[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 18, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E528-E529]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




2022 NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS ASIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH 
                         ESSAY CONTEST WINNERS

                                 ______
                                 

                  HON. GREGORIO KILILI CAMACHO SABLAN

                    of the northern mariana islands

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 18, 2022

  Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, Aleia Hofschneider Santos, a senior at Mt. 
Carmel School, Mikhaela Paige Reyes Mendoza, an eighth grader also at 
Mt. Carmel School, are the winners of this year's Asian and Pacific 
Islander Heritage Month Essay Contest. I began this contest for middle 
school and high school students two years ago to give students in the 
Northern Mariana Islands, my district, the opportunity to showcase 
their writing skills and reflect on their unique experiences as 
American Asian and Pacific Islanders. The contest also is a way to 
celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.
  This year's essay prompt encouraged students to write about the 
issues facing the Asian and Pacific Islander community that are 
particularly important to them and to think about how they can inspire 
their community to action.
  I commend the 22 students from schools throughout the Northern 
Marianas who participated in this year's essay contest. A volunteer 
panel of judges reviewed the essays and chose Ms. Mendoza and Ms. 
Santos as this year's winners. In recognition of their achievement, I 
include in the Record the essays they wrote, where they will remain 
available to read in perpetuity.


[[Page E529]]


  


   Mikhaela Paige Reyes Mendoza, Middle School Winner, Mount Carmel 
       School, 8th Grade: The Problem with ``Linguistic Racism''

