Introduction
This paper will argue on communication and language barriers among the Mexican immigrants and its effects on their stay in the United States. Immigration is one of the most critical components of the economy as it feels the shortage gap of skilled labor that is left out by the aging workforce. The United States is one of the countries in the world with the highest level of both legal and illegal immigration. The overall immigration rates of lawful immigration have been highest in the last two decades. Mexican immigrants are by far the single largest group with lawful immigration, but they lag in terms of green-card holders who are eligible to apply from other parts of the world (Gonzalez-Barrera, 2017). Statistics also show that the rate of Mexicans gaining permanent residency in the United States, supposed 42% in 2015 alone, as indicated by the Pew Research Center estimates. Gonzalez-Barrera, (2017) projects that, the Latinos including Mexicans will comprise 30% of the entire United States population by 2050. Research shows that new immigrants face more barriers to essential services such as care, education, and other social services as a result of communication and language barriers.
Communication and language barriers hinder Mexican immigrants the ability to gain citizenship through green-card applications. As highlighted in the introductory part of this essay, Mexicans have the lowest eligibility rate of gaining entry to the United States as a result of English language proficiency (Gonzalez-Barrera, 2017). The first language of the United States is English, and it is one of the eligibility requirements for one to gain entry into the country. Mexicans, on the other hand, have been brought up speaking Spanish as their first and sometimes their only language for communication. Gonzalez-Barrera, (2017) notes that even upon entry a majority of immigrants are required to take English language proficiency tests. This denies entry to a majority of immigrants including Mexicans. In circumstances where language proficiency tests are evaded, Mexicans often face a difficult time communicating with the individuals in their neighborhood, because they cannot understand English. Considering that all communication is carried out in English in the United States, Mexican immigrants often face a hard time settling in and interacting with their neighbors.
Research studies indicate that immigrant students, who speak English as a second language, are not as successful as their English-speaking peers. Access to basic education is very critical in the socio-economic development of a country according to Gutierrez (2019). The immigrant population from Mexico comes with their kids from their country of origin. These kids will often join local schools and colleges to access education. This problem is highly contributed by delivering the curriculum in a foreign language, the cultural differences that exist in school thus affecting their adaptability as well as the family/school disconnect. Parents play a crucial role in academic as well as extra-curricular activities of their children in schools (Gutierrez, 2019). Research indicates that there has been a significant increase in the number of Mexican children joining public schools across the United States. This is a positive outcome; however, the same research shows that parents play a crucial role in scaffolding thus increasing the academic gains in areas such as comprehension, math, science, and friendship. It thus possesses a significant disadvantage to Mexican children because their parents may not have any technical language capabilities to assist in such areas. Besides, students with parents who participate actively in children's academic and extra-curricular activities in school have shown to have better academic gains (Gutierrez, 2019). Mexican parents, on the other hand, may not actively participate, due to communication and language barrier thus affecting their children’s performance indirectly.
Communication and language barriers hinder access to basic welfare services such as healthcare. Mexican immigrants have traditionally moved to traditional destinations which include metropolitan destinations such as New York and California where there is a longstanding immigration history, hence adaptation to such environment becomes easier, thanks to the availability of other Mexicans in the neighborhood who help them settle in faster (Zhen-Duan, Jacquez& Vaughn, 2017). However, trends show that Mexicans and other immigrants are now moving to less traditional destinations such as the Southern and Midwest. These areas have very few or no Mexicans and research has failed to capture the challenges that these immigrants face when settling in such areas. It is quite obvious that communication and language barriers affect them at a much higher scale compared to those in metropolitan cities (Zhen-Duan et al., 2017). Nontraditional regions such as these are known to lack infrastructure to deliver basic welfare services such as healthcare, culturally-responsive education, and other social services. According to Zhen-Duan et al., (2017), compared with other Mexicans from the traditional migration destinations, they have poorer access to social services, poorer health outcomes, and less access to health insurance, which is critical in healthcare delivery.
Communication and language barriers also hinder the acquisition of basic needs such as proper housing and employment among the Mexican immigrants. Housing is a basic human need, but in the United States, owning or renting a decent home among Mexican immigrants is close to a luxury commodity (Wali et al., 2018). Real Estate companies operate their activities in English, and even with money, it may become difficult for an immigrant with no basic knowledge of English to acquire housing unless they are offered assistance. With lots of brokers in the market, exploitation of such immigrants is very common, with most of them getting housing which is of lesser value than what they offer, and in harsh neighborhoods. Access to employment is also a challenge because a majority of employers may require an immigrant to have basic knowledge in English according to Waliet.al., (2018). Securing higher-paying employment even with equal qualifications proves a challenge for immigrants with no technical knowledge in English as compared to their English-speaking counterparts. It leaves them with the option of doing jobs with minimum skill requirements, or casual labor which pays very little. Such a phenomenon has resulted in many Mexicans living in poor neighborhoods which have shown to be toxic socially and culturally (Waliet.al., 2018).
Justice may become unavailable as a consequence of the language barrier in courts. This indicates that the people who may need help from such courts may not be able to get such protection. Communication and language barriers have resulted in a majority of Mexican and other Latino immigrants to go to jail for crimes not committed, or face longer jail sentences (Zavella, 2016). Judicial courts have struggled to meet the need for effective interpreters as they require rare combinations of skills, training, and experience. Studies indicate that a majority of courts rarely appoint interpreters for civil cases unless the parties pay due to the lack of funds to compensate them (Zavella, 2016). This alone indicates that immigrants such as Mexicans may not have the opportunity to defend themselves adequately in courts even with excellent lawyers. All documents to be submitted in U.S. judicial proceedings must be in English by law despite other forms being available in other languages according to Zavella (2016). I am therefore evident that immigrants such as Mexicans will continue to face judicial injustices, as a result of the language barrier and it may not stop soon.
Opposing Argument
One may refute that the United States has made significant progress in addressing discriminatory issues, including that of the language barrier. The country has indeed made huge strides in combating issues such as discrimination based on language and social injustices, but it has not done enough yet. A majority of schools, healthcare institutions, institutions of higher learning, courts, and other welfare institutions still apply English as the only language of communication despite the country being very diverse culturally and linguistically. More still has to be done to curb communication and language barriers to ensure that all communities regardless of the country of origin access basic social services which is crucial for survival and adaptation of such communities.
Conclusion
In conclusion, language and communication barriers hinder Mexicans and other Hispanic to become naturalized to be U.S. citizens due to inadequacy in English speaking and the fact that it is one of the language requirements to gain entry. it also hinders the educational and social development of Mexican kids in schools due to a lack of support from parents and the institution. Access to welfare services is also haltered in nontraditional residencies such as the Midwest, as compared to traditional destinations such as New York and California. Access to housing and employment is a huge social and economic determinant of a majority of Mexicans, and their presence in a poor neighborhood may be due to communication barriers. Communication and language barriers also halt the judicial systems, as the administration of justice may not be achieved as a result of language. Despite the great strides by the U.S. government to address discrimination due to language, more still has to be done to address the issue.
