Forward

This portfolio is a collection of Essays displaying my writing in the different forms. There are a couple historical papers analyzing and defining cultures. There are a couple research papers, using online articles, scholarly articles, and interviews to form a conclusion, and discover more about a subject. I am comfortable with many different writing styles varying from creative writing, poetry and fiction, to technical writing and research papers. I am constantly seeking experiences to improve and expand my skills, and future portfolios will reflect many of these experiences. 

Table of Contents

Nanotechnology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . March 11, 2015

Haitian Culture: An Explanation from History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  November 19, 2015

The Rise and Fall of a Subculture: New York Ball Culture of 1987 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . November 20, 2017

Communication Across Cultures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . December 4, 2017

Dealing with violent social Unrest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . July 8, 2018

Nanotechnology—The Future of Material Innovation, or a Toxicology Timebomb?

Margaret Heffernan stated, “For good ideas and innovation, you need human interaction, conflict, argument, and debate.” This most certainly applies to nanotechnology, a relatively new field of study starting in 1959 with Richard Feynman in his speech “There’s plenty of room at the Bottom”. Feynman introduced the idea of manipulating separate molecular and atomic structures to build technologically advanced machines in nanoscale.(National Nanotechnology Initiative.)  “I want to build a billion tiny factories, model of each other, which are manufacturing simultaneously…” Feynman states. This was the original definition of nanotechnology, building something from the bottom up with atomic precision. (Center for Responsible Nanotechnology) Today, nanotechnology is a broad term referring to the study of anything within the nanoscale, and applicable to all other science fields. This vagueness leads to convoluted assumptions about the safety of this science, and ignorance of where to find truthful information about it. However, just like any other controversial innovation, nanotechnology has it’s benefits and risks that must be addressed. (Berger, Michael) 

Nanotechnology has the ability to improve the way we live life, and is even believed to be the next industrial revolution. “My own judgment is that the nanotechnology  revolution has the potential to change America on a scale equal to, if not greater than, the computer revolution,” stated U.S. Senator Ron Wyden.  It is a rapidly growing and progressing study and has gone through several stages, from simple nanostructures designed to perform one task, to integrated nanosytems. These breakthroughs have shown the potential of nanotechnology—military uses, more precise medical treatment, cheaper production of products  and more convenient living. Nonetheless, with these benefits come risks.(Center for Responsible Nanotechnology)

Nanopolutants; Privacy invasion from nanoscale recording devices; Arms race for Nanotech weapons; bioengineering, specifically nano-sized machines in surgery; economic instability due to significantly cheaper production of products; and even the end of the world , resulting from the lost of control over our nanotech inventions— these are a few of the unanswered concerns about the field of nanotechnology. (Nanotechnology Risks- Nano No No's.) In addition, there is certain fear of the unknown, as materials possess extremely different characteristics in nanoscale. Higher reactivity, unknown toxicity, and changes in state of matter (gold), conductivity (silicon), and physical appearance (copper) are just a few of the several properties that must be rediscovered in nanoscale. (Berger, Michael) However, as Feynman states “ Do not speak against the possibility of maneuvering things atom  by atom. It is not an attempt to violate any laws; it is something, in principle, that can be done; but in practice , it has not been done because we are too big.” (Center for Responsible Nanotechnology)

All, past revolutionary innovations came with conflict and opposition. The Gutenberg printing press, the Electric light, the magnifying glass (especially during the dark ages), steel in the industrial revolution, and antibiotics all brought about controversy. However, now these innovations shape the world we live in today, filling it with a better quality of life and increasing our knowledge of nature. Nanotechnology is not unlike these other revolutionary studies, and will not be the last of man’s discoveries. 

Works Cited

Berger, Michael. "Nanotechnology Risks -The Real Issues." Nano Werk. Nanowerk LCC, 16 Apr. 2007. Web. 6 Mar. 2015. <http://www.nanowerk.com/spotlight/spotid=1781.php>.

"Nanotechnology Risks- Nano No No's." Future for All. Futrureforall.org, 1 Jan. 2005. Web. 6 Mar. 2015. <http://www.futureforall.org/future-technology-predictions.html>.    

"What Is Nanotechnology." Center for Responsible Nanotechnology. Center for Responsible Nanotechnology, 1 Jan. 2007. Web. 6 Mar. 2015. <http://www.crnano.org/whatis.htm>.

