Closed Doors / Puertas Cerradas

A couple days ago Ryan, a self proclaimed gringo, sent me an email asking for my take on why Spanish Language Media just wouldn’t hire him, a fully (and I mean fully) bilingual journalist. I was astonished; could definitely identify with whatever he was feeling, and felt compelled to share his story with you. I know this is not necessarily the focus of Hispanic Trending, but y’all have to read this:

“So what are you looking to do when you graduate?” 

I had been talking with my professor in Spanish.  Her question kind of came out of left field; I had come to her for pointers on how I might improve my Spanish for use in media interviews.   

“I’ve identified three broad areas,” I said.  “Radio, TV, or PR, in English or Spanish.” 

“How serious are you about Spanish-language media?” 

When I switched my major to journalism and mass communications at Arizona State University nearly two years before, I was interested in using my language abilities.  I had already been speaking Spanish fluently for nearly nine years, and what I may have lacked in terms of formal certification I more than made up for in real-world experience: I had experience interpreting (both consecutive and simultaneous) and translating in a variety of office and vocational environments.  I have interpreted in call centers and offices, and translated everything from simple office signs (“Food will be cleaned out of this refrigerator every Friday”) to multipage employment packets. 

By the time I ended up in front of that PR professor, I had tested out of 12 hours of Spanish, was politely kicked out of a 300-level grammar class for excessive language proficiency, took 400-level composition and grammar classes, and worked four internships, even spending a fall semester at a local Spanish-language cable news station.  I had worked assignment desks in TV and radio, done radio and TV reporting solo, and helped produce Spanish-language newscasts. 

So, in short: I love speaking Spanish.  A lot.  And I love the culture: look on my iPod, and you’ll find Evanescence, the Foo Fighters and Collective Soul alongside Shakira, Ricardo Arjona, Maná and Los Caifanes. 

Naturally, I felt very driven about SLM.  I had the language ability: in virtually every respect, I felt my Spanish was better than ever.  Besides, with the demographic explosion among Latino communities throughout the nation, SLM was a hot growth industry.  Only a fool, I reasoned, wouldn’t want to jump in. 

So my professor’s next remarks had my complete and undivided attention.  “I’ve talked to news management in both print and TV in the area, who have expressed vital interest in bringing more diversity in their newsrooms.”  She smiled.  “That means gringos like you.” 

I was a bit skeptical.  “Even for on-air positions?”  Yes, she answered, including on-air reporter slots. 

I felt it would be an ideal career move.  Regardless of what I went on to do, time spent in a SL newsroom would be an obvious asset.  If I could legitimately say that I had reported, written, interviewed and gone on camera—and that I had done it all in my second language—I could gain incredibly valuable (not to mention unique) experience.  I knew the pay was lower across the board than in English-language media.  I didn’t care.  I wanted the experience. 

It was May.  I was to graduate in December.  “Keep in touch,” the professor said.  “We’ll see what we can work out this fall.”   


That summer I worked my first PR internship—my fifth internship overall—in corporate PR for a government contractor.  I stayed in contact with my professor all summer, as she talked to people she knew in the business and spread my résumé tape around (part of which, to display my production abilities, I had written, anchored, and edited myself). 

When September arrived and I began my final semester, I felt I was as ready as I could be.  I had a 3.8 GPA.  I was starting my sixth internship, this one in Spanish-language PR.  I reasoned (correctly, it turned out) that it would get me some exposure to local SLM outlets. 

I found that my résumé, now over a page and half in length, tended to get the attention of whoever read it.  (I would later find out that I was the only candidate considered for my final internship—once she saw my résumé, my supervisor was determined to hire me and nobody else.) 

In October, I got an interview with a local SL TV station. 

The news director was friendly, complimentary (“your Spanish is excellent!”), and honest: we don’t have any job openings right now. And really, putting you on camera would be a risk—we’ve had positive reaction to bilingual Anglos weekly on-air community service spots, but there’s no telling how our viewers would react to a full-time white reporter.  How would you feel about an assignment desk position? 

