Psychologists today study something called the “unconscious bias” which backs up the many stereotypes that have accumulated over centuries, especially those regarding language and the identities hidden behind them. Today, one can agree creating automatic and implicit judgements about people based on their race, appearance, or the language they speak is rather common. Language is often what people identify themselves with, for example, I am a Latina, therefore, I speak Spanish. Many assumptions can be made by that statement ranging from my intelligence to my socio-economic state, and many people have been victims of this prejudice, simply based on their looks, culture, and language. While reading and listening to different individuals who have had first-hand experience with discrimination one can be given a better insight as to how people are affected personally.

Amy Tan is a best-selling author from Asian descent who has published many different hit novels. In an essay titled “Mother Tongue” she expresses the roller coaster of emotions that came with the effects of her race not only in her writing but also the way she spoke. By many, she says, her mother would not be considered fluent in the English language, as her mother was originally born in China. Tan conveyed that her mother uses a form of “broken” English where she often fails to include different parts of speech that help her communicate in a sentence, however Tan can perfectly understand her mother as if she were speaking English. A fluent speaker in English could argue that Tan’s mother’s English is incoherent, but Tan refuses to see it that way. Even though Tan was at one point in her life embarrassed of her mother, she recognizes that her mother’s limited ability to speak English has also limited her in what she has achieved on different assessments, such as an IQ test or the SAT. Now, Tan recognizes that her mother is not any less intelligent than any other English speaker, however, society seems to already have made up their biased opinion based on the limitations of Tan’s mother’s English.

In “Mother Tongue” Tan speaks of a serious incident that occurred at a hospital where her mother innocently went to pick up her results regarding her benign brain tumor. The hospital claimed that they were unable to find the CAT scans and there was nothing they could do, not to mention they also refused to apologize. Tan’s mother confirmed that she spoke in her best English to communicate precisely that these scans were absolutely necessary, nevertheless, the hospital continued to deny her request. Once her fluent English speaker daughter was able to speak to the hospital, they assured her she would receive her results and a sincere apology. This is what is wrong with today, because a woman was limited in her capabilities of communicating in a different language she was deprived of good treatment. Stereotypes have been formed that assume that because someone can not speak with articulation that they are unintelligent or incapable of a task. It is wrong and inhumane for us to continue such behaviors.

A limited viewpoint can define a single story, that we are only given a certain amount of information on an item, person, or a group and we create an opinion solely based on that small piece of information. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a woman from Nigeria, explains that people are judged based on their foremost characteristics. Specifically, Adichie mentions that her college roommate wanted to listen to her “tribal” music, an assumption made because she migrated from Africa. Her roommate knew a single story of Africa, their homes were unstable, without plumbing or electricity, when in fact they completely had access to these amenities. Based on her race, Adichie was placed into a pre-made stereotype, something we are all guilty of. A stereotype can be prevented if one chooses to look at all aspects of a story, the qualities and the personality a person holds within their identity can help change the world.

A language is simply a formation of words. It does not define’s someone’s ability to be a good person, it does not define their intelligence or their capabilities. However the power of stereotyping can deteriorate a person and their dignity, once the world can look past a formation of words and take pride in the power of relationships and community with the use of language, society will become a better whole.