"What Is Nanotechnology?" National Nanotechnology Initiative. Web. 7 Mar. 2015. <http://www.nano.gov/nanotech-101/what/definition>.

Haitian Culture: An Explanation from History

“The giver of the blow forgets, the bearer of the scar remembers” (Haitian Proverbs, 2004) This Haitian proverb describes the epoch of Haitian history. While she has suffered many calamities, she emerges today with a rich, warm, celebratory culture that embraces her history. Her strength and influential role in history is forgotten by most of the world, but she is proud of her past and heritage and passes it from generation to generation. Her turbulent history shapes her vibrant culture today.

Ayti or Hayti, meaning mountainous, was once inhabited by the indigenous islanders the Taino Indians whom Columbus encountered on his first landing in 1942. He was welcomed hospitably initially, and he set up a settlement near Cap Haitien. However, this was the beginning of the exploitation and destruction of the rich, resourceful island of Haiti. The Indians became violent when they realized the newcomers had malicious intent. When Columbus returned in 1493 the settlement he had established had been plundered and all inhabitants killed. Greed was a strong motivator however, and Columbus did not retreat. Establishing a second settlement a little further south and renamed the island Santa Domingo as Spain’s first holding in it empire. He governed the island and more colonists came with grants that gave permission to enslave the indigenous inhabitants to find gold. Colonial Rule under Spain destroyed the island. The Taino that originally populated the island in hundreds of thousands were killed by the brutal slavery system. There were one-hundred and fifty Taino living on the island in 1550.

Despite the murder of Taino culture and neglect under Spanish rule, Haiti became a “strategically important gateway of the Caribbean” as a foothold for England and France to imperialize the other countries in the Caribbean and plunder gold laden Spanish ships. The presence of these countries quickly led to the descent of Spanish power on the island and the rise

of the French conquest. With colorful beginnings in the Tortuga culture, French pirates that lived off smoked meat and loot from Spanish ships, French sovereignty opened the door for commerce between the colony and France and the renaming of the island to Saint- Dominique. (Nassier, 1999)

Quickly under French control Haiti became the richest colony in the western hemisphere. Its prosperity was built on the scarred, beaten backs of African slaves. The cruel slave-holding system resulted in division, prejudice, abuse and a continuous cycle. Slaves were treated so badly that they didn’t live long enough to reproduce, and female slaves were sexually exploited by white masters which created more discord. Discriminatory legislation became so detailed that it developed into a thoroughly defined caste system. (Nassier, 1999)

The discrimination led to a series of violent conflicts utilizing unorganized guerrilla warfare, that pillaged and attacked in bands all over Haiti. As the attacks furthered, more slaves escaped and the number of bands increased. It was the first sign of rebellion, and an establishment of war tradition on the island. The attacks were scattered and unorganized and therefore easily defended against, therefore the blind white settlers dismissed the idea that these attacks could ever become an island-wide revolt. They were wrong. The rise of uniting leaders began a long costing campaign for the island of Haiti. It was during this time Toussaint rose to prominence. As one of few literate ex-slaves with an intelligent, calculating mind, he became a key leader in the Revolution that shook Haiti. Many divisions on the island quickly led to confusion. Outside onlookers could not resist joining the battle in hope of gaining control over the “Gateway of the Caribbean”. Spanish, French, and British forces cajoled blacks and mullatos to join their forces in exchange for power, independence, or freedom. Blacks fighting for independence from French imperialism were called Royalists and fought by themselves or with the British. Blacks who desired their freedom from slavery joined French forces. Blacks wary of joining French forces joined Spanish forces, hoping for independence and change for the better. Toussaint fought under the Spanish forces and with his military prowess managed to take control of most of north central Haiti. However, he saw little to no improvement in Black conditions, nor attempts by the Spanish to emancipate the slaves so he made the decision to join French forces. This was a providential decision, because a treaty with Spain by the French disbanded the Spanish forces and cut off supplies to the Black Generals under Spanish command. These disbanded soldiers flocked to Toussaint’s forces because he was the only remaining Black commander of distinction. After saving a French commander, Toussaint was honored with the position of Lieutenant Governor. In this position he was able to control all of Haiti and work on restoring order and productivity. Learning from experience, he replaced all white and mulatto individuals in positions of leadership with Blacks. This began the first autonomous rule of a Black nation, which made large slave-holding counties like America and Britain concerned so they pressured France to take action. France, spited by Toussaint’s rule (although he never formally broke ties), sent forces to Haiti once more and threatened to attack if Toussaint did not step down. Outmaneuvered, and reluctant to put his people through any more struggles, Toussaint complied and despite France’s promise to allow him to retire quietly, he was taken to an isolated prison in the mountains died in solitude there due to neglect. France’s army could not succeed in further campaigns. Riddled with disease and defeated by determined Blacks, they retreated. On January 1st, 1801 Haiti was free. (Nassier, 1999)

