PRESERVING THE MOTHER TONGUE: Language, Authenticity, and Conscience for Spanish-speaking Parents

I’ve been thinking.

Historically, fluent Spanish-speaking communities held high expectations for the authenticity of Latino portrayals in cinema. Actors tasked with these roles were scrutinized closely, and those who delivered their lines in poor or broken Spanish often faced harsh criticism from the audience. This vigilance stemmed from a deep sense of pride in our linguistic heritage and a desire to see it represented accurately and respectfully on the global stage.

However, as I reflect on the current trajectory of cultural and linguistic preservation, I’ve come to recognize a shifting paradigm. The concern no longer lies solely with the actors’ ability to embody Latino characters through language but rather with our own communities’ diminishing emphasis on passing down the Spanish language to the next generation.

This gradual detachment from our linguistic roots has led to a scenario where our children, and indeed future generations, might find themselves resembling the very portrayals we once criticized. The newer generations, you know, the “no sabo kids,” slowly but surely becoming the sound of the actors whose imperfect Spanish we once mocked. These butchered depictions of our language, slowly becoming less of an anomaly and more of a mirror reflecting our own linguistic challenges.

This evolving landscape prompts a crucial question: Are we, as a community, investing enough effort into teaching our children Spanish, thereby ensuring the preservation of our mother tongue? The reality is that the responsibility to uphold our linguistic heritage falls on us.

If we find ourselves concerned with the authenticity of Latino roles in media, perhaps it’s time to look inward and address the foundational issue of language preservation within our own homes and communities. I’d love to hear from you or at least have you ask yourself the following. I’ve asked myself this more now than ever: how can we better support and prioritize the transmission of our language to ensure that future generations can both appreciate and contribute to the rich tapestry of our cultural and linguistic identity? How can we pass down our language when we ourselves rarely speak it at home?

With respect, OFT

5 Latino Films You Should Watch With Your Mujercita(s)

Films that remind us of (and place emphasis on) our culture are a great way to spend quality time with our mujercitas (girls/women/daughters) as well as a fabulous way to encourage discussion around traditions. Whether you are a Latino parent raising children in the U.S. (of) A, or a non-Latino parent interested in teaching your children about cultures outside of their own, following are cinco (five) films that will generate discussion about Latino culture.

After the film, you may consider asking your kids the following questions:

1. Characters What did you think about the characters? Did they seem real and relatable? Do you think they’re based on stereotypes? Do you think they resemble our community (your school, your after-school program, your friends)?
2. Story What did you think about the story (plot)? Do you think it relates to real life? Do you know about stories like this?
3. Actors Did you like how the actors performed? Do you think that’s how you would go about expressing yourself? What part/act stood out to you the most?
4. Message What would you say are the positive or negative messages in the movie? What would you change or add to it? How did you feel while watching the movie? How do you feel about the way it ended? What would you change and why?

Uno— COCO  (2017) 1 hr. 49 mins

(Available on demand on your local TV network, YouTube, iTunes, and Amazon Prime.)

Stunningly animated, poignant tribute to family and culture, Coco is all about exploring traditions and the power of unconditional love.Centered around an aspiring musician boy named Miguel (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez), a young boy who ends up in the Land of the Dead and is confronted with his family’s ancestral ban on music, the movie— which features an all-star Latino voice cast (including Gael García Bernal and Benjamin Bratt, as well as a Latino co-director and many Latino crew members— is a tribute to Mexican traditions and customs.

Themes worth noting and discussing:

• Gratitude and perseverance
• Dia de los muertos
• Following your dreams
• Holidays and Traditions

TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT… 

• What does Miguel learn in Coco? How do his experiences in the Land of the Dead help him grow?
• Did you already know about the Day of the Dead? If not, what did you learn about the holiday?
• How does your family pay tribute to relatives and loved ones after they’ve passed away? Which other Mexican traditions and values does the movie depict?
• Did you notice that characters speak both English and Spanish in the movie? Would you like to learn a second language?
• For bilingual families: Why do you think it’s important or useful to speak two languages? How does language connect you with your heritage, and your family?

