When did speaking Spanish become a Latinidad requirement?

Spanish is often tied to identity, it’s the way many of us connect with our families, culture and music. Although Spanish can bridge connection, it can create division and exclusivity within the community.

“No sabo” is often a term used to describe or poke fun of Latinos who don’t speak “proper”.

Miles Banda, a social work major, grew up speaking Spanish and hearing it at home. Over time, they noticed they became less fluent in Spanish.

“I think it’s become almost like a standard ‘Oh, you’re brown, you’re Mexican, you’re Latino, that’s great, but do you speak Spanish?’ That’s kind of the dividing factor,” Banda said.

Eliseo Casiano, an art professor at Cal Poly Humboldt said that although he grew up hearing Spanish at home and understands the language, he and his siblings rarely spoke it.

“You know, if anything, it’s more of ‘Oh I’m bumming you out that I’m not speaking Spanish immediately.’ Not that I’m letting someone down, but I do feel like that’s what I kind of felt. If anything, there’s this form of connection we maybe could have had even closer if we were speaking Spanish to each other,” Casiano said.

Similarly, Alejandro Torres, a Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) psychotherapist at Cal Poly Humboldt, grew up hearing Spanish at home but was never pushed to speak it.

“My parents did not prioritize teaching me Spanish, as far as making me speak it. I think part of that was because coming to this country, it was kind of hard for them to like learn the language, having a thick accent, my mom talked to me about how she was concerned what it would be like for me if I had a thick accent and how people might discriminate against me in that way,” Torres said.

Does Spanish define Latinidad?

During his time at CAPS, Torres mentions how language can affect students in academic settings.

“Not knowing Spanish doesn’t mean that you’re not Latine enough because there is no such thing as being Latine enough. You’re Latine or you’re not,” Torres said.

While Torres collaborates with CPH cultural center El Centro Académico Cultural de Humboldt, he notices students hesitate accessing their resources because they don’t speak Spanish.

“It’s not a requirement, however, that might be a barrier for them to even go checking out this space. So I do think that not knowing Spanish, sometimes, unfortunately, leads students to feeling like they’re not Latine enough or they’re not in touch with their culture.”

Torres believes that this can lead to some students not feeling valid in their identity to take up those spaces or be a part of those communities. Bryan Pérez Bado Maris, an environmental education and interpretation major, is a fluent Spanish speaker and feels a pressure to prove himself.

“I think a lot of the credibility of you being, kind of this token, or being this person that is just that diversity hire is well, can you speak Spanish? Can you prove how Latino you are? If you’re one of the few brown people out here, like, how brown are you? And that’s really frustrating,” Pérez-Bado said.

The complex history

Jennifer Flores, a studio arts undergraduate, also has complex feelings about the language.

“I feel like for me, speaking Spanish connects me to a lot of what I love about my culture, but then I get complicated feelings about it because I know it’s also like the colonizer language.”

Still Flores appreciates how being bilingual has helped them make information more accessible to their community.

“I feel relieved for those people that don’t speak English to be able to translate for them. I feel like I love being that resource for them, but at the same time too I don’t think not speaking Spanish makes you any less Latino because, unfortunately, not knowing that language is part of, like, assimilation,” Flores said.

While language can be complex, Casiano highlights the importance of representation.

“I think there’s a beauty to hearing my name pronounced right,” Casiano said. “There’s a beauty to hearing that language.”