Echoes of the Haitian Revolution reflects on this time in Haiti’s history as “hidden”. The Europeans beholding it could not fathom the idea that the Revolution was occurring –the mindset of the western world would not allow it. Although Americans fought for the white man's freedom, they did not feel the need to free their slaves. Their claim to seek equality for every man, excluded the black man. Temporarily ignoring the implications this had on women in this era, an onlooker will notice that the black slave was not considered worthy of freedom or equality. Why? Because in the western mind, being black negated a being’s humanity. Black meant “not man or woman”. This mindset caused the talk of revolution to be ignored. When this black ruled country succeeded in claiming it freedom, they were excluded from foreign relations and not acknowledged as a country, despite it’s influential role in American and French history. Bigger and more powerful countries pretended Haiti was not in existence or on the verge of collapse at any given time, because an autonomously ruled “Black” nation was not possible. Although ignored, the Haitian revolution instilled fear in other slave holding countries. “Someday the Negro tomtom will truly be dreadful to hear. It will come out of forest and beat down the streets of our cities...And it will hunt us out among the girders of our dying skyscrapers as once we hunted them down through their forests...” It forced open the eyes of the Caucasian-European cultures to the power of the oppressed, to the strength of the slave, and they made retaliations. A quote from the book summarizes what Haiti endured post- revolution. “At last historiography did what white arms could not, wiping the Haitian revolution off the mind’s of the past.” This was no small feat as the Haitian revolution cost French and British forces more than Waterloo. The thirteen-year war also cost the Haitian people dearly. A hundred-thousand lost their lives out of the population of half a million pre-revolution population. It was a revolution that fought America’s battle for the Louisiana purchase, yet received no acknowledgement in American history books. The Haitian people did not allow this to deter their growth. They celebrate their tumultuous history because it freed them.

The heroizing of Toussaint also had a significant affect on Haitian culture. It brought to life “black male autonomy, self-government, and patriarchal black nationhood”. His influential position obtained through strategic alliance with several cultures also personified Haitian culture, a hybrid of cultures. “Toussaint Louverture is a contradictory hero. Like Odysseus, he is a refined trickster, or as Haitians would say, a ‘Master of the Crossroads’... He is a man of Africa who fought for Saint-Dominique and died in France: slave and freeman, child of the enlightenment, and fervent catholic that served the Iwa of Vodou. In short Toussaint is the quintessential Haitian.” The creole way. This melting pot of cultures was birthed through from the slavery system. It brought the island together, identifying through stories of similar struggles, and new language, “—a tongue made up of fragments of other tongues” (Munroe, M., & Walcott-Hackshaw, E, 2009)

Today Haiti is a diverse mix of people, language, religion and tradition. The everyday language, Kreyol, is a combination of Taino, English, Spanish, French, and various African Languages. The professional language French is a distinction of class and those who speak it shun those who do not, continuing the prejudice established by the slave system upper classes identify more with European cultures and lower classes identify more with African cultures. Haitian religion is Protestant, Catholic and Vodou--a reflection on American, European and African cultures respectively. Haitians are proud of their history and pass it from generation to generation through oral stories, much like the African cultures that birthed them. (Brice Foundation International)

Works Cited

Munroe, M., & Walcott-Hackshaw, E. (Eds.). (2009). Echoes of the Haitian Revolution, 1804- 2004. Kingston, JAM: University of the West Indies Press. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com

Haitian Proverbs. (2004). Retrieved December 1, 2015, from http://www.haitianproverbs.com/

Nassier, H. (Ed.). (1999). Haiti History: SPANISH DISCOVERY AND COLONIZATION. Retrieved December 1, 2015, from http://www.kreyol.com/history-spanish-discovery-and- colonization

Nassier, H. (1999). Haiti History: FRENCH COLONIALISM. Retrieved December 1, 2015, from http://www.kreyol.com/haiti-history-french-colonialism

