Learning a Language of Community

Hot coffee and fresh doughnuts greet this morning's group of volunteers. They'll need the energy as they march from door to door for the next two hours. Their mission: to meet people -- strangers, most of whom don't even speak their language. This particular morning, the volunteers are residents of Falls Church. Once energized, the group will spread out to canvass the area's immigrant neighborhoods, shops and markets. They will step beyond their comfort zones to personally welcome strangers into their community.

The effort is part of a new approach we are taking at Hogar Hispano (Hispanic Home), a program of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington, to bridge the language and cultural barriers in our community.

According to the 2000 Census, 21 percent of residents in the Washington metropolitan area speak a language other than English in the home. As a whole, these people are isolated linguistically. Perhaps most surprising is the age of many of them. I've met dozens of individuals in their 20s and 30s who speak virtually no English, even after years of residency. Often their children, who pick up English quickly, end up running the household -- translating and interpreting situations in which their parents should be in charge. Many parents are unable or afraid to communicate with neighbors.

Consequences to the families and community could be dire. Rather than wait for Congress to solve these and other immigration-related challenges, we at Hogar Hispano have decided to take the initiative.

We held outreach rallies each weekend in September. To kick off the next semester of English-as-a-second-language (ESL) classes at a dozen sites in Northern Virginia, we will hold outreach rallies each weekend in January. We will be asking long-standing residents to invite their immigrant neighbors to attend the classes. Many of the program's 300 volunteer teachers will be calling past students (in English, of course) to welcome them back.

The effort extends from the neighborhood to the classroom. Teachers are leading students on field trips to grocery stores, banks, schools and parks. And at the end of the semester, students and teachers will bring together their families and friends for celebrations brimming with pupusas, baklava, burgers and pizza, set to the tunes of salsa, Punjabi music, polka and all-American oldies.

So, what are the fruits of these efforts? New friendships. Changed perceptions.

Bob Ashdown, a Herndon resident and a three-year volunteer teacher, told me, "The most rewarding thing is getting to know the students and realizing how hard they work -- how much these people are contributing to our country."

Worlds are expanding. José Del Cid, a second-year student, once identified class as the only place he could interact with native English speakers. Recently he told me, "I can now have conversations with people on the street, and I can better understand my boss and the customers."

The initiative locals are taking to reach out is an effective way to make immigrants feel welcome and bring them into the mainstream community.

Likewise, longtime residents will become more comfortable with their new neighbors. Ultimately, both groups will be better able to accept and appreciate one another's differences.

Immigration debate and future realities aside, we are focusing on today. Not on assimilating but, rather, on sharing our perspectives, traditions and ideas. So, talk to a stranger -- become neighbors with him or her.

-- Jeff Michno

Arlington

The writer is an ESL program associate at Hogar Hispano in Falls Church. His e-mail address isjmichno@ccda.net.