“Sure,” I replied.  Anything to get my foot in the door. 

Call us in November, he said.  We may have something by then. 

As the fall continued on, I continued sharpening my skills.  My final internship was paying dividends.  I became acquainted with reporters in the area, and my work indeed got me face time: I ended up doing an on-camera interview related to a 9/11 memorial service.  A white guy on Spanish TV!  ¡Mejor no hay!

Sometime in October, while following up on a Spanish press release I had sent out the week before, a print reporter asked, “Ryan, did you write that yourself?” 

“Yes, of course.  If it’s in Spanish, I either translated it from my supervisor’s English original or I wrote it from scratch in Spanish.” 

“That’s amazing.  Your writing abilities are really impressive.”

I had certainly been doing a lot of writing.  Later in the internship, I would single-handedly translate a 40-page marketing kit from English to Spanish.  I would also continue working with local SLM, coordinating media events, interpreting for reporters, providing photo ops, and generally having a blast. 

Finally, in November, I got my next interview: the other SLTV station. 

I felt confident walking in: I had spent much of the summer and that fall working with a Puerto Rican professor to polish my accent, and felt that I was nearly successful in eradicating my inner gabacho. 

Which is what made the news director’s first statement pretty disappointing.  “We’d like to consider you for an assignment desk position,” he said.  “Hopefully one day we can consider a white person for an on-air position, but that time hasn’t arrived yet.” 

I was disappointed, but I felt I understood.  Besides, it was that foot in the door, right?  (Don’t worry—we’ll get to the obvious implications behind his remark later.) 

We had a good conversation.  He said he’d love to use me for special projects.  “If I want the immigrant’s view on border security, I have a newsroom full of them to choose from.  Why not the Anglo perspective?”   And, of course, the familiar refrain, “I’m impressed. Your Spanish is better than a lot of Latinos who say they’re bilingual.” 

I had the chance to chat a bit with the newsroom staff, plus catch up with a videographer I had met during the 9/11 memorial.  All in all, it seemed like a great place to start a media career. 

“Ryan, I get a good vibe from you,” he said.  “I have other people to interview for this position, but I’ll let you know something in mid-December.” 

A week or two later, out of increasing desperation for a job, I interviewed for an internship—yes, an internship—with a local SL paper.  One that had expressed an interest to my professor in finding qualified bilingual Anglos for their newsroom.  Of course I would have liked to interview for a full-time position, but a) I felt it was a foot in the door, and b) graduation was fast approaching, and I really wanted to have something in place for January, even if was just an internship. 

Once again: a decent interview, and a promise to follow up. 

It was the end of November.  I would graduate in a matter of weeks.  No job offer.  Just what, I began asking myself, is the deal here? 

And finally, starting with the comment at my second interview, I began to connect the dots. 

The only thing I’ve ever wanted is a fair and equal shot.  If it were a matter of language proficiency, that would be a different matter entirely, since that would render me unqualified for any sort of SLM position.  But if an employer—any employer—makes a judgment as to whether an individual is able to perform a job based on that individual’s skin color, there’s an unavoidable term for that: racial discrimination.

Ideologues have been screeching about reverse discrimination for decades—swing the pendulum too far in favor of minorities, they claim, and pretty soon whites won’t get a fair shake, either.  And yet here it was, staring right at me—or, more accurately, slamming the door in my face. 

I talked to my professor about it.  When I related what I had been told in that second interview, I was greeted with wide-eyed disbelief.  She promised me she would follow up with the general manager of the station. 

Later, after talking with the GM, she said that while the GM was “dismayed” that I had been treated that way, that wasn’t what the news director had meant.  What he, in fact, had meant to say isn’t entirely clear, but I don’t think I particularly care.  As it turned out, I didn’t get the assignment desk position.  I was told I would be considered for a part-time assignment desk spot.  As of this writing, I have yet to hear anything from them. 