Nassier, H. (1999). THE HAITIAN REVOLUTION: Toussaint. Retrieved December 1, 2015, from http://www.kreyol.com/the-haitian-revolution-toussaint

Brice Foundation International. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2015, from

http://www.bricefoundation.org/#!index-page/mainPage

The Rise and Fall of a Subculture: New York Ball Culture of 1987

It is natural for us as human beings to travel in “packs”. Even on the first day of school, when everyone is a stranger, very quickly people find others they mesh with and form cliques. There are several mixed reviews about this. There are those like Sam Hunt, who stated “I don't like the idea that in music, clothes, taste or anything, we are limited to a certain style, because we need to maintain an identity, maybe between some subculture group. Hopefully, all those walls break down, and music is just music.” Then there are those like Damian Chazelle who like the categories and say  “ I like movies that are specific. Movies that hone in on a very specific subculture, a specific discipline, a specific world.” Our categories give us further structure in this large society, and prevents us from getting lost. So it is no surprise that there are cliques in society as well—subcultures. Subcultures rise, fall and evolve,  but few acknowledge the extent of which a subculture can influence a city or country’s mainstream culture. The 1987 New York Ball culture will demonstrate how subcultures come into existence, why they change and fall, and how they influence the culture around them. 

To follow the life-span of a subculture, one has to start at the beginning—ethnogenesis. While ethnogenesis refers to the development of a culture and not a subculture, there are some similarities that can be found between the two.  Marriam-Webster defines culture as, “ the process by which a group of people becomes ethnically distinct; the formation or development of an ethnic group.” This definition does not really fit subcultures because most of the time the subculture is a collection of other ethnic groups, and not necessarily distinct ethnically. Another definition formulated by anthropologists studying Heatherfield and Northhumbrian ethnogenesis describes the birth of a subculture better stating, “Ethnogenesis is the process of developing a sense of ethnicity; of us versus them and who we are. Ethnogenesis is one of the first steps towards national unity.”  (Michelle, 2007) Although subcultures can bring a sense of identity, they are also formed because of differences from the main culture. Furthermore, while they may not tear the main culture down; they certainly don’t unite the country as a whole. This could be one of the differences between culture and subculture. 

Subculture is defined by the textbook as, “commonly shared customs of a group within society, while culture is defined as commonly shared customs of a society.” (textbook) Oxford defines it as a “cultural group within a larger culture, often having beliefs or interests at variance with those of the larger culture.” In other words, a subculture is typically deviant and differs in expression of culture through societal norms, beliefs, and material possessions. This deviance can be active or passive—by fighting for change actively, or simply bringing attention by being different. There are mixed beliefs on whether or not this is good thing. Deviance can bring conflict, but the human ecology theory suggests that social groups and institutions bring stability to the society as a whole. (Subcultures and Sociology)

Subcultures’ impact and overall relevance to society is based on their intent, or their purpose for existing, and also their cultural capital, symbolic capital and authenticity. Cultural capital refers to the way a member of a subculture follows the subculture’s norms. Symbolic capital refers to respect and legitimacy each member holds based on status, while authenticity is referring to consistency in the display of these norms. The boundaries of a subculture are usually fluid because the members are also part of a larger culture, and follows those norms as well —which, as mentioned before, can conflict with the subculture’s norms. (Subcultures and Sociology)

In 1989, New York Ball culture, at its zenith, was a potent force that became a storming trend in the fashion industry, making their lifestyle seem more socially acceptable. Forms of this subculture can be traced back to 1869 in Harlem. The first ball occurred as an actual ball, including same-sex couples dancing to romantic music. This simple event was still considered strange. Langston Hughes, a social activist author, described the scene as “the strangest and gaudiest of Harlem’s spectacles in the 1920’s” The balls were annual and called the ‘Parade of the fairies’. With that explanation, we can generate a good idea of why the New York ball subculture developed as a safe-haven for same-sex couples to behave as typical heterosexual couples. The purpose of this subculture shifted and changed over time and depended on what was necessary to make its existence a safe-haven for the homosexual, queer community. (Voguing and the House Ballroom Scene of New York City 1989-92 (Soul Jazz), 2013)

  Although, from 1869 to around the 1960’s most balls were evenly mixed racially, those who were considered beautiful or the most attractive were white, or “white-washed” to look as white as possible. By the 60’s there was resentment from the black and latino communities, which instituted a divide. When this began, the first “house” was established by Lottie and Labejia, and this started a trend. Many other houses were made in the Black and Latina Ball culture community, and it was partially by the development of these houses that Ball culture began to spread outside of Harlem. (Voguing and the House Ballroom Scene of New York City 1989-92 (Soul Jazz), 2013)

