Speaking
the Same Language: Breastfeeding
Brandel Falk
Jerusalem, Israel
From: LEAVEN, Vol. 34 No. 5, October-November 1998, p. 99
Most La Leche League meetings
are held in relatively homogeneous areas. However, in some parts of
the world, Groups attract women who speak different languages and come
from different cultures.
In Israel, many Leaders come
from English-speaking countries. Some speak Hebrew well, some not at
all. Some are married to Israelis, some to other "Anglos."
Virtually all have children who speak Hebrew better than they do. They
live among Israelis, socialize with them and lead Series Meetings with
and for them.
Japan, on the other hand,
has two almost completely separate groups of mothers who attend LLL
meetings. English-speaking Leaders and the mothers who attend their
Groups are often temporary residents in the country, many in connection
with the military. Japanese-speaking Groups attract mostly Japanese
mothers.
Large numbers of Hispanic
mothers live in metropolitan areas of the United States as well as in
southeastern and southwestern states.
Some countries have separate
LLL Areas or Affiliates that serve mothers who speak the most common
languages. For example, French-speaking Canadian Leaders are part of
Ligue La Leche Canada, while English-speaking Leaders belong to La Leche
League Canada. A similar situation exists in Germany where there is
English-speaking LLL Germany and German-speaking LLL Deutschland.
Often, Leaders find that
difficulties arise not from a "language barrier" but rather
from different cultural expectations. Margi Grant, an LLL Leader in
Encinitas, California, USA, writes that the most difficult part of leading
in a bilingual area can be working with "different beliefs based
on traditions that are unfamiliar to us." She says that it is important
to "respect differences while giving sound breastfeeding information."
She hopes that what is discussed at meetings makes its way back to [i]many[/i]
in the Hispanic community, even if only some of the mothers attend.
One common belief among Hispanic families, for example, is that if a
mother is angry or upset, her milk spoils and shouldn't be fed to the
baby.
Tracy Thibeaux, who leads
an English-speaking Group in Misawa, Japan, agrees that cultural differences
can lead to misunderstandings: "A very common question for an American
might be offensive to a Japanese mother and vice versa." Sheri
Khan, a Leader in Rome, Italy, writes about "deeply rooted beliefs...herbal
teas for the mother are really a big thing here; it's rare to find a
mother who's not having a liter of 'tisana' made up by a local store...foreign
mothers living here can feel frustrated by this 'need' that they cannot
relate to."
Another problem is a lack
of written material in some languages. Bonnie Weinberg, who leads an
English-speaking Group in Jerusalem, Israel, writes that "we need
more books in Hebrew to recommend."
Genevieve Treille, a Leader
in France, led meetings for five years in Saudi Arabia. She reports
that "English was the main language, but we also used French, Arabic
and body language." The mothers attending the Group were from five
different continents and at least ten countries. There were "very
strong religious and cultural differences on top of the different nationalities
and languages!" She found that the biggest difficulty was avoiding
misunderstandings. It went well, however. "We all managed to listen
and wait until translations had been made and everybody had understood
what was going on. Everyone participated and the diversity brought so
much to the meetings."
Some Leaders think that in
order to help mothers better, they need to become comfortable in a foreign
language. Several reported that they need to remember to speak more
slowly than usual when mothers attend a Group where the discussion is
not in their first language. Some Groups make sure a mother who doesn't
speak the language used at the meeting is seated near someone who can
help translate for her.
The Group Chris Buice leads
in Richmond, Indiana, USA, is attended by a Japanese mother whose English
is limited. She says that the mother "reads and writes English
more easily than she speaks it, so we have found that it helps to use
visual aids and have the questions or phrases that we are discussing
in a written form."
Leaders who have led bilingual
meetings usually say it is worth the effort.
Yoshie Nagata, a Leader in
Japan, used to lead a bilingual Group in Tokyo. She writes that "it
was great to share meetings with English-speaking and Japanese-speaking
mothers!" She found that with everyone speaking her own way, they
could share both ideas and benefits. "I miss the bilingual meetings
sometimes. It shows that breastfeeding can help you form real relationships
even without language!"
And Bonnie agrees, "I
think that breastfeeding bonds us all and language and culture don't
even matter. We all speak the same 'mothering' language. That is the
beauty of breastfeeding!"
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:32:23 UTC 2007.
