IV. Background Information on the Units
Unit 1. Why do people migrate?
Anthropologist John Ogbu (1992) in his studies of minorities and immigration, has identified two types of minority groups in his research: these are what he calls voluntary minorities and involuntary (or caste like) minorities. Voluntary minorities are those who have migrated out of their own will, and Ogbu concluded that under those circumstances they have been successful inadapting to the new culture and language. Involuntary minorities are those who were brought into the United States against their will through slavery, conquest, colonization, or forced labor. Stigmatized and relegated to low-status occupations, they have tended to have been less successful in cross-cultural adaptation and school learning than voluntary minorities. They have a tendency to preserve their cultural and linguistic differences as symbols of ethnic identity and separation from mainstream culture (2).
This is an important concept to understand and to discuss with our students, for all immigrants that come to a new country have some basic needs and desires that drive them to the sometimes risky enterprise of moving into a new country. Under voluntary reasons for migrating we find educational opportunities for those who seek to further their professional or skill related area; those who are career oriented and wish to join an already established field (most of these highly skilled immigrants speak English and have the training necessary to succeed in a new culture). The voluntary immigrant may have family, friends, business and community relationships forged at home that will help him or her get ahead in the new country.
Of these, the political refugees fall into two major categories as well: those who plan and execute their escape and bring resources (be it money, friends, or contacts), or those who leave everything behind and must start from scratch. Some of the stories that the students will be reading reflect both aspect s of political immigration. Students will study differences between economic and political migration, as well as the legal issues surrounding both legal and illegal migration.
Those who risk illegal migration, (due to serious political persecution or economic reasons) embark in the dangerous crossing into the U.S.A. mainland. In the first unit the students will be introduced to this danger by watching the movie El Norte. This is a powerful example of political persecution and indomitable will to survive. We meet two young people, brother and sister, who leave their mountain village in Guatemala and walk across Guatemala, to Mexico, to make the crossing into the U.S.A. The students will see this movie as an example of this illegal migration that gives us a glimpse of how life is in America for undocumented immigrants who do not speak English or understand the culture and society into which they have entered.
Students will also study maps and charts to learn how most of the current U.S.A. states that border Mexico used to belong to Mexico and the fact that Mexican families have lived in the southwest since the 1600’s. One of the documents they will be reading in Unit I is the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo which, in 1848 brought an end to the Mexican-American War, but it ceded to the United States of America large areas of what is now called the American Southwest . (3)
Unit 2. Living in a New Country
Under this topic, students will be exposed to different accounts of migration, sometimes positive, others negative. Stories that are full of drama and comedy, anger and delight. Life as seen through the eyes of different nationalities, ages and genders. The issue of how the new generation copes with the new culture and language will be explored by looking at bilingual education issues. The research that shows that children who maintain their native language and learn English do better academically in standardized tests (4).
As an example of the language controversy, in
The Day the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent,
author Alvarez gives us a picture of a middle-class family that leaves the Dominican Republic in the wake of the Trujillo dictatorship. The father was a medical doctor back home, and mother never worked in her life. The children learn English and adjust to life in the USA, having the support of a loving home and the hope of going back home when the political climate is better. The Garcia girls need to learn English in a hurry in order to keep up with the other students and to truly belong to the new society they live in. However, according to language research experts, it may take anywhere from five to seven years for a child to learn academic English . (5)
Next Year in Cuba,
by Gustavo Firmat, his family arrives in the USA, coming from a well—off Cuban family, they settle in Miami and expect to go back home, soon. Firmat (in this biographical book) becomes a college professor and looks back with nostalgia to his parents, who thirty years later still continue hoping to spend “next year in Cuba.”
Alvarez and Firmat are not your usual immigrants who we see in the media, portrayed as hungry, disposed and with little hope of succeeding in the U.S.A. They both fall under the category of “involuntary” immigrants, but both families are relatively successful in their adjustments to American culture and society, because the older family members have the skills and the know how to use them to their benefit. Therefore, voluntary and involuntary are not always exclusive categories and much overlapping takes place as we explore with our students what are the ingredients, the qualities, that may predict whether an immigrant group is successful in the USA.
Along these lines the films in this context the students will be watching
The House of Ramon Iglesias
, as the linguistic and cultural differences of the parents and the new generation is aggravated by the father’s decision to move back home, to Puerto Rico. In this video we meet a caring and close family clan that is faced with the father’s decision to go back to the island ,while his oldest son refuses to go with him. This is a wonderful example of cultural and language differences that arise as the children grow up in America and the older generation still clings to the old country and the hope of going home someday.
El Super
chronicles the older generation at odds with the children raised in the U.S.A. Or
Mi Familia/My Family
, which documents three generations of Mexican-Americans, keeping many traditions and yet fully participating in the American way of life, in the good as well as in the bad aspects of life in America in the 90’s.
Unit 3. The Puerto Rican Diaspora
Our next group of immigrants is from Puerto Rico, where most of our New Haven Spanish speaking children come from. I waited until the third topic to introduce them because as American citizens, Puerto Ricans have certain rights and privileges that the other groups discussed in Units 1 and 2 do not have.