As with any other culture there were shifts in trends, and in norms, and as Ball culture evolved, so did their Balls. The Balls became more extravagant, including categories, trophies and judges and were held as often as once a month in the 80’s. Along with this competition, there were rivalries between houses, and Ball culture language began to develop. Words like “Queen”, “shade”, “throwing shade”, “readings”, “voguing” and abbreviations like “butch mod face” gave Ball culture a distinct language, which is another aspect of culture development. The Ball culture language was unfamiliar enough for translation to be needed. For example, Kevin Omni explains, “It was called ‘Butch Mod Face’ and what that means was that, you had to be butch, real masculine, not a punk or sissy, and you had to be model with model’s looks and you had to have a nice looking face.” (Voguing and the House Ballroom Scene of New York City 1989-92 (Soul Jazz), 2013) Ball culture was complex and had many layers, and these layers brought them together into a very strong subculture with all the cultural capital, symbolic capital and authenticity it needed. This idea can be further explained this way “For example, underground drag ball participants share a distinct set of meanings within their subculture. Underground drag balls are competitions that consist of individuals, mainly queer youth of color, who perform different drag genres and categories. The ball participants share their identities both as queer youth of color and participants in the ball scene. As part of the ball scene, they also have knowledge of certain values, rituals, objects, and slang that are unique to the subculture. For example, the average person would not know what the term “realness” means, however, when one enters the ball scene, every participant knows the meanings and intricacies of the term realness. Furthermore, the value of queering oneself and expressing one’s sexuality at the balls, particularly in the 1970s, illustrates how the subculture deviates from mainstream norms and values surrounding gender and sexuality.” (Voguing and the House Ballroom Scene of New York City 1989-92 (Soul Jazz), 2013)

The language was just one aspect of distinction Ball culture had as a subculture. The houses were social categories, similar to how families work in our society. These houses were homes to kids who were kicked out of their homes that gave  a sense of mothering and grooming to those with less experience in the world of Ball culture. It could be described this way, “Similar to a fraternity system, up-and-coming frag queens can join up with local houses headed by older, experienced house ‘mothers’ or ‘fathers’ who help groom young members in their drag pursuits and offer moral and social support along with shelter if they’ve been kicked out of their houses.” (Conger, 2012)  This home training further shape Ball culture, forming alliances and passing the culture along from older generations to younger in a similar way to parents teaching their children. 

During the late 80’s and early 90’s New York Ball culture reached its climax. The subculture became “less deviant” because it was not as unpopular. Norms in main culture were changing to be more inclusive and although there was much to be done in progress for queer rights, society was less hateful to their cause. It became legal to be gay, and Balls became bigger and more popular. Walking at a Ball began to lead to runway appearances and voguing—a culturally distinct form of  throwing shade in the form of kung-fu inspired dance—became the next big thing. Reporters from Time magazine agreed “ Forget breakdancing. So long hip-hop. At the hottest clubs in manhattan, on MTV and at Paris  fashion shows, the ultra-hip are into voguing.” This borrowing from the subculture happened not only with voguing, but with language, fashion and music as well and diffusion began to occur. This began changing the nature of Ball culture. (David Sims, 2017)

Subcultures by nature are more difficult to keep authentic because of consumerism. It is much easier to see, like, and get the looks and materials needed to appear as if one belongs to that sub-culture, even if they do not. In our modern, hyper-connected world it is even easier, because a subculture in a neighborhood could be captured on camera and shown to someone on the other side of the world. This makes any subculture at risk of trending and commercializing. This attacks the strength and connectivity of a subculture because it lessens authenticity. Miss Lauryn Hill described the affect consumerism could have on society and culture in her song titled Consumerism. She threw around phrases describing consumers like “ compromised commercialization” and “Habitual inferior visions” as well as “psychological imitations” and “negative stimulations.” Her further descriptions called consumerism a tumor that leads to shallow thinking and brainwashing. (Subcultures and Society) 

While it is not proven that consumerism has had such definite negative results, it can certainly be said to compromise a subculture. Once trending, it loses authenticity and then loses power as a culture. The loss of power is the lacking ability to pull people together, because there are too many imitations.This is eventually what happened to Ball culture at its zenith. It became trendy and popular, further popularized by Madonna’s song Vogue released in 1990. (David Sims, 2017) With all the attention and popularity, it grew and reached to areas far outside of Harlem. Yet, as most trendy things do, it got old. 

