San Antonio professor discusses why younger Hispanics lost out on speaking Spanish and whether ‘Spanglish’ is valid OLLU professor Dr. Maribel Larraga discusses loss of Spanish language between generations
SAN ANTONIO – When it comes to language, many generations have lost Spanish because it was not passed on.
On Wednesday’s KSAT News Now, we discussed the topic and asked the question: Do you have to speak Spanish to be considered Latino, Hispanic or Mexican-American? What if you speak what is referred to as Tex-Mex or Spanglish? Is that valid and can it be accepted?
Dr. Maribel Larraga OLLU Alicia Barrera spoke with Dr. Maribel Larraga, professor of humanities and social sciences at Our Lady of the Lake University. Larraga said the loss of Spanish between generations was generally a way of parents protecting their children from punishment or ridicule.
Watch the video above for the full conversation with Dr. Larraga, who also defined code-switching, and how language and identity are intertwined.
RELATED: 20 influential Latinos in San Antonio
Wednesday’s full edition of KSAT News Now is below:
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About the Authors RJ Marquez headshot
RJ Marquez is the traffic anchor/reporter for KSAT’s Good Morning San Antonio. He also fills in as a news anchor and has covered stories from breaking news and Fiesta to Spurs championships and high school sports. RJ started at KSAT in 2010. He is proud to serve our viewers and be a part of the culture and community that makes San Antonio great.
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A San Antonio native currently in her dream job as the executive producer behind KSAT special programming like Fiesta parades, Dia De Los Muertos and the Rodeo special.
When she's not prepping for these productions, she's helping run KSAT's social media channels.
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