05.29.07
When in Flushing …
Above: Man-li Kuo leads a weekly Mandarin class in Flushing.
The New York Times reports on non-Asian residents of Flushing, Queens, who are learning Mandarin to adapt to the population shift in their neighborhood.
“Kind of like, ‘If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em,’” says one Italian American woman student quoted in the article. Another student profiled is an 85-year-old Holocaust survivor from Poland who hopes to hold a conversation in Mandarin by the time he’s 95.
Stories like this go to show, America’s WASP-oriented mentality is a sinking ship, and people had better learn how to swim.
Don’t believe us? Check out this story from Reuters, which goes over the latest census data: “U.S. minority population tops 100 million.”