Ball culture can still be seen today in language, and in shows about drag races. However it is not the same culture it was at its peak. People can still choose to identify with that culture in many ways, though most choose not to in the same way people did before. Nevertheless there are still rising and falling subcultures in our societies, and cliques that people identify with. Notable ones make their mark, inspire a movement, or shift society's view on their lifestyle. New York Ball culture served to fight for queer rights, and gave their lifestyle more acceptance. The subculture faded, but is not gone. As Freda Adler said, “Major social movements eventually fade into the landscape not because they have diminished but because they have become a permanent part of our perceptions and experience.”

Works cited

“Subcultures and Sociology.” Grinnell College, haenfler.sites.grinnell.edu/subcultural-theory- and-theorists/what-is-a-subculture/.

“Voguing and the House Ballroom Scene of New York City 1989-92 (Soul Jazz).” Tim lawrence, 3 July 2013, www.timlawrence.info/articles2/2013/7/2/voguing-and-the-house- ballroom-scene-of-new-york-city-1989-92-soul-jazz.

“Sam Hunt Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, www.brainyquote.com/quotes/sam_hunt_827115? src=t_subculture.

“Damien Chazelle Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, www.brainyquote.com/quotes/ damien_chazelle_699051?src=t_subculture.

Michelle of Heavenfield. “Heavenfield and Northumbrian Ethnogenesis.” Heavenfield, 26 Oct. 2007, hefenfelth.wordpress.com/2007/09/14/heavenfield-and-northumbrian- ethnogenesis/.

Moffitt, Kimberly. “What Is Subculture? - Theories, Definition & Examples.” Study.com, Study.com, study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-subculture-theories-definition- examples.html.

David Sims. “Revisiting the Glitzy Safe Havens of NYC's Drag Ball Culture.” CityLab, 22 Feb. 2017, www.citylab.com/life/2017/02/revisiting-the-glitzy-safe-havens-of-nycs-drag-ball- culture/517479/

Conger, Cristen. “How Drag Queens Work.” HowStuffWorks, HowStuffWorks, 12 Nov. 2012, people.howstuffworks.com/drag-queen2.htm.

“Freda Adler Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, www.brainyquote.com/quotes/freda_adler_402131.

 Communication Across Language and Culture and How It Is Changing

Abstract

This paper identifies how communication across cultures occurs and theorizes the big picture impacts on our planet. What are some of the main difficulties of cross-culture communication? What are some of the best methods to cope with a lack of understanding? How does cross-culture communication affect work and efficiency in the workforce? Does globalization impact cross-cultural communication? To address these questions, materials from interviews and other scholarly articles will be referenced. The two interviewees are Weslyne Coleman and Bonnie Love, both missionary volunteers for the Haitian Hope Humanitarian Efforts Inc. mission trip of 2017, which occurred at the end of June. Weslyne can address many aspects of this topic, as she is and immigrant from Haiti and moved to the US when she was in middle school. Bonnie Love is an English speaker with experience in the medical field, who worked on the trip with several methods of communication to combat the language barrier. Cross-language and Cross-cultural communication is becoming exceedingly relevant in our world today because of globalization. With the need to communicate despite the barriers of language present, more technologies and changes to our culture are occurring that may not have occurred otherwise. What are the results of these changes and how do they affect our current lives?

Cross-Cultural  Communication

Marriam- Webster defines communication as “a process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior” This naturally occurs everyday between people—most of the time without serious thought. This is only possible if the people communicating understand the same symbols, idioms, and have similar knowledge of the topics discussed. Issues still occur even with the optimal circumstances just named, and even more miscommunication and misunderstandings occur when there is a difference in language or culture. One solution would be to just avoid having conversation with those of different cultural groups. Obviously this would be problematic because the monumental negative impact this would have on our economies, business, and government, as well as our society. Currently in our world today conversations are occurring across cultures. How does this form of communication occur? How does this communication affect our societies? How is cross-cultural communication changing? With responses from two interviews and the results of several studies these questions will be addressed.

