Go to the above link to view the conversation. It starts off with really uniformed, racist garbage.
It got me thinking about a conversation I had last night. All the news we (meaning, here in this part of Canada) hear about are the drug cartels and the killings and things like that. There is another side to the story. Mexico isn’t a haven of blood thirsty cutthroats, anymore than the United States is. I know people who live in Canada who think that way about the United States, and for a time, thanks to stereotyping, so did I.
The people I talked to about this last night, however, pointed to the fact that sometimes people who get into trouble in Mexico do so because they did something dumb. They flipped somebody off, got drunk and started a fight, walked into the wrong section of town. Which, when you think about it, is no different than anything in the area we (meaning those who live in West Central Saskatchewan) happen to live in. Would you go down a dark alleyway at midnight on 20th Street in Saskatoon? Probably not, because certain sections of 20th are pretty rough. And while they aren’t necessarily tourist areas, if someone out of country happened to do such a thing, get attacked, and then return home, would have a negative story to tell. Have this happen enough, and the negativity grows.
Same thing with Mexico. While I have never been to Mexico, I’m sure there are very nice areas of the country, just as there are more than likely very bad areas of the country. Probably no different than down in the States or up here in Canada. Or any country, for that matter.
Part of that is a problem with the media, where we are only given one kind of view of a country. For instance, a massive stereotype about the Middle East is it’s filled with camels, nomads, sand and oil. The latter being often cited as the only good thing in the Middle East. Obvious, Dubai must be this mythical place that really doesn’t exist in the Middle East (/sarcasm). Most likely, a lot of those countries look at us in the same manner.
As far as ESL, I’ve known several people who have come to Canada who have taken English as a Second Language. It is not, as the original rant in the link states, English “is” a Second Language. It’s teach people English as “their” second language so they can communicate with people much easier. Because, a lot of times those individuals who emigrate from other countries to Canada (or the States) will end up running a business, which means they will be creating jobs.
Now, I know there’s a lot more information that needs to be explored, but it’s something we have to actively do. Bottom line, don’t spout off on a rant without knowing some important facts first.
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