Dos—Under the Same Moon/ Bajo /La Misma Luna (2007) 1 hr. 49 mins.

(Available on YouTube, Vudu, iTunes, Hulu, and Amazon Prime.)

Storyline: UNDER THE SAME MOON tells the parallel stories of nine-year-old Carlitos and his mother, Rosario. In the hopes of providing a better life for her son, Rosario works illegally in the U.S. while her mother cares for Carlitos back in Mexico. Unexpected circumstances drive both Rosario and Carlitos to embark on their own journeys in a desperate attempt to reunite. Along the way, mother and son face challenges and obstacles but never lose hope that they will one day be together again.

*Parents need to know that this drama has some mature and emotionally difficult themes. It revolves around a young boy who must deal with his grandmother’s (peaceful) death and an illegal border crossing between Mexico and the United States.

REVIEW: “This movie presents illegal immigration as a human issue and not as a political issue. There are various scenarios in which the viewer can witness the dangers, sufferings and struggles that illegal immigrants and their families faced on a daily basis. It provides an insight into the lives of thousands of people whose families are divided because of this situation.” -Amazon reviewer

Themes worth noting and discussing:

• Immigration
• Effects of separation because of immigration
• Border crossing
• Bond between mother and son
• Race and identity
• Physical and [psychological borders
• Courage and love without borders
• Hope and faith

TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT…

• How the movie portrays the plight of illegal immigrants in the United States.
• Do you think the movie is trying to make a specific point about the issue?
• If so, what is it?
• How would you feel if you couldn’t see your family because of a wall/a border?
• What do you think should be done about it?

Tres— Real Women Have Curves(2002) 1 hr. 33 mins.

(Available on YouTube, Vudu, iTunes, Hulu, Google Play, Netflix, and Amazon Video.)

Storyline In REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES, Ana Garcia (America Ferrera), the youngest daughter of an L.A. Mexican-American family, has just graduated from Beverly Hills High School and wants to go to Columbia University and date the sweet but dorky Jimmy. But her mother, Carmen (Lupe Ontiveros), is determined to marry Ana off, have a grandchild, and install Ana at the local sweatshop so she can finally retire. Ana clashes with her traditional mom, at her mother’s insistence that she lose weight to meet a boy. “How dare anyone tell me what I should look like or how I should be when there’s so much more to me than just my weight,” Ana announces. When Ana storms out of the sweatshop, Carmen races after her and collapses. “Are you embarrassed of me?”

WHAT’S THE SCOOP?  Real Women Have Curves is a great addition to the pantheon of teen heroine movies. This film encourages young girls to follow their dreams. Like the warmly human Quinceañera, it also shows a teenage girl who unlike other popular films of the like—Mean Girls, Pretty in Pink, All or Nothing, or Easy A— shows a teenage girl who does not come from a white and affluent family and is not spoiled. Ana’s teen angst has a profound purpose. She’s trying to learn to love herself in a world where the dresses she irons are for people far smaller than she is.

 Themes worth noting and discussing:

• Emphasis on class and race
• Body image
• Ana loses her virginity to her boyfriend
• Although nothing racy, there is some nudity
• Family values vs personal values  – contraception, education, etc.
• Environmental factors where poverty makes it very difficult to succeed

TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT …

• How body image is shaped by film and magazines.
• How do you feel about how you look?
• Do you feel pressure to look a certain way? Where does that pressure come from?
• How can teens learn to appreciate themselves for who they are?
• How does Ana demonstrate integrity?

Cuatro—Selena(1997) 2 hrs. 8 mins.

(Available on YouTube, iTunes, and Amazon Video.)

Storyline: Based on the life of Selena, killed in 1995, kids may ask questions about the events surrounding her murder. It isn’t shown, but one character does hold a gun to her own head. A character says “s–t” and “damn” in frustration. Non-Latinos are referred to as “gringos” in a few scenes. For aspiring musicians, this movie shows the amount of work, dedication, and perseverance it took Selena and her family to find success. This movie also shows the sexist and racist attitudes Selena had to transcend as a Mexican-American female lead vocalist.

