The American Quebec – Appearance of Hispanic Nation within American Nation
“The U.S. population hits 300 million. More immigrants, more newborns and more baby boomers living longer means America just keeps getting bigger. What will this brave new America look like, and how does it stack up against the rest of the world?”
Stuart Varney, THE JOURNAL EDITORIAL REPORT, Monday, October 9, 2006.
The question raised by Varney, although too inclusive, targets two main issues: immigration, and then political parties’ status in the 300-million-popultion America. Here the main concern of this report is the former.
As Varney asks Henninger (a guest of the program):
Canada is a divided country with a large French-speaking, culturally French minority. Dan, isn’t there a danger that we, in America, could inherit the same problem with Hispanics? Forty, 50, 60 million people, Spanish-speaking, live in a concentrated area. Isn’t that a potential problem for the future? (Varney, 2006)
Henninger answered the question in a very optimistic way:” I don’t think so”
Moor another guest, commented on the issue of American Québec (as referred to in this report) in a very sensitive way:
But we do need to strengthen our institutions of assimilation. That’s where kind of Canada has gone wrong. They’ve Balkanized with two languages. I think the more we can put resources into making the newcomers Americans, learning English, all the better for us and for them. (Moor, 2006)
Thus, based on what Moor said one can assume that this will happen if the US goes the wrong way of Canada. Here are some latest news reports to evidence both of these political commentators.
“Third-generation Hispanics are overwhelmingly English-only. Just 17 percent with three or four foreign-born grandparents speak Spanish fluently.”
YVONNE WINGETT AND MATT DEMPSEY, CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, October 8, 2006.
This piece of news indicates that part of the plan considered by Moor is done well. The element of language is very crucial in the formation of another nation within the English speaking nation. According to the above mentioned report the Hispanic population is losing its lingual attachment I its third generation if nothing is done to that.
The reason for this assimilation is clear; Latinos cannot use most of the facilities and are not able to enjoy government welfare programs because of many factors including their different language. In a recent report, Sukhjit Purewal, Monterey county Herald’s staff writer, mentioned some barriers for Hispanics in order to use hospice facilities, for example. Part of the problem was related to language obstacle:
“Not enough staff members can communicate with Latino families nor do they know how to bridge other cultural barriers. And, as nonprofits, they say they don’t have the resources to effect change beyond printing information in Spanish.”
There are so many incentives besides the above mentioned example to force the Hispanic minority switch from Spanish into English. That has created dissatisfaction, of course, and some criticism of government. And that critique has made the government to give up some. One example is the use of Spanish as the communicative means of government with Hispanic minority in a website Univision.com, U.S. General Services Administration told in its press release:
With Univision linking to FirstGov en espanol, the Hispanic community will be able to access official government information and services in Spanish around key topics such as jobs, education, immigration, consumer protection and health.
In relation with other obstacles, Central Coast Hospice’s percentage of Latino clients jumped from 7 percent to 22 percent from 2004 to 2005.there are also other factors that contribute to the centralization of Hispanics in specific areas. Reports from New Orleans and New Jersey indicate a sharp increase in the number of immigrants who consider outstaying their welcome. Mark Waller wrote in Nola.com a news website about New Orleans:
“A U.S. Census Bureau survey of hurricane-affected Gulf Coast communities suggested an influx of almost 100,000 Hispanics in the four months after Katrina. The survey also found a slight rise in Hispanics in New Orleans and surrounding parishes, to just above 6 percent.” (Waller, 2006)
Another report by John Froonjian (from Special Reports Unit) indicated “Mexicans’ numbers surging in region, Hispanics in southern New Jersey are predominantly Puerto Rican, but Mexicans are challenging that dominance.” Huge waves of immigrants are constantly hitting the American south in different occasions. US government is doing its best to resolve the issue by controlling the borders and through assimilation institutions but the catholic population is so much that it seems an ineradicable syndrome.
Considering the above-mentioned news and analyses, one may come with options in front of the United States. Three elements present in a Hispanic body are definitely in contrast with the notion of an American. The American is usually identified with whiteness, Englishness, Protestant Christianity but the Hispanic is not white, not English, and not protestant. That makes the assimilation of Hispanics different from other immigrants. Thus, two prospects are awaiting the US: either appearance of another Quebec case in America or Muslims’ case in Britain. There are signs (like linguistic ones) that are signaling for the American Quebec. Close study of the changeability in Hispanic communities are needed through a long-term process to have the theory come true.
Conclusion:
To conclude, I should here raise some points regarding Iran, its homeland security and identity issue. Iran is a divide country in terms of language and race. Voices about the new Middle East and break up of Iran into five sub nations namely Fars, Baluch, Turk, Arab, and Kurd are to be taken seriously. a piece of news appeared in Baztab website on the propaganda by a Netherlander TV on the existence of a new Alahvaz with its Arabic Gulf seems to be a real threat to the nation’s coherence.
There are thing that could be proposed to Iran in order to escape the nightmare. Concerning ideology, the Gulf is better to be named after an Islamic concept so that it would bring unity rather than disunity among the Islamic nations. Something like the Islamic Gulf would be a rich name. Thus, reduction of the tension with the neighboring supporters of inside minorities would be a highly important concept. Another option is to promote assimilation institutions that would create a rather Islamic Identity rather than a identity based on language or color.