Lost in translation: children interpret for immigrant parents

BY KIRA LERNER

[this story was written originally for a course, Enterprise Reporting in Diverse Communities, at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism]

Gustavo Montes, a 13-year-old Edgewater resident, plays a crucial role in his parents’ lives. Not only is he their oldest son, but he teaches them English and acts as translator for his parents around their home and neighborhood.

“I taught them and they know how to speak to people in English,” said Montes, a seventh grader at Northside Catholic Academy who sits down to teach his Mexican parents English two or more nights a week. “I teach them words like how to say goodbye and simple words like that.”

Children of immigrants often act as translators for their parents who are not as proficient in English. According to a November 2007 study by the Pew Hispanic Center, 23 percent of Latino immigrants report being able to speak English very well, compared to 88 percent of their U.S.-born adult children. Young kids who learn English in school or from the media become assets to their parents who have a harder time learning and adjusting to English.

Cesar De La Rosa, 29, said his 6-year-old daughter Vanessa is completely bilingual. After emigrating from Mexico nine years ago, De La Rosa still has trouble speaking and understanding English.

“The school teaches them English and she watches TV shows like Hannah Montana and Disney Channel and she’s laughing and she knows exactly what they are saying,” said De La Rosa about his daughter, a first grader at Peirce School.

Vanessa, who learned Spanish at home and English at school, sometimes acts as an interpreter for her parents.

“When the teachers send letters to us, I try to understand what the teacher wants to say but I tell my daughter to help me and she can do it,” De La Rosa said.

Though there are no figures available for how many children serve as interpreters, there are more than 170,000 children aged 5 to 17 in Chicago who speak a foreign language at home and also speak English well, according to U.S. census data.

Montes said his older cousin taught him how to translate between English and Spanish without using a computer or translator. He views teaching his parents as an everyday obligation and exchange.

“It’s kind of like teaching your parents and then they will teach you, like Spanish or other cultures, what they learned when they were children,” he said.

Problems can occur when parents allow their children to act as middlemen in translation, said Maria Salgado, the public benefits counselor at Centro Romero, a community organization which serves the Hispanic immigrant population on the northeast side of Chicago.

“In school, if the teacher has a complaint about a child, of course the child is not going to tell their parents exactly what’s wrong,” she said. “It’s not as accurate. It can cause problems in getting the message through.”

The daughter of Mexican immigrants herself, Salgado said she moved to Chicago when she was three years old and picked up English right away. As a result, she assumed the role of translator for her parents.

While most staff workers at Centro Romero are bilingual, Salgado said that many of their immigrant clients rely on their children to translate outside of the organization.

“We know that they do it at home or at school or when their parents go to the clinic,” she said. “If there’s not a bilingual person on staff, they usually take their kids to translate for them.”

Twelve-year-old Ana Conde helps her Mexican parents by translating at school in her own classes and for her younger sisters’ classes.

“Sometimes I go to classes with my mom,” said Conde, a seventh grader at Peirce School. “It helps my mom understand what they’re saying so it’s important.”

De La Rosa said he is trying to learn more English, and his daughter and even his 22 month old son will be vital resources.

“I have nine years [in the United States] and I know it’s a long time to stay without English and I know I can do more.”

October 26, 2008