Written by: Dawn Bates, Senior Level Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
The unequal distribution of linguistic skills has been intentional and designed in such a way to segregate, hold back and create division by the powers that be.
A bold statement, but is it true? Especially when we look at how the literature in British schools has been written in such a way as to alienate students from working-class backgrounds, and the language used within exam papers makes students anxious, which further impedes their rates of success.
Not many will know of the findings of Basil Bernstein, a British socio-linguistic who explored why children from working class homes had poorer exam results than their middle-class counterparts.
Not only does nutrition, resources and support at home come into the equation, but according to Bernstein’s finding “…the language acquired in working class homes was less compatible with the standard version used in schools” and ‘The Dominant Code of Society’, or as it is more commonly known as ‘Proper English’, is still to this day preventing success and causing unnecessary confusion for students during exams.
Willian Labov, a US linguist who specialises in sociolinguistics, also found that the linguistic difference between people of colour and white folks didn’t represent a ‘lower cognitive complexity’ within people of colour, as was first suggested, but that the way in which people of colour express themselves and explain complex statements differed due to the differences in their mother tongues, cultures and dialects.
Schools in the US, much like those in Britain, preferred the more sophisticated, refined and upper-middle-class styles of speaking and writing due to the cultural transference from the settlers homelands, and because it meant that they were superior, better educated and well-spoken – a class above the rest, if you will.
Students who better understood and spoke this more refined English were, and still are, ‘more like’ those in the elite echelons of society, meaning they were more likely to get jobs in better companies and hold positions of power.
With the amount of exposure to the racial divides and class inequality happening around the world, many aspects of life are being looked into, and corrected; but as with any kind of change, the course correction will take time.
Why?
Because as much as the world is moving fast with technology, it is human nature to resist change, no matter how much we want it.
Using an example shared with me by my friend Jerry MacNamara, Founder of Proven Chaos and host of the Best Places to Lead Podcast, people are very quick to accept an ‘upgrade’ on an airline or a room in a hotel because the word upgrade means they are getting more for their money, but doesn’t that also imply that they are going to be seen as someone better, more affluent, more powerful?
Good old-fashioned ego coming into play and the aspiration of being someone better than we currently are – or is wanting to be better simply a fundamental part of who we are? Part of the inbuilt evolution of the species? And is wanting to be better than we are, achieving more than we currently achieve a bad thing?
Most of us would argue not, so is it wrong to use a ‘proper set’ of linguistic codes different to those from a different social class and culture? Many would argue that the use of ‘proper English’ is aspirational, allows individuals to improve themselves; that it creates opportunities those with a local or colloquial accent or linguistic code wouldn’t normally receive, which implies that there is a bias and snobbery when it comes to language and how one speaks.
Or is it Anglicising, encouraging more of the same white Western dialogue dominance and a throwback to the colonisation and assimilation of others?
In one of my books Walaahi, I write about my life living in Egypt during the Egyptian Uprising, and how as soon as the Uprising started many Arabs across the world started posting and tweeting across social media in Arabic.
For those who couldn’t understand Arabic, this was an exclusion many disliked intensely. People were excluded from conversations which led to paranoia and fear – What were the Arabs saying? Where would the next location be? Something which the mainstream media played upon in order to further demonise Arabs, and the Islamic faith.
When I was growing up, I knew that if I spoke with my local accent, I would not have had the opportunities presented to me in my career, nor would I have achieved the success I have achieved.
Given the disparity of opportunities for those of different classes, ethnicities and nation states, we have to ask if times really changed though, even with people speaking more about inclusion and diversity? Especially when in parts of the country those with non-English names are still discriminated against in the job market.
Smart employers understand the variety of dialects actually help with the growth of the business because customers and clients feel they can relate more to the person they are speaking with. They also know that when their employee’s cross various faith groups, the business doesn’t have to shut during the different religious holidays.
One of the biggest challenges faced when it comes to discovering there is a problem in society is the need for data to be collected to discover why, which requires a diverse data team to prevent bias. To do this we need those who do well in universities, but if the number of data specialists are only from the middle and upper classes, or let’s be stereotypical here and say male or Asian communities, how do we make sure there is no bias in the data gathered?
Once we’ve identified the problems, then we need to be able to share the data with those that can make the changes needed; and this requires a need to speak, write and collate in the language which those ‘at the top’ understand so they can give authority and/or pass the legislation to make the changes needed. Those at the top also need to be diverse in nature, open-minded and willing to make the changes, otherwise nothing changes.
All of these processes require people to write at a certain level but given that there is a bias in the way in which literature and linguistics are programmed into students, along with the anxiety which even the most intelligent students face due to not understanding the ‘right’ linguistic codes, then data bias will continue and those who have been kept at a disadvantage will continue to remain at a disadvantage.
