"Most Americans Don't Like Speaking Spanish."

[Ken y Leidys 20]

I went to a new barber today - a Latina immigrant who struggled with English. She was amazed that I didn't mind speaking Spanish with her. "Most Americans don't like to hear, let alone speak Spanish!" she told me while she cut my hair. I hear this all of the time.

What are your opinions on this comment?

[Ban Hammer 13,352]

I went to a new barber today - a Latina immigrant who struggled with English. She was amazed that I didn't mind speaking Spanish with her. "Most Americans don't like to hear, let alone speak Spanish!" she told me while she cut my hair. I hear this all of the time.

What are your opinions on this comment?

if she has a good rack, who cares what language she speaks while cutting hair.

[Anh map 2,098]

I think the personal replies here on VJ will be skewed toward not minding as we are all connected to other countries, many where English is not the native language.

I think there are the intolerant folks that believe that only English should be spoken. Kind of crazy and unrealistic in my opinion.

There are situations where it's best to speak primarily in English. For example, my wife is a manicurist and her salon is 100% Vietnamese. Her boss has an English only rule when working on or around customers. The reason is the belief that people are talking about you in a language you don't understand. And it does make some folks uncomfortable. Here is a comedy clip that explains it in a funny way. ->

It makes my wife howl with laughter and her boss used it as an example in a staff meeting.

I try to use my work Spanglish when I am trying to bridge the language gap. Plop me down in a non Englsih speaking country and I am in tough shape. So I admire anyone else who does so. Sometimes that means using sign language and/or asking for help. What's the big deal?

Edited June 17, 2009 by Anh map

[NArocks 13]

HMM I have had my moments as I speak Spanish very fluently and I am a pure Gringa and look it. I grew up in Miami and sometimes would be a b*tch and not speak Spanish especailly if they appraoched me in Spanish first, however once I would see them trying at least to speak English I would swing right into Spanish. So many people swear I am hispanic , however tis not the case as I am full blooded IRISH

I feel though that by me knowing Spanish I am at an advantage. Was not really brought up this way, but I decided to break the chain that I was brought up with. Dad was a coal miner and we were not supposed to mingle with any other than our race. NOT , nor does my daughter think this way. We are blessed more becasue of our accecptance

I went to a new barber today - a Latina immigrant who struggled with English. She was amazed that I didn't mind speaking Spanish with her. "Most Americans don't like to hear, let alone speak Spanish!" she told me while she cut my hair. I hear this all of the time.

What are your opinions on this comment?

[Nagishkaw 510]

Habla siempre que te oigan cuando tienes razon.

[Danno 1,228]

Depends on the situation.

Seems to bother my wife more than me.

[TheKims 0]

It doesn't bother me. if a Spanish speaker would be patient enough to listen to me talk..lol~ I can understand how it makes people uncomfortable. Some of my office mates speak Spanish.Most of the time they just speak Spanish, just to speak it. Even though they are already fluent in English. Other people get offended and think they are being talked about or plotted against. So we have an English only rule now.

[HannahP 119]

I speak very, very limited Spanish.

I didn't catch a (Spanish-only) dude who had been shot in the leg until nearly thirty minutes later when his English-speaking friend was like "my friend got shot in the leg."

It made me sad.

[Ladylethal 12]

I won't make any comments on this subject as anything I say might offend people.

I'll share though a funny experience I had back in 1996 when I was an exchange student in US. I had studied English in Brasil for several years and I could speak it ok, but was far from fluent going in on my first ever trip outside of Brasil by myself. I arrived in Miami and there was an error on my ticket and thus AA's staff was trying to tell me my ticket said I was headed to Chicago and trying to make me go to the appropriate gate and I was using all the English I knew to say that it must be a mistake in my ticket 'cus I was in fact going to Phoenix in a flight that connected in Dallas and not Chicago. Being 16, alone, foreign, they didn't want to believe I knew what I was talking about but I planted my feet and told them to figure it out 'cus I had people waiting for me in Phoenix. Eventually they figured out the Flight number was misprinted but that I did show up in the system as going to Phoenix and was put in the correct flight.

7 months later when I was returning home (having become fluent in English from living there) I was happy I could finally understand all and say all without any mistakes, but when going through Miami every single person there spoke Spanish to me after hearing my accent, thinking I must be latina (except I didn't speak ANY Spanish back then).

[LiszyandKenny 5]

Well, I am not American and I don't mind speaking a lil Spanish when necessary. I just do hate hate hate when people (Americans) assume that I speak Spanish because I have "dark hair/eyes" and start trying to speak in Spanish (bad bad one) to me. So I say: "Huh ? What does that mean?" and they say what that means and I answer back "I am sorry. I don't speak Spanish." They look at me, very confused look on their face, thinking that I am crazy because "HOW COMEEEEE ?? YOU LOOK LIKE YOU ARE SOUTH AMERICAN"

Pisses me off....

[Ladylethal 12]

That's exactly what happened to me in Miami's airport back in '96. That look of whaaaaa you don't speak spanish?!?!?!

Now when I go through MIA I don't mind the Spanish as I see they speak Spanish to me 'cus they think it's easier for me, and 'cus they feel more comfortable, so I reply in whatever language I am spoken to.

I'm not going through MIA on my next trip though, so apart from San Juan am not expecting to be speaking Spanish much (except with hubby but I should be speaking Portuguese to get his ears accustomed to it again).

[Ban Hammer 13,352]

Well, I am not American and I don't mind speaking a lil Spanish when necessary. I just do hate hate hate when people (Americans) assume that I speak Spanish because I have "dark hair/eyes" and start trying to speak in Spanish (bad bad one) to me. So I say: "Huh ? What does that mean?" and they say what that means and I answer back "I am sorry. I don't speak Spanish." They look at me, very confused look on their face, thinking that I am crazy because "HOW COMEEEEE ?? YOU LOOK LIKE YOU ARE SOUTH AMERICAN"

Pisses me off....

[one...two...tree 2,762]

I think the personal replies here on VJ will be skewed toward not minding as we are all connected to other countries, many where English is not the native language.

I think there are the intolerant folks that believe that only English should be spoken. Kind of crazy and unrealistic in my opinion.

There are situations where it's best to speak primarily in English. For example, my wife is a manicurist and her salon is 100% Vietnamese. Her boss has an English only rule when working on or around customers. The reason is the belief that people are talking about you in a language you don't understand. And it does make some folks uncomfortable. Here is a comedy clip that explains it in a funny way. ->

It makes my wife howl with laughter and her boss used it as an example in a staff meeting.

I try to use my work Spanglish when I am trying to bridge the language gap. Plop me down in a non Englsih speaking country and I am in tough shape. So I admire anyone else who does so. Sometimes that means using sign language and/or asking for help. What's the big deal?

[panamania79 2]

I went to a new barber today - a Latina immigrant who struggled with English. She was amazed that I didn't mind speaking Spanish with her. "Most Americans don't like to hear, let alone speak Spanish!" she told me while she cut my hair. I hear this all of the time.

What are your opinions on this comment?

Most Americans don't like speaking anything else.I always run into this when I go to the cell phone place and speak my broken French to the owner.He says the same thing.

[panamania79 2]

Habla siempre que te oigan cuando tienes razon.

De acuerdo 100% !