska, or Hawaii?  We would no longer have the cities of Seattle, Miami, Chicago, or Milwaukee!  Or Sacramento, San Diego, Los Angeles, San Antonio, or Las Vegas!  We would no longer have the Mississippi River, the Missouri River, Lake Michigan, or Lake Huron!   George Washington would have never crossed the Potomac River!

There would be no Mardi Gras!!!!  There would be no New Orleans, no Baton Rouge! 

Are you saying we can no longer go to a place of business and order pizza, tacos, burritos, spaghetti, salsa, moo goo gai pan, chou mein, lo mein, kim-chee, sushi, kebabs, or a salami and provolone sandwich? 

We couldn’t go to the store and buy queso dip, tortillas, mozzarella cheese, pita bread, or éclairs!   We couldn’t go to a zoo and see a flamingo or a moose!

We would also be without Psi Beta Kappa, Delta Chi, Sigma Chi, Delta Delta Delta, Lambda Alpha, and every other Greek fraternity/sorority organization!!

Do you realize that many religious observances are conducted in languages that are considered sacred and part of the religious ceremony?  How can you conduct a Jewish Bar-mitzvah, a Latin Mass, or a Muslim Prayer Service without their languages?  And what about Native Americans who use their language in their sacred ceremonies?

If English became the only language, we could no longer have a rendezvous, nor could we RSVP for one!  (For those who don’t know, it stands for Respondez S’il Vous Plait!)

I LIVE IN TECUMSEH, OKLAHOMA.   To say that would be illegal, seeing as neither Tecumseh or Oklahoma are English words!!!

To those of you who believe in English Only for Americans, try going for ONE DAY without using a word that comes from another language!!!!

Without using Hola, Ciao, Aloha, or Adios. 

• Without using Habeas Corpus, No Solo Contendre, or the abbreviations i.e. or e.g. 
• Without going to Taco Bell, Taco Grandé, Taco Bueno, Taco Mayo, or Taco John’s. 
• Without having a rendezvous, or sending in an RSVP. 
• Without calling a Physician, Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Podiatrist, Dentist, Neurologist, Dermatologist, Chiropractor, or going to a SPA (named after a town in Belgium!!)

America is an amalgamation of languages and cultures from all around the world.  It is this diversity that makes us strong, adaptable, and NOT BORING!!  It is FEAR that is driving this English only movement!  Fear of people and words that are not understood!  I’d say it was Xenophobia, but that’s another illegal word!! 

Here’s a thought.  Instead of making English the only official language, how’s about requiring that EVERY AMERICAN learn at least THREE languages!

STOP THE MADNESS!!  Accept the non-Englishness of American English!  Be proud of your heritage, and your neighbor’s heritage, and your parents and your grandparents and your great-grandparents and anyone else you know who is American but talks differently than you!!!  Don’t be afraid of things you don’t understand!

Listen to Spanish language radio!  Watch international TV stations!  Read international newspapers and websites!  Learn an endangered language!  Get educated!  Get informed!  Education is the only way to combat ignorance!!

If you speak another language, DON’T STOP!!!!!  Keep speaking it, even to yourself if you have to!!

PASS IT ON!!

Donald and Dolores Perrot

http://www.neaseno.org