Viewpoint
The American Landscape
By Fred Butler
The Latino
influence and culture in California
and the
southwest
is as much pronounced as that of the northern European presence in the
Northeast, Midwestern and Rocky Mountain states,
and all are parties to a "landscape" - an American one.
From my Caucasian
observations, I note the following cultural traits that are so pronounced in
the Latino communities:
(i)
Strong interpersonal ties
with in the family unit, and especially with fathers having the loyalty and
nurturing capacity concomitantly with the mothers.
(ii)
A frontier and warrior spirit
so characteristic of the early years of our union - witness the remains
enshrined and names inscribed at various war memorials throughout this land,
at Arlington, and in foreign lands, because of sacrifices made - and yes, in
the boxing arena;
(iii)
A work ethic that is second
to none. I sometimes wonder if our illegal immigration "problem" is the
result of this one endemic trait of the Hispanic, rather than attributable
to the opportunities that
America
offers to the world in general.
(iv)
That flamboyant and exuberant
emotion that is so depicted in Latino music, art, and even their "tricked
out" automobiles or pickups. When these cultural earmarks of the Latino are
added to the mix of other cultures, the result is truly a unique and
distinct nationality, an "American" to be showcased to other nations, and to
represent what could be, rather than what is, in a deprived and abused world
beyond our shores.
What I - a Gringo -
am really trying to say is that "Latino" needs no special recognition as a
cultural influence in our landscape, for that is a given and subsumed in my
observations. Ergo, I would be the first to eschew an "Englishlandscape.com"
tag, as that would set me further apart from the Latino. Rather, I choose to
be with him as an "American", no more nor less."
"Latino," "English," "French," "German," "African," and "Asian" are all
adjective qualifications of the "American Landscape," and each evidences the
diversity in the "land of the free." So to speak; ergo, it is one thing to
take pride in one's ethnicity, the color of one's skin or religious
persuasions, but to emphasize these adjectives over the noun ("American") is
to foment division in the "Americanlandscape.com" persona.
I, of an English/Anglo extraction, respect the contributions and culture of
the Latinos to the American fabric. However, I do not play upon the
historical significance of the English presence at
Jamestown or Trenton, so to speak. To
me, "English" has become diffused into "American" over the last 200-plus
years. To be an "American" is to borrow the best from all cultures and
nations. The Constitution of this "American experience" preserves the
individual cultures and diversity of lineage by the union it creates.
Otherwise, this American fabric would be threadbare and contentious as
viewed from the perspective of a "Gringo".
Fred Butler is a resident of the Eagle Valley. Sometimes
self-deprecating, often wry and always opinionated, Butler requested that
his wife's photo, instead of his, accompany the column, noting that she is
"more pleasing on the eye."
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