The migration from Puerto Rico is usually for financial reasons and for family reunion. In this context the students will be watching
The House of Ramon Iglesias
, as the linguistic and cultural differences of the parents and the new generation is aggravated by the father’s decision to move back home, to Puerto Rico. In
The House of Ramon Iglesias
, we meet a caring and close family clan that is faced with the father’s decision to go back to the island ,while his oldest son refuses to go with him. This is a wonderful example of cultural and language differences that arise as the children grow up in America and the older generation still clings to the old country and the hope of going home someday. You may also want to explore the play
La carreta/ The Oxcart,
by Rene Marques, whose family migrates from the country side to San Juan, to New York, always looking for a better life. Constantly moving, always hoping for a better day.
Students will also do some readings from the textbook
American Mosaic: Multicultural Readings in Context.
(henceforth referred to as Mosaic). In Chapter 4:
Puerto Ricans: The View From Mainland
, we find short stories and historical information on the migration from Puerto Rico to the mainland. This material will explain the political situation, as well as the view of Puerto Ricans in the U.S.A. This book is available in New Haven Public Schools/ Language Arts Department.
Unit 4. The USA in the Year 2000
In this unit the issues of documented aliens and their rights and benefits versus the undocumented families that have to sent their children to public schools, health care and other services will be covered. The impact of the last fifty years of immigration will be the focus of this unit, as current immigration trends dictate what America will be like in the year 2000. The face of America will no longer be white European as minorities become the majority. What will America be like? How will we define who is an American in the 21st century? The job market will be changing and many service sector jobs will no longer depend on human beings ( think of secretarial jobs and bank tellers, traditionally female occupations, being replaced by e-mail and ATM bank machines).
As the Spanish populations in the USA continue to grow, another major issue is that of language policy. Political groups, such as English Only, and propositions as the ones passed in California and Florida that prohibit the translation of documents into languages other than English, raise the specter of separatism and create a climate of fear and distrust towards immigrants across the land. The learning of English, for example, has been proven by researchers to take anywhere from five to seven years (6). However, we are told that assimilation, (which is the process by which immigrants became part of the American mainstream), takes longer when groups live and work together and maintain the ties to the country of origin. (7) Community organizers see this as a strength, other groups see it as a block towards becoming an “American.” But, as we will discuss in this unit, what does being an American really mean in today’s society?
V. Brief Overview of Films Recommended
Each of the units is accompanied by a suggested film or video that will enhance the understanding of the topic. Films will also stimulate discussions and writing activities. Since most films cannot be viewed in one classroom period, the teacher must plan for this activity. I would suggest showing the film in the middle of the week (Tuesday and Wednesday/Wednesday and Thursday) so as to allow for closure on Friday before the weekend. This also sets up the beginning of a new unit on the following Monday. These are the films that I have chosen for this curriculum. There is also a film bibliography at the end which gives information as to where films can be rented.
On the issue of subtitles: I always tell my students that most of the world reads subtitles in order to watch American movies. They still complain but lately I have found that with close-captioning more available they may be used to watching and reading in English class (with subtitles for classics, in order to understand Shakespearean English better). Encourage them to read the subtitles.
El Norte
(1974) is a beautifully touching movie that traces the journey of a brother and sister (Rosita and Enrique) from their home in a village in Guatemala to the city of Los Angeles. The village part is full of color and Indian languages and customs. In Spanish with subtitles (but in the second part there are a few characters that speak in English).
Violence: (brief) in a scene where the father is killed by the army and the town’s people are taken away in trucks. Recommended for 8th graders and up. (Enrique’s father is killed and his head is hung on a tree branch as a warning—might upset some younger people). Other than this, there is no sex or nudity.
Student reaction: They enjoy the story and the fast pace.
El Super
(1972) is the sad story of a Cuban refugee family (father, mother, daughter) living in New York City in the 1970’s. The father hates the snow, hates New York, only thinks and talks about going back to Cuba. His daughter loves New York and never wants to leave. Family and cultural issues. In Spanish with subtitles. No violence, sex or nudity. I usually “edit/fast forward” on the parts that drag (1) the friend who comes to visit and only talks about politics (2) the domino game that becomes another political battle that students may not understand (3) some of El Super’s wonderings about the city can be cut down to a shorter walking around being unhappy and still make the point.
Student reaction: Has stimulated discussion as to why the super is so unhappy and ungrateful with the way his life has turned out (since he lives relatively well and eats and has clothes to wear). The subject of the daughter is also a good starting point for class discussion or essay writing.
The House of Ramon Iglesias
(1972) is a one hour drama about a Puerto Rican family whose father has decided to move back to the island. Conflicts arise with the teenage children, as they do not want to leave the U.S.A. In English. Positive role models, loving family. Sex: brief kissing scene on the sofa. No violence or nudity. A PBS Playhouse production.
Mi Familia/My Family
(1994) is a recent theatrical release. Saga of three generations of Mexican-Americans, starting with the parents who came in the 1930’s, up to today’s grandchildren. Violence: fighting among gangs, two dead. Language: a smattering of Spanish and English L.A. style swearing. This movie is in English(no subtitles!) and soap-opera like in its characterizations; perhaps this is the reason why all my students enjoy it and ask to borrow the video over the weekend!
Puerto Rican Passages
(1994) A film by Connecticut film maker Frank Borres, this documentary shows migration from Puerto Rico to Connecticut by means of interviews and old black and white footage. An interesting historical document showing the many years of settlement in the Connecticut area.
Operation Bootstrap
(Documentary) In black and white, tells the story of the political and economical struggle in Puerto Rico during the government program called “Operation Bootstrap” (in Spanish: Manos a la obra).