WHAT’S THE SCOOP? SELENA, a touching, effervescent, and ultimately tragic biopic, tells the story of the Grammy-winning Tejano singer Selena, who was killed at age 23 by her fan-club president. The movie chronicles the performer’s rise to stardom and explores her relationship with her tight-knit family, including a domineering yet loving father, Abraham (Edward James Olmos).

TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT …

• The relationship between Selena and her father. Why is he so authoritarian? Does he deny his kids a childhood by forcing them to perform?
• Selena’s father is shown lamenting the difficulties of Mexican-Americans in having to prove that they’re as American as any other American but also as Mexican as any other Mexican. Do you think this sentiment reflects the difficulties of other Mexican-Americans or immigrant families?
• How do you think the movie depict Selena as a role model through her personality, ventures in music and fashion?
• What challenges did Selena face as a female or as a Latina?

Themes worth noting and discussing:

• Gender and ethnic roles in the music industry
• Which Selena song do you know/love?
• Parenting roles and styles
• Authoritarian parenting
• Selena as an entrepreneur

Cinco— El Norte(1983) 2hr. 21 mins

(Available on YouTube, iTunes, and Amazon Video.)

Storyline—”El Norte” tells the story of a Guatemalan brother and sister who fled persecution at home and journeyed north the length of Mexico with a dream of finding a new home in the United States. Released during a time, then as now, when the California economy could not function without their invisible presence as cheap labor. “El Norte” tells their story with astonishing visual beauty, unashamed melodrama, and anger leavened by hope.

REVIEW: “What a beautiful, powerful and endearing film that Gregory Nava has given the general film watching public. While few people have ever seen this film, it rates as one of the best films ever in regards to Latin American cinema. Sure, the budgetary constraints can be seen in many parts of this film, but the overall artistic stamp of the film more than makes up for the lack thereof. In our current society of anti-immigration, one has to experience the pain and torment some of the people have to experience just to get the chance to live in America. This spirit alone gives me respect for most working immigrants, even if some are illegal. Even 20 years from now, Latin American film courses will still use this film as one of its finest examples.”

Themes worth noting and discussing:

• Magical realism
• Indigenous view and bigotry
• Ethnic and political persecution
• Guatemalan civil war
• Mayans
• Guatemalan Exodus
• Belonging and identity

The drama features Zaide Silvia Gutiérrez and David Villalpando, in their first film roles, as two indigenous youths who flee Guatemala in the early 1980s due to the ethnic and political persecution of the Guatemalan Civil War. They head north and travel through Mexico to the United States, arriving in Los Angeles, California, after an arduous journey.

Por: Orfa Torres Fermin

The Day Before Christmas in El Salvador

I love this time of year, particularly because of Christmas. It is the one North American holiday whose feel and spirit coincides with that of Navidad back in my motherland. As a second generation immigrant, who has naturally adjusted to the U.S., I still miss many things about my motherland.  I particularly long for Noche Buena (Christmas Eve) as celebrated  in the good old Salvadorian fashion.

I came to this country as a fourth grader. As a child,  I had no trouble adapting and although I was homesick for quite a while, missed my grandmother (who raised me) dearly, and cried myself to sleep for months (more of that on another post), I quickly embraced my new home.  Yet, although I claim Massachusetts as my home, El Salvador will forever hold that place in my heart reserved to mothers. Naturally, whenever this time of year comes by, I can’t help but feel a sense of overwhelming melancholy.

ABOUT CHRISTMAS IN EL SALVADOR

Christmas in El Salvador is the biggest event of the year, one of the most festive Christian holidays in many countries around the world since it celebrates Jesus’ birth. Since a majority of the population is Roman Catholic, and a sizeable group is Protestant, Christmas is celebrated by a majority of people across El Salvador.