As an author who writes about human rights issues and cultures in order to bring about social change, one of the key things I have always aimed to do is make sure my books are as easy to read as possible for everyone.
Human rights belong to everyone, not just the elite, the academics or the politicians.
I choose to include footnotes for any words which are local or from a different language, and I write books in a way in which my dad would understand and enjoy them… and he only reads carp fishing magazines and finished school when he was fifteen.
Many people say they have learnt more about the world and what’s going on around the world by reading my books than they did at school simply because my style of writing makes them feel as if we are friends sat together putting the world to rights whilst enjoying a cup of tea.
Dyslexics, and those who struggle to read, also enjoy my books. When my readers write to me telling me I have understood the situations in their country so accurately means a lot to me. It shows the amount of study I have done, the amount of time spent alone travelling the world away from my children and learning languages is paying off.
Coming from a working-class background myself, and having a deep love of learning, university wasn’t an option for me. I devoured textbooks on a whole range of subjects. Signing up for Continuous Education classes with some of the top Universities in the World also means I gained access to knowledge for a few hundred pounds. This course of action has proven fruitful given that I am now working towards my PhD with Oxford University.
Combining the knowledge and first-hand experience gained during my travels with my study means I get to see the world through many different cultural lenses, and have had to adapt to various different ways of learning styles taught in different countries and settings. I have also had my views of the world knocked sideways as I have learnt the history written about in British school books is inaccurate on many levels.
When we look to history, we discover that writing was a tool developed for political control, to record the narratives Kings and Queens wanted the world to know about. Writing was also a tool used in the recording of science, and was first used in Sumer, Mesopotamia 3400BCE to ‘make sense’ of the various languages spoken, with the Egyptian hieroglyphics being developed around the same time.
Overtime only those who had money and influence wrote books, defaulting to the white man. Due to the education disparity of time and gender roles being what they were, much of what we have all been influenced by over the centuries is a white male perspective of the world.
One of the earliest known female writers was from Sumer some 4200 years ago. Her name was Enheduanna and her contributions to Sumerian literature include several personal devotions to Inanna, as well as a collection of hymns known as the "Sumerian Temple Hymns”, yet very little is known of her in the world of Literature.
When we read books such as Invisible Women – Exposing Data Bias in A World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez we learn that it isn’t just different social classes and cultures which are held back – but women as well. Combining the social classes, culture and gender biases what we see is a very unequal society which has evolved from the controls put in place by the elite, which is predominantly ‘the white man’.
Even today in the world of writing and publishing, we see how JK Rowling used a non-gender name, something she was apparently encouraged to do by her publishers. She has now chosen a man’s name for her latest books away from the Harry Potter series, something you would not expect from a woman who chooses to speak out on Women’s Rights.
With so much focus on gender equality and other gender issues right now, we have to ask ourselves the question “If a woman of JK Rowling’s standing feels the need to write her books using an English man’s name, what hope is there for those who are of a different ethnicity, social class and choose to write expressing their own dialect to get ahead in the world of writing and publishing?”
The education systems around the world need updating, and not just for students, but also for teachers. Teachers are only able to teach what they learnt, which means we have a downward spiral which keeps perpetuating.
Add into the mix the amount of great works of literature being banned due to the over-sensitive nature of the ‘woke’ community, and soon we will see an even more damaging impact on our children.
We cannot erase history, but we can create a better future, one that is more inclusive, designed for everyone, but to do that we need to have respectful, diverse and honest conversations – without the fear of being cancelled, our careers destroyed or our lives put at risk.
Dawn Bates, Senior Level Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Dawn Bates is a true international bestselling author multiple times over on five continents. She specialises in developing global leaders into real authorities who wish to give a voice to the voiceless whilst working with them to create brand expansion strategies through activism and authorship.
Profound truths, social justice and human rights underpin everything she does, and at the core of her soul is a passion for being of service to humanity, giving hope, courage and confidence for others to stand in their truth and live a life of conviction.
She writes for various magazines, sails around the world on yachts as a digital nomad and is currently working towards her PhD in Human Rights and Social Justice with the University of Oxford, whilst also hosting her own podcasts The Sacral Series and The Truth Serum.
Her books are powerful and comprise of solo compilations and multiple collaborations of the highest caliber. Dawn brings together the multi-faceted aspects of the world we live in and takes you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions, whilst delivering mic dropping inspiration, motivation and awakening. Her work captures life around the world in all its rawness.
Dawn’s expertise and insights will make you rethink your life, whilst harnessing the deepest freedom of all: your own truth. She’s an authority on leading others to create exceptional results by igniting the passions and fires deep within to speak and live powerfully.
