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Analysis Of The New Bathroom Policy At English High School By Martin Espada

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Bilinguals in America must bear with unjust persecution by English-only zealots. In Martin Espada’s essay, The New Bathroom Policy at English High School, he conveys bilingualism as the conflict of not completely fitting into one distinct culture and language, but to live with two separate languages and identities, which bilinguals experience oppression due to their differences. Espada’s definition of bilingualism consists of the ability to speak two languages. Espada gives an example of bilingualism: “My friend Jack… explains his bilingualism: ‘English and Spanish are like two dogs I love. English is an obedient dog… Spanish is a disobedient dog.’ Jack is articulating the difference in command between a first language and a second language.” (Line 3). Espada gives a straightforward definition by correlating bilingualism to the ability to speak two different languages. However, bilingualism extends beyond the capability to speak two languages. Bilinguals abide within two different cultures and worlds, …show more content…

Espada declares: “I witnessed in court the association of the Spanish language with sloth, deceit, ignorance, even savagery.” (Line 172). Espada argues that English speakers in court dismiss Spanish speakers and treat bilinguals unjustly. He points out his experience as an example: “...if an interpreter was available, he or she was assigned to the criminal court, since jailing Latinos was a higher priority than evicting Latinos.” (Line 178). Espada gives another example with his poem, Offerings to an Ulcerated God, where he translated for a Latino victim named Mrs. López. The judge dismissed her since she couldn’t speak English, and commanded her to move out and pay rent without trying to listen to her explanation. Espada’s experiences and examples of the poor treatment Latinos bear serves as evidence to his argument of how Latinos suffer misrepresentation in

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He has published books as a poet, editor, essayist, and translator. Currently, he is a professor of English at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. I’ll be using his work, “The New Bathroom Policy at English High School”, in order to showcase Espada’s own concept of bilingualism. Martin Espada’s concept of bilingualism is that for a bilingual speaker to retain their culture and language, they need to fight for the right to speak their language. In “The New Bathroom Policy at English High School”, Espada claims, “I have learned that the best way for me to maintain Spanish is to fight for the right to speak Spanish” (pg 2).

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