Connectedness and Fragmentation through Language

             Over the past couple days, speakers have repeatedly returned to the notions of connectedness and fragmentation within the O’odham community along generational lines, especially in terms of language.  The elder members acknowledge that very few O’odham youths speak the language, contributing to a significant loss of connectedness and culture, as language exists as a substantial portion of the replication and continuation of culture.  The O’odham nation contains at least three languages: O’odham, Spanish, and English.  Language differences create divisions within groups of individuals that would otherwise be solidly unified.  As younger individuals move away from the O’odham language, their physical location may dictate whether they speak Spanish or English, contributing to intergenerational divisions.  Language not only functions as an aspect of communication but as a portion of identity as well.  Changes in language are changes in the way one thinks and comes to identify, emphasizing the importance of the preservation of the language among younger generations in order to preserve the O’odham identity.  However, this highlights the ever-increasing delicacy of the balance O’odham individuals must navigate, in which they must negotiate the relationship between ties to tradition and change in favor of assimilation to fit the mainstream United States definition of “success.”  Language acts as cultural capital in terms of identity and the pursuit of a success that may be defined differently by generations or even within a single generation.

            The O’odham identity, along with all American Indian identities, have been repeatedly silenced by the United States government and by powerful members of society.  One of the most important aspects of this trip has been sitting down to listen actively to the vocalization of a historically silenced people.  However, when we force them to speak in English to accommodate the language barrier, we continue silencing them through the removal of the significant aspect of their culture.  In this same vein, the success and serving of the O’odham nation has come to require immense advocacy and education of those outside of it, which unfortunately usually falls wholly upon the O’odham themselves.  For this reason, advocating for the wellbeing of the nation and its people may require fluency in English, increasing its value in terms of connection to the O’odham nation.  While bilingualism may provide the best situation in order to retain identity and culture and to better the relationship between the nation and the United States, it does have consequences, as it may impact identities and thought-processes of younger generations.  As Joe Joaquin said, those in younger generations must always learn to think O’odham first in order to retain identity and connection to tradition.