Dear ELP, 
 

I love speaking my language, and I speak it with my family and friends, but when I go to a shop or a restaurant, I quickly change to the dominant language in my area. Any ideas for how I can stop giving in to this pressure and continue to speak my language?
 

-Assertiveness

Dear Assertiveness,

First of all, I want to commend you for noticing the situation and wanting to change it. Sometimes it becomes so normalised for us to use our language only with our family and close friends that we don’t think about how problematic it is that we are limited in every other social setting. This situation isn’t natural; it is a result of discrimination against users of our languages. Using our languages in situations where there is pressure not to can be a way to stand against this discrimination and make ourselves seen and heard again.

It is really important that we understand the risks and challenges that may go with using our language in public places. In some contexts, speakers may face violence and aggression from State actors and individuals. Do take some time to think about your context and how you can stay safe within it. If your context is one in which you feel comfortable trying to use your language more in public, here are a few things we might think about. How many competent users of your language are there in your area? How many people can understand your language? What are the chances that the people working in shops and restaurants can use or understand your language? What kind of reaction can you expect from people if you use your language? The strategies you use will depend on the answers to these questions and will vary from community to community. They relate to something we call language assertiveness, or how we can use our language respectfully and with confidence.

I’m from a place in Ireland where most people have at least some knowledge of Irish but cannot have a full conversation easily. The dominant language of the community is English, which is in a different language family. This means that when I go to most restaurants and shops where I’m from, I do not expect that I’ll be able to communicate fully in Irish – but I cannot know that this won’t be possible either. I do several things to boost the chances: I say hello, goodbye and thank you in Irish in a friendly way. I wear a pin called the fáinne, which shows that I’m an Irish speaker. I gauge the person’s reaction: Do they understand me? Do they seem happy to hear Irish, or indifferent, angry or confused? Do they reply in Irish? I use all of this to see how much further I can speak the language. 

In València, where I live, I have met plenty of speakers of Valencian who aim to continue speaking Valencian in all of their interactions. This is done as part of a collective movement to promote the language. As both Valencian and Spanish are in the same language family, monolingual Spanish speakers have a better chance of understanding Valencian, as long as they are open to trying. Some people have tried to go against this way of promoting the language by claiming that it excludes people from other linguistic backgrounds. It actually serves to share the language with us. If the language is only used between those who currently know it, it will be hard to create more Valencian speakers going forward, which is a key goal of the language movement. 

Using our language freely can lead to conflict, and again, I want to stress that it is important that you think deeply about what is safe in your context and what you feel comfortable with. It is important to note too, though, that the conflict arises from the situation of inequality, not from the person who is looking to assert their language rights. Users may deal with a conflict by leaving an interaction, taking their business elsewhere or making an official complaint if possible.

It’s not easy to be with our own discomfort as we go against a social norm and it’s not easy to encounter conflict, but it is easier when we have a support network. Meeting other users of our languages to talk through our attempts and come up with strategies together can be hugely helpful. While we may be able to challenge dominant language patterns as individuals, we are stronger when we come together and do so with others. It also helps us to deal with the emotional impact of this work. 

By reaching out to people in other communities who have thought about these questions, we can share ideas and get inspired too. The ELP mentors are always here to support you!

-Alexandra