And, as I figured would probably happen, I got no response from the SL paper. 

But the story doesn’t end there. 

In early January, I visited a different SL paper in Phoenix and dropped off my résumé.  I was invited for a brief chat—we talked about my prior experience, my career goals.  We switched between languages with ease. Could I come back to talk with the owner of the paper?  Certainly. 

As it so happened, this paper employed the reporter I spoke of earlier—the one who had been impressed with my writing abilities.  I saw him just as I was leaving.  “Ryan!  Great to see you!  You’re applying?  That’s great!  I’ll talk to the owner for you—good luck!” 

I came back later and interviewed with the owner.  He showed me around the newsroom.  “I should be able to start you next Monday.”  He promised to give me a call the next day. 

The next day came and went.  So did Monday.  No word yet. 

After several days of waiting, I visited the office.  “We’re in the middle of a huge event,” he said.  “Call me next week.” 

Within that week, I got an offer from another company.  It was a job—internal bilingual PR—but it wasn’t the type of work I wanted, and certainly not what I knew I was truly capable of.  I e-mailed the owner: I have an offer from another company, and even though they are offering significantly higher pay, I still would prefer to work for you.  Can you tell me if you’re still interested in hiring me, or if I’m even under consideration? 

No response.  I took the other job. 

In a way, this experience has reminded me of something I’ve encountered repeatedly over the years.  When I tell people I’m bilingual, they usually respond with something along the lines of, “Oh, that’s impressive.” 

But then they actually hear me speak.  “Wow, you really do speak Spanish!  How did you learn?” 

It’s taken me a while to understand this, but what it comes down to is that people generally don’t believe me when I tell them I’m bilingual. It’s a small thing, really, but there is a subtle (and, I might add, understandable) skepticism on their part: most of us gabachos don’t take the time to learn a foreign language, and when we do, we rarely achieve any real fluency.

But it would appear that even a meaningful demonstration of my written and spoken language abilities isn’t quite sufficient to overcome the perception in the eyes of most SLM managers that I, a white man, am unable to report the news to a Latino audience. 

I haven’t entirely given up hope of an eventual career in Spanish-language media.  But I am compelled to conclude that if a case is to be made for media diversity, it doesn’t translate into Spanish. 

Comments

[Superego]

Welcome to my world. I have a Masters from USC, ample international experience, worked for fortune 500 companies, but somehow I always run short when the other candidates are Anglos.

During interviews I always receive words of praise from my interviewers regarding my resume and extracurricular activities. Fantastic, Excelent, you are top teer....but from time to time I also get the hints of pasive descrimination.

It is just the facts of life in America. I don't complain, just try to make it one step at a time.

[The Gringo]

Juan, thanks a ton for posting this. I've taken the liberty of posting the Spanish version here:

http://gringounleashed.typepad.com/gringo_unleashed/2005/02/puertas_cerrada.html

[Jamie da Frota]

As a fluent, spanish-speaking gringa from South Florida, I too have had the same experiences along my career path. At first I took the complements and disbelief of my colleagues as just that- a complement. However, over time I came to see that despite the boundaries I have crossed and overcome, I am still seen as a "gringa curiosa". As the daughter of a spanish teacher in a multi-cultural environment, I never looked at my bi-lingual ability as a curiosity. Now, in my mid 20s, I have grown to feel a little self conscience of my skills. After a few years of struggling with large corporations in the hispanic market, I have finally found my niche- bringing American companies into the spotlight of the hispanic community through marketing and relationship building. With my bi-cultural and bi-lingual skills, American companies are eager to find people with our skill sets to bring their business to that next level and truly become more available to the hispanic community. In my experience navigating the bi-lingual/bi-cultural job market, I have been met with some opposition. I have had to discover what the market demands and what they are looking for, whether it may be discriminatory or not. Once I found my niche and put my skills to work, I feel like I have finally gotten off on the right foot. Hopefully over time, as our world becomes more multi-cultural on all sides, color-bias will be a thing of the past and we can all just do our jobs as we know we can do.