Intercultural Communication in Relationships and Mission work

Weslyne Coleman is a Haitian immigrant who has lived in the United states for the second half of her childhood, and all of her adult life. In her interview she addressed questions about her communication in her school life, family, workplace, and in the mission field. As a child in school, when she first arrived to the U. S.  she knew very little of the language. She also did not like speaking aloud, because the other children made fun of her accent. In her government class when they had to recite the pledge of allegiance, she requested to write it on the board. Her teacher was confused with this logic. If she could write it, then she should be able to recite it, correct? Weslyne was granted permission to write the pledge of allegiance on the board and did better than many American English-speaking students. This preference still affects her today. Weslyne often finds she prefers to communicate in ways other than speaking, even after decades in the country and a firm grasp on the English language. She also feels as if her knowledge of a second-language (or the accent in her English language) affects people’s perception of her intelligence and ability to work. “Sometimes people think just because someone have and accent or speak a different language that person is not intelligent or not as intelligent as the other person. They think that person is—can’t comprehend, can’t understand—to me the bilingual person is even smarter, because they have to try to understand where is that person and what that person is (coming from.)” 

She also believes that this communication barrier—occurring despite knowing the language—can be emotionally distressing. “It’s stressful because you are trying to make yourself understood and understand as well.” The knowledge that your cultural perceptions could make communication more difficult adds to the pressure of communicating in intimate relationships as well as in conversation with associates or strangers you may speak with in the streets. She references how communication can easily become a big issue in her marriage. Expectations of understanding can also cause one individual to assume something—only to find out later that that expectation was not understood, and this can cause conflict. Because one individual could consider their expectation to be “common sense” they would find any point the other makes in disagreement to be unreasonable and unfounded. This just raises tensions further. In addition to the common miscommunications in relationship, adding a difference in culture or language can cause more issues. Weslyne finds it necessary to clarify what is being said before becoming defensive—a natural response when tensions are high and the individual is not being understood themselves. 

Her ways of speaking not only affected her own communication, but also affected her children’s communication. She felt as if her communication struggles could affect her children even more than they affected herself, especially because they did not know her mother tongue fluently. She corrected her children often on their English despite her own use of the language, and confessed that what saved her children’s English was their love of reading. 

This language “barrier” occurs not only here in America, but also in her native country, Haiti. Often when speaking, when she does not know a specific phrase or word, she will explain in whatever way she can until she is understood. She found herself making up words mixed between the two languages and compensated by being friendly and unashamed. She also uses very emphatic hand gestures to get her point across. On mission trips back to Haiti with mixed English and Creole speakers,  she observed that in order to get more done, the volunteers would have to be willing to be humbled. Despite meetings informing the volunteers about the culture, she stated, “There is no preparation for reality.” Individuals, though experts in their field with the heart to help, found themselves disoriented without knowledge of the language. Weslyne described it this way. “Even as experts, without the language they found themselves vulnerable. It’s almost like it takes the wind out their sails.” To compensate, volunteers had to rely on others for translation and exercise patience. She mentioned that the volunteers felt humbled because “without the language they couldn’t help or do.” (Weslyne Coleman, Personal Communication, November 19, 2017)

One of these English speaking volunteers was Bonnie Love, who served on the medical team during the trip. She felt as if the only reason her job was completed was because of the help of interpreters. Without them she had to rely heavily on hand gestures, and pictures. She made the interesting discovery that despite letting individuals know she did not understand the language, they kept on speaking, trying to be  understood. On method she mentioned attempting was writing down the instructions others needed to follow on a paper giving these instructions to individuals to read, but she found that she was still not understood. (She speculates this was because she was in charge of the reading glasses station and many she interacted with could not see enough to read the instructions.) Bonnie made the observation that some others who had started the trip with no knowledge of the language like her had adjusted more quickly by picking up some key terms and piecing together a method of communication using those terms, and hand gestures. (Bonnie Love, Personal Communication, November 19, 2017)

