“You Are Not Allowed to Speak Spanish! This Is an American Hospital”

Abstract

Outmigration from Puerto Rico has grown consistently in recent decades, especially after Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck in 2017, with over 220,000 Puerto Ricans relocating to the continental United States. Yet, we know little about the lived experiences of migrants and longer-term settlers in their new homes, their social acceptance, and the discrimination they face based on Spanish accents or Spanish language use. Employing data from a national sample of Puerto Ricans (N = 484) and 20 in-depth interviews with Puerto Ricans in Florida, we examine linguistic discrimination. Our findings indicate that Puerto Ricans had increased odds of experiencing problems with unfair treatment due to their Spanish accents, darker skin tones, higher education, being married or in marriage-like relationships, as well as having been born in Puerto Rico. Higher income protected against problems of unfair treatment due to accent. Qualitative evidence shows that speaking Spanish in public spaces makes Puerto Ricans vulnerable to discrimination. When Puerto Ricans speak Spanish and even when they speak English with a Spanish accent, these function as racial markers that lead to perceived unfair treatment, thus suggesting evidence of the racialization of language among Puerto Ricans in the continental United States.