Racialization in Narratives of Language Experiences

Abstract

This chapter presents the results of my study in terms of the components and dimensions identified in the narratives. The thematic analysis reveals how complicating events in the narratives reflect dominant racialization discourses about Mexican communities and the role of Spanish in the United States, as well as the language ideology of monolingualism and nationalism in this country. The first section discusses the framework of racialization, as applied to the analysis of these narratives of language experiences. The second section explores the language conflicts due to racialization experiences that Mexican women had to overcome in daily communication with different social actors in different social settings (at the border, at school, at home, in the hospital, at church, in the workplace and in shops). Finally, the third section presents the emotional map of racialization experiences emerging in these narratives.