       A problem that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders 
     (AAPIs) face is linguistic racism. It is a big problem 
     because English might not be their first language. Therefore, 
     they would not get treated the same way as English native 
     speakers.
       English is one of the main global languages spoken in many 
     places. The English Language is a dominant language in a lot 
     of places such as in business, work, science, research, 
     school, government, and politics. The language is constantly 
     evolving and adapting to new ways of saying different words 
     and phrases. It's transforming in different ways because 
     there are people who speak the language that use English in 
     diverse ways.
       However, there are still people that struggle with English. 
     AAPIs struggle with English because it may not be their first 
     language. They are considered non-native English speakers. 
     Nonnative English speakers have this mindset that English is 
     a higher language than their mother language. Which means 
     that those who speak English, speak differently from what is 
     considered ``the standard way of speaking.'' These speakers 
     can find themselves being judged and even penalized for the 
     way their English sounds.
       In many countries, there are forms of English that can 
     bring fewer benefits to a person. One example is African 
     American English in the United States, the language is often 
     misunderstood and discriminated against. On an international 
     level, certain types of speakers face judgments based on any 
     perceptions of their nationality, rather than their 
     communication skills with people from that area. When English 
     is spoken by Asians, Africans, or Middle Easterners, they are 
     viewed as challenging and unpleasant to listen to as opposed 
     to some Europeans such as French, Germans, and Italians when 
     they speak English.
       Linguistic racism can lead to the deprivation of education, 
     employment, and health. AAPI with certain accents get openly 
     harassed or excluded from specific opportunities in the 
     workforce. For example, a Puerto Rican customer service 
     worker was told by a customer that ``his stupid accent makes 
     me sick.'' An Arabic bus driver in London had a manager who 
     kept him out of many conference calls.
       Of course, not every person is intentionally a linguistic 
     racist. People who think that they are being inclusive are 
     not aware of their judgements because of their ingrained 
     biases. Yet, whatever the cause of these incidents, people 
     are still affected. With these kinds of ongoing and 
     unrecognized situations, workers will be side-lined and 
     excluded.
       In what way can we stop linguistic racism and have a more 
     functional way of using the language to benefit native and 
     nonnative speakers? The best way to combat linguistic racism 
     is to continue to stay in school, learn about different 
     cultures, and to be a role model to others. We all speak 
     different languages and it is important to embrace the 
     diversity that we have in our islands. We can also be 
     digitally responsible and respectful in speaking to others 
     online.
       Aleia Hofschneider Santos, High School Winner, Mount Carmel 
     School, 12th Grade:
       Color
       Peach is the name of the crayon shade that my classmates 
     always used in their portraits when I was in kindergarten at 
     Chinook Elementary in Washington from 2008-2009. I was told 
     that Tinian tanned skin was too dark to be using Peach, and 
     that I should try using the dark brown crayon, called 
     Chocolate. Peach was the color of the skin on the man I 
     remember seeing through the windows of our first car in the 
     states, as he screamed to my parents to ``Go back to wherever 
     the f*** you came from''. Peach was the skin tone of all the 
     cops who came, as they patted myself and my family down, 
     searching for the weapon that the first Peach man had lied 
     about us having over the phone.
       The choice that my parents made in raising our family in 
     the states is better described as a sacrifice, especially 
     considering how we continued to be discriminated against 
     beyond my Kindergarten days. Years later, at one of my older 
     brother's football games, a group of Peach toned boys told me 
     to ``Hop back over the border fence''. After I told my Mom 
     about it, she held my hand tightly as we wiped our tears on 
     the way back to the crowd filled bleachers. When my older 
     sister came to pick me up for an appointment during a school 
     day in fourth grade, the Peach colored front desk secretary 
     told her ``People like you don't attend a school like this''. 
     I remember how it reminded me of how an after-school ice 
     cream treat from my Dad turned into Peach colored Dairy Queen 
     workers calling us ``stupid Mexicans'' through the drive 
     through window.
       There are still many memories I cherish despite the 
     challenges we faced during our stay in the U.S., but I will 
     never forget the events of that fateful fall day, nor will my 
     Mom or Dad. I will never forget the look on my parents' faces 
     as they were told to exit the vehicle, nor will I forget how 
     scared I was when I saw them pointing guns at all of our 
     faces. All of the fear and confusion from that day that we 
     still feel years later is owed to one thing and one thing 
     only: hatred. It was pure, unadulterated hatred that the 
     Peach colored man felt toward not my family, but the color of 
     our skin that caused it to happen. Yet, the worst part about 
     all of this is things like this continue to happen around the 
     world--hate crimes and other acts of discrimination are 
     committed against countless other Asian American and Pacific 
     Islander families in countless other ways every single day. 
     Yet, every time I reflect on the question of how we can 
     combat the hate many AAPis face overseas, another question 
     persists in my head: How can we stop the spread of hate out 
     there if we struggle to combat it here, in our very own home 
     islands?
       After moving back to the CNMI in seventh grade, I quickly 
     gained an understanding of the stereotypes that plague our 
     own community. With each race came a heinous generalization: 
     all Chamorros were lazy, all Carolinians were uneducated, all 
     Filipinos were judgmental, all Koreans were terrible drivers, 
     and the list, unfortunately, goes on. After hearing my 
     classmate casually describe a person's eyes as ``chinky'', I 
     realized that while prejudice may be a catalyst for hate--the 
     root of prejudice itself is ignorance. The ordeal led me to 
     wonder how we, as AAPis, are expected to remain silent in the 
     face of deafening hatred.
       While I may never be able to answer my own question, I can 
     answer the question posed by this year's prompt: I hope to 
     inspire our community to take action against racial 
     discrimination and acts of hate by taking three simple steps. 
     First, I encourage all victims and witnesses of AAPI 
     discrimination to not only speak out about what they've 
     experienced, but against prejudice of any kind. In this 
     pursuit, I implore others to speak loudly about the deeply 
     damaging and disheartening effects of racial discrimination 
     when they feel that they are ready to. Most importantly, I 
     ask that we all try to speak proudly of one another and what 
     we have accomplished despite all the obstacles. Imagining the 
     power that our community could hold in taking those steps 
     fills me with a deep sense of faith in a better future for 
     all of our families--no matter the color of our skin.

                          ____________________