DCHS student recognizes language barrier
By Jenna Buehler Comet writer-intern

Delphi Community High School junior Miriam Castillo has lived in Delphi for over ten years. As a former resident of Durango, Mexico, she is aware of the cultural and language barriers in the community. She said counselor Greg Smiley's trip to Veracruz will benefit the entire school.

Castillo reflected on her childhood dilemmas with the language. She said learning English was not frustrating as a child, but the duty of translating a variety of Spanish dialects that came with being bilingual was.

"When a new Hispanic student, or Hispanic-looking student moved into town they were sent to my class," said Castillo. "I would be asked to translate for kids who didn't speak my dialect or spoke ancient lost forms of Oaxaca (another version of Spanish). I would have to spend recesses trying to explain worksheets. People didn't understand why I couldn't."

Castillo explained her frustrations as a child linger even today. She said there is an exchange of dialect between her Hispanic classmates that further binds them. However, she says being closely knitted with culture and language has its downfalls, as it tends to isolate them.

"I'm the only Hispanic on the tennis team, and a social butterfly. But sometimes the language issue is intimidating. It makes some of us want to give up, and some do," said Castillo. She says that living in a more rural area eases cultural adjustment. Castillo sympathizes with older Hispanic newcomers, saying practice at school leads to fluency, which is beneficial in obtaining career opportunities.

Castillo plans to become a paralegal and hopes to break the language barrier. She aspires to keep both sides of legal disputes from taking advantage of language differences.

Castillo says that Smiley's trip to Veracruz will bring understanding.

"I think his trip will have the biggest impact on cultural differences. By experiencing what it's like to walk in the shoes of the minority, he may come back with stories to tell teachers. Teachers will tell students and, I hope, everyone will see how much we're alike."