Intercultural Communication in the Workforce

Many of Weslyne and Bonnie’s comments and observations agree with the conclusion of studies about cross-cultural communication in the workforce. The International Journal of Intercultural Relations did a study about the adjustment of the foreign worker in the workforce. This study addresses the fact that many studies focus on the amount of proficiency the foreign workers have with the host country’s language, but not on other influencing aspects of intercultural interactions. The study mentions that similarities between the individual’s communication and the culture that they are learning allows for a better adjustment into the workforce, while those with larger differences would struggle more. This study points out that language efficiency itself is not all an individual needs to thrive in intercultural interpersonal communication. In fact they identify five categories to measure the success of communication across culture more easily. “Second, we divide intercultural communication into five dimensions— host country language proficiency, social interactions with home country nationals (HCNs), communication styles, conflict styles, and English use in the workplace – to examine their influence on foreign workers’ work, general, and interaction adjustment; job satisfaction; and turnover intentions.” The researchers found that individuals who had a low grasp on the English language were excluded based on their tendency to communicate in their language as opposed the host country’s language. This could reflect what Weslyne mentioned in her interview. She felt as if she was prejudiced against because of her accent or unique way of using the English language. The study found that this could be remedied with more exposure to trainings that discuss the differences in culture so in that way the workers could pick up on non-verbals and other facets of communication that are not taught with the language. This helps improve the worker’s satisfaction and overall improves the efficiency of work in the company (Fabian Jintae Froese & Vesa Peltokorp & Kyung A. Koa, 2012)

Intercultural conversations also affect service jobs. Like on the Haiti mission trip, many patients with a weaker grasp on the English language (or native language of the physician) find less satisfaction when visiting the physicians. There is a lack of trust or understanding when patients speak to physicians and it can impact how well the physician can do their job. "We found that limited English proficiency was independently associated with reports of suboptimal clinician–patient interactions among patients with diabetes receiving uniform access to care at healthcare facilities offering several forms of interpreter services. However, reports of suboptimal communication, trust, and perceived healthcare system discrimination among patients with LEP differed significantly by physicians’ language concordance and were more common among those with language-discordant physicians.” This study addresses another facet of intercultural communication. If there is a discrimination towards and individual based on their cultural background, or lack of  language efficiency—then communication becomes even more difficult and in some cases unfruitful. (Yael Schenker et al., 2010) Although this is less common in personal intimate relationships, this can occur in many different ways in the workforce, and with those barriers in place, efficient communication is curtailed. 

How Communication is Changing

Currently in our world there is a push for a global culture. On the religious front, we can see this by the “surrendering” of the Protestant movement, and the push for the uniting of churches. Economically you can see it by the ever-increasing number of international companies. Politically you can see it by the increasingly more involved United Nations. While there are many aspects of globalization that could be argued, researched and discussed, a distinct dilemma with globalization needs to be addressed. How can the world operate as a global culture while there are so many other cultures within it? Well one way is communication between the cultures to encourage diffusion—the sharing of cultural traditions and beliefs. This obviously makes intercultural communication very valuable to companies, world leaders and even individuals who intend to have an edge in the workforce. Because of this value, intercultural communication improvement is occurring much more quickly than it has in the past. We are now more “globally conscience”—aware of what is going on around the world. This is promoted and aided by the development of technology and media, making everyone even more connected across cultures. (Tin-yuet Ting, 2010)

Marriam-webster defined communication as a process through which information is exchanged by people. This is happening every day and in many ways. It benefits us as humans, like how scientific discoveries and research by one individual can be built upon by individuals in another place, and give something monumentally influential to the world. Intercultural communication is improving and will continue to improve as long as there are people willing to be humble, and understand how other people’s culture works. Until we all know one language—which will take a very long time—we have to communicate using written messages, images, hand gestures and demonstrations. This game of charades may not be the most efficient way to communicate, but it is a way to share information and make connections despite the cultural differences.  

Reference List

Fabian Jintae Froese, Vesa Peltokorp, Kyung A. Koa (May 2012) . The influence of intercultural communication on cross-cultural adjustment and work attitudes: Foreign workers in South Korea. Retrieved from: http://www.sciencedirect.com.ezproxy.lib.purdue.edu/ science/article/pii/S0147176711000940?via%3Dihub

Yael Schenker, Andrew J. Karter, Dean Schillinger, E. Margaret Warton, Nancy E. Adler, Howard H. Moffet, Ameena T. Ahmed, Alicia Fernandez  (November 2010). The impact of limited English proficiency and physician language concordance on reports of clinical interactions among patients with diabetes: The DISTANCE study. Retrieved from: http:// www.sciencedirect.com.ezproxy.lib.purdue.edu/science/article/pii/S0738399110000388

Tin-yuet Ting (December 2010). Globalization and Foreign News Coverage. Retrieved from: http://www.tandfonline.com.ezproxy.lib.purdue.edu/doi/full/ 10.1080/15339114.2010.528295?scroll=top&needAccess=true

Dealing with violent social unrest.