Panel: Immigrants confront barriers

By My-Ly Nguyen
Diversity Institute Fellow

07.31.02

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Some immigrants still face difficulties adapting to life in America because of language and cultural barriers, a panel of immigrants said on July 13 in Nashville.

The discussion, titled “The Americanization of Immigrants in Nashville,” was one of many cultural diversity programs at the Celebration of Cultures festival held July 12 and 13 at the Laskey Building of Scarritt-Bennett Center.

Data from the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C., show that more than 10,000 new immigrants relocated to Nashville between 1991 and 1998.

Aida Brcic, 37, told the audience she couldn’t speak a word of English when she emigrated from Bosnia in 1997.

Brcic worked hard to learn the language and today is the founder and executive director of the American Association of Refugee and Immigrant Women in Nashville. The nonprofit organization helps members empower themselves economically and socially and provides them a forum in which to share their stories.

Nonye Ejiofor, 40, could speak English when she immigrated to Nashville from Nigeria seven years ago but talked about how frustrated she felt when workers at a fast-food drive-thru recently made fun of her because they couldn’t understand her accent.

Sardeie Nur, 17, from Somalia said it’s hard to learn the American way of life and fit in. But Nur, a resident of Nashville for two and a half years, stated he wouldn’t abandon his culture to assimilate.

“If you abandon your culture, you’re not really contributing to your community,” he said. “America is about bringing together different cultures to make one unique culture.”

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