[raul]

There is a world of nuances separating pluperfects, preterits and imperfects. You might be overrating your Spanish a bit. Había estado hablando con mi profesora, for instance, should be “hablaba con la profesora de español.” ¿Qué estás pensando hacer?, “¿qué piensas hacer?” Le había visitado para sus consejos en cuanto a como mejorar mi español para uso en entrevistas con los medios. You do need consejos to improve that sentence, etc.
Raúl.

[Al Carlos Hernandez]

Now you know what Latinos have been going through since the begining.

[Yvonne DiVita]

Okay, this may seem off point but...this is exactly what women have suffered for decades, and continue to suffer. We are asked to interview for positions the company would normally put a man in, then courted, then ignored...or worse, hired and asked to make coffee. While being fluent in a second language, especially Spanish, is a good thing, it's no guarantee to getting a job. Any more than obtaining an MBA in a field dominated by men would guarantee a woman a job she is qualified for, and deserves. I'm not downplaying, rather...I don't mean to downplay your frustration, it's very real, but...I think you need to be creative in your approach to this problem. Forget politeness on the side of the interviewer-- they don't have to be polite and get back to you, now do they? Forget being fluent in Spanish. Forget being white. Think about being--- good at the job. Explore other areas your talents could be used...other organizations or companies--woman owned firms, perhaps. In due time, you will be able to write your own ticket. Accept this discrimination for what it is...a fact of life, nothing more. Then, go out and prove the idiots who didn't hire you, wrong. Be successful at whatever you do end up doing. And, write about it...in a blog of your own or in a book. Those are tools that could go far to exposing the truth. Just remember: don't whine, tattle, or stretch the truth. Not easy, I know, but...it can be done.

[Al Carlos]

I think Yvone's insistance on pushing her man hating agenda at every opportunity is tiresome and self serving. As Latino's we should stand together irrsepective of gender to right the larger wrong's, Son Famila Cosmica first. Our strength has always been strong familes and it's our only hope for the future. Yvone, don't hate the player, hate the game.

[Karen]

I just read Yvonne's comment at this Hispanic Blog. I'm a professional in Marketing and I live in South America. I lived for 2 years in US and I have to say, probably I was very lucky, but I never felt discrimination. Where I've being discriminated is in my own country. Being a woman, a professional, an hispanic is always a plus and Americans always reconize and appreciate that. I read the other comments and I feel that probably who wrote never felt discrimination. That's probably the reason why the do complain about it. I do also think that in an interview, how confident and sure about ourselfs, matters. Having an aswer, receiving a mail even telling you that your qualifications don't match for the job, that's polite. Did you ever had the experience to send houndreds of resumes and never get an answer back? It happend to me, Think about it.

[julian]

Sorry Ryan, no sympathies here. Welcome to my world. The difference is you CAN go back to "your" world, if things don't work out in LatinoLand. We don't have that option. We must keep overcoming the same adversities you faced the rest of our lives. Yet, somehow we manage to get ahead.

So please, spare us the "woe is me" routine.

[Miguel]

This board is beginning to sound ignorant. America is not made up of Anglos and Latinos. I am fluent in Spanish and Italian and am from Italian descent. I am not an Anglo or a Gringo. I don't like either of those words. I am Italian, the actual origin of the Latin culture.

[marisol]

This is kind off topic but, okay look you are a Gringo and im a mexican gurl that is a student in the high shchool and all im looking for is just to Graduate go to school and WORK and for my luck i cant work just the fact that im mexican illegal here in the United States and all i wish is to WORK but, no one hires me. All i need to let people (GRINGOS) know is that all mexicans want to come to the United States and WORK that we are not no dangerous people. we just want to work and have a normal life like a gringos. I wish i were to be rich like those gringos at school. but no i dont even have a job but its cool ill have a career and one day i'll be someone big here in the United States.Its like they say puertas cerradas pero para mexicanos.