Global Citizen StoryMap

Language is the form in which we as individuals communicate.  However, there are times in which not knowing a language can be a barrier and hinder an individual by limiting the individual’s options both socially and economically.  This was seen in the book Fresh Fruit, Broken Bodies: Migrant Farmworkers in the US.  In that book, due to the inability of the migrant workers from Oaxaca, Mexico to speak English it resulted in them enduring mental, emotional, and physical pain as well as being looked down upon.  For me, the ability to speak two languages has increased my ability to interact with people from many countries.  In addition to interaction, language has become a medium through which I have become aware of issues that affect individuals and their families.  For example, in my visit to El Salvador I was able to sit down and talk with a father who had reached a point in which each day he feared for his life and that of his family.  In my story map I will talk about how language has made me a global citizen.  I start off my mentioning how I got to learn both Spanish and English, and then I go on to giving examples in which language has helped me better interact with those around me.