


Michele Ogilvie
Apr 19, 2022
United States
Categories:
Leadership, Language, Culture
Two articles, one from the Triad Business Journal and the other from the Los Angeles Times underscore that leadership is a day-to-day choice to act with courage and speak out against outdated practices. CIELO is a local organization whose Spanish acronym translated means Indigenous Communities in Leadership. CIELO collected data to bring attention to Latin American Indigenous people who are often labeled Latino but may have only a basic grasp of Spanish.
"American Indian or Alaska Native" is included as a group choice in Census surveys. It includes people with Central and South American heritage. Many Latin American Indigenous people believe the term is exclusive to the indigenous people of North America, not Central America. The U.S. census does not track the number of people from Mexico and Guatemala who speak Indigenous languages.
CIELO's young leaders have undertaken the creation of an Indigenous language diversity map of the diverse 20 Indigenous languages spoken in the Los Angeles area. There are 32 Mayan languages used in Los Angeles alone. Issues abound for people trying to ask for something or communicate with a safety officer. Indigenous activists have already worked with government agencies to address language barriers. In 2019, CIELO partnered with Los Angeles police to provide pocket cards for officers to help them identify an Indigenous language speaker and, if necessary, call an interpreter. The initiative grew out of years of training by Indigenous Mexican community leaders for LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) officers. This training followed the 2010 fatal shooting of Manuel Jiminez Xum, an Indigenous Maya man who spoke K'iche.
Hispanic Heritage Month, an annual event, is a dedicated time to commemorate the history, culture, and contributions of Hispanic, Latino, and Latina Americans. The leaders of CIELO are urging recognition of the language diversity with organizers of this month-long event. Addressing this issue is of importance in the schools, too. The Los Angeles Unified School District conducts surveys, including questions about a student's primary or home language. The 2020-2021 survey had some interesting results. Indigenous languages spoken by respondents originally from Mexico included 247 respondents for K'iche', 88 for Q'anjob'al, 21 for Mam, 17 for Akateco, 12 students for Zapotec, one for Popti, three for Mixtec, and more than 218,000 listed Spanish. That is a very diverse set of languages from one country, Mexico.
Language is a human right- in the big picture, we rely on our language to fully express ourselves and exchange information. It allows citizens and residents, and immigrants to access health care, social services, and the court systems, successfully or not.
Here's a fun and fascinating exercise for you. First, identify how many spoken languages are in your hometown? The results may surprise you. Now imagine a day in your life and all the people you communicate with and things you do. Choose one of the foreign languages spoken in your community, say Spanish. Commit to doing one thing in your day where you only try to communicate in Spanish. Your goal is to have the other person understand what you are saying without reverting to your primary language. Imagine having this same interaction with a police officer or an emergency room doctor where there is an urgent need for help. You will likely feel helpless, overwhelmed, frustrated, and maybe scared. You have gained a little understanding of a more significant problem.
Sheryl Sanberg, Chief Operating Officer at Meta, defined leadership as "making others better due to your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence." Everyone can be a leader, and everyone can lead right from where they are. Connect to groups like CIELO and see how you can contribute to your local community today.
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Catalog #:
0322.101.01.041922