It ain't only Rock & Roll, it's Jazz too

[John Bailey]

Good post, Joe.
Assimilation vs separation are terms which have had their day, I'd say, and 
hooray. Perhaps syncretism is a more appropriate idea to be toying with 
here. From my point of view (and 25% of the 5 million people hereabouts are 
first or second generation) it's pointless to imagine this in terms of 
competing cultures, one 'competing' with or 'assimilating' with the other. 
The very fact of their meeting means both will be changed. And they were 
never stable to begin with. I think (and I could be wrong) that Ab O Ab was 
trying to suggest that the linguistic norm of American English is as 
reductive as the idea of ebonics, both concepts suggesting a sort of 
homogeneity in language which just isn't there. The US P-listers here sure 
don't speak (or type) the same lingua, and I don't think it has anything 
much to do with education etc. I mean, we're reading Pynchon, who's hardly 
placed next to the grammar manuals, so the literacy of our parents etc 
shouldn't come into it.

Quick intro to ideas of syncretism in US multi-linguistic communities:
http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/miscpubs/ncrcdsll/rr16/

(Not that Pynchon doesn't know his grammar. But he doesn't visit her as 
often as he could.)

Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 01:04:04 -0500
From: <vze422fs at verizon.net>
Subject: Re: It ain't only Rock & Roll, it's Jazz too

on 3/13/03 8:11 PM, S.R. Prozak at prozak at post.com wrote:

>
>>Young white children in school have their language
>>corrected as well; they are taught a prescriptive
>>grammar as part of their education and with scant
>>regard to the colorful and expressive but incorrect
>>syntax often spoken by their parents at home.
>>
>>That there exists additional biases in some cases
>>directed against Black children is undoubtedly true.
>>But it doesn't follow from that that these Black
>>children are being further penalized by attempting to
>>teach them the rules of grammar, those governing
>>educated discourse, being taught to White children.
>>
>>Teaching Black children instead some alternate Black
>>grammar seems to me a grievous, ghastly mistake, a
>>perverse idea that the most hardbitten of racists
>>would have been proud to have dreamed up.
>
>There's two views:
>
>1. Assimilation
>2. Separation
>
>The only one that supports diversity is #2.
>
>Ebonics seems to me a made-up idea; the real ebonics is on the streets and
>should stay that way.
>
>14 points :)
>
Total bullshit.

My friend Bao Nyguyen runs a great traditional Vietnamese restaurant. He's
a huge Celtics fan. You can assimilate and be proud of your original
culture. Bringing your food into it is a great way to do it. Ever have pizza
in New York? It's wicked pissa. Especially St. Mark's. They employ
Pakistanis. This is America. We adopt and adapt. Listen to jazz for Christ
fucking sake. Dexter Gordon playing DeBussy in a French movie? Who's
separating what? Mongrels live longer. Hybridization builds strength. Cape
Verdeans are the sexiest people on Earth. I'm proud of my Irish and Danish
(by way of North England) heritage. My buddy Ian makes great Mexican food.
My friend Louis has traced his ancestry back through slavery to a real
family in what is now the Ivory Coast. He loves Irish traditional folk
music. Big Pete Lindblad knows where to find the best wasabi by the quart.
Have you ever heard Gaelic poetry read aloud? By Caribbeans? Ever hear a
really good, serious, Mariachi band while the snow is falling outside?

Get out of the suburbs, dude.

You can assimilate and retain your original culture and language.

And you can pass it on to other people because you think it is so cool that
they'll like it too.

Pardon me while I finish my pho tai while listening to Johnny Cash in my
predominately Latin American neighborhood.

Diversity rules. Assimilation is convenient. You can do both. It's fun!

Separation is for bigots.

Peace
Joe



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