I talk to my girls about Christmas back home all the time. (Particularly Christmas Eve.) Faith knows that for the longest time I thought Christmas was on the 24th and not the 25th, since that’s when everything seemed to take place back in El Salvador. I’ve told her all about the way in which all the kids in the neighborhood looked forward to “cuetes y estrellitas” (firecrackers and sparklers). She knows about the importance my grandparents placed on visiting family and friends on Noche Buena (Christmas Eve), and all the food that was had. As a kid, I looked forward to the day before Christmas more than I did the actual Christmas day since that’s when all the fun took place.

December 24th

The rounds typically started at 6pm on Christmas Eve and went on until 1am Christmas day. If Catholic, your day typically started by attending mass together with family. If hosting, you went home soon after service to welcome family and friends to your Noche Buena (Christmas Eve) feast.

After dinner, families gathered outside to light fireworks and play with sparklers. Small towns usually included music and dancing as part of the festivities. Homes were decorated with Christmas trees and nativity scenes that included the three wise men–special figures in Spanish cultures.

FOOD

The memory that always replays around this time of year is 7-year old me looking forward to wearing a ruffled white and red dress made just for me by my grandmother. This dress was typically made from carefully selected fabrics that I had hand picked a few months prior (a classic scene sure to repeat itself on special occasions). We then went off from home to home to family and friends. Every home we visited had pan con pollo (traditional Christmas chicken sandwich). We ate at every home we stopped by because it was considered rude not to do so.

Pan de pollo

In addition to pan con pollo, a traditional Christmas Eve menu included arroz con vegetales (rice with vegetables), tamal de pollo o puerco (chicken or pork tamales), tortillas y carne, followed by sweets. Typically composed of empanadas de platanos (plantain empanadas), pan dulce (sweet bread), quesadilla, café, chocolate caliente (hot chocolate), a variety of gaseosa (soda), and so much more.

Quesadilla

Inside of an empanada de platano

Empanada de platano

The taste of panes con pollo is something that regardless of how much I try to replicate, I can never get them to taste as good as the ones my abuelita made. (I like to think that every generation says the same about the former.) But I will continue to try because they are THAT important to my very own Christmas family gatherings. (The ones I make sure to every year on Christmas Eve put together because–community.)

Pan con pollo (gallina india y salsa de tomate acompañado de cebolla en curtida)

I talk to my girls about the traditional way in which Christmas is celebrated back in their mama’s motherland because even though they will never get to experience it full-on, at least not in the same fashion as I did, being born in this country and being mainly exposed to the North American way of living and celebrating should not get to rob them from feeling and understanding the way we, Salvadoreans celebrate.

Faith and Luna Fox, Winter 2017

FUN

Much may have changed since the last time I spent Christmas back in my motherland (mid 90s). Nonetheless Navidad, as I recall, was never about the presents or tree. Christmas was about being thankful for our lives and that of our family and friends.  It was about spending time with family, sharing jokes, and telling stories while sitting by bonfires with colorful fireworks blasting all through the skies.

It was about staying up very late on Christmas Eve because company was good, jokes were actually funny, and stories too interesting to miss. It meant walking from one neighbor’s home to another because we all knew each other and treated each other like family. Christmas meant community.

I cherish my childhood traditions and memories. I also cherish the traditions I have been practicing for over two decades living in New England. I never want my daughters to feel like they have to choose between one culture or the other. I also never want them to forget or neglect that very special part of them to which they are not regularly exposed to.

Ponche, also known as Coquito

Sharing, incorporating, and speaking about my Salvadorean heritage with my daughters is important to me because I am a huge believer of, in order to understand yourself and achieve a strong sense of identity and belonging, you must first understand your roots. The country whose soil I first stepped on, the people that I grew up with, the stories I grew up listening to and believing, the food I tend to lean towards, make me, as much as it makes them–my daughters.

The way my Salvadorean people celebrate. The manner in which they come together. The way they share whatever little they have, the greatness of their kind heart and hardworking nature, as well as the strength in their soft spoken voice, is something that I will continue to be proud of and pass along to my mujercitas.