Published Thursday, April 5, 2001
Bridging the cultural divide
BY ICESS FERNÁNDEZ
ASNE Reporter
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| ICESS FERNÁNDEZ |
AGE: 23
HOMETOWN: Houston
COLLEGE: University of Houston
YEAR: Junior
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I was 22 years old when I finally learned to spell my last name correctly.
I was in Havana in the house my father grew up in, and I went into the matchbox-sized kitchen to look at my family’s ration book, a libreta. In Cuba, each family must note their food allocations.
And there, right next to the monthly five pounds of rice, was my family name Fernãndez – with an accent on the “a.”
The accent in my name is my background and heritage. I try to puta little accent in everything I do. As an Afro-Latina, my job and my challenge are to represent them both on the printed page.
Being biracial is an exercise in keeping sane. I grew u
p 30 minutes from Houston in rural Harris County. My family was one of the first to move into a planned community – and one of the few minority families to settle there. I felt isolated.
I have been repeatedly told that it is a blessing to know two languages. I disagree. The blessing comes in understanding the two cultures.
In the few years of experience I possess, I have learned good
journalism is about the writing, great journalism is about the people, and exceptional journalism encompasses both.
I strive to be exceptional.
As a journalist, I believe I represent the community I serve; I address their phobias, their wishes, and their concerns. I am invited into their homes or businesses, and, for a moment, I have the power of the world resting on my shoulders.
I believe the industry forgets that people drive the news. African Americans do more than play sports, and not all Latinos are Mexican. Both of these minority ethnic groups are the majority in some cities. So why aren’t there more stories about and written by these groups?
As the only minority columnist at The Daily Cougar college paper at the University of Houston, I am a voice for people of color.
Recently, however, I experienced what all columnists experience at one point or another – the wrath of those who disagree. My column was about the David Horowitz ad opposing reparations for African Americans whose ancestors were slaves. Everyone else in the newsroom thought the topic was too hot to touch. I felt it was an important issue to write about.
So like Robert Frost, I chose the path less traveled, wrote the column and it did make a difference. I received several emotional letters – one called me stupid – both bad and good. I felt I had offered a perspective that a white columnist could not have: feeling the effects of slavery on society today.
I believe I had a similar impact during my first internship.
In Pasadena, Texas, about a half hour from Houston, Latinos make up 75 percent of the population of about 119,000. But unless they were criminals, Latino news in the local paper was confined to the “Hispanic Focus,” a box in the corner on the front page highlighting group events. There were never any stories on issues dealing with the Latino community.
So I told the editors I wanted to write stories to fill in the gap. I went to taquerias (small taco storefronts) and asked the patrons what was going on. I went to Latino-owned stores, bakeries, restaurants, botanicas (cultural home-remedy shops), and to their neighborhoods.
The results were seven stories with both a national and local focus ranging from a feature about a Latina comic to a news story about the Latino high school dropout rate.
I can’t begin to say how much I learned from the experience, finding and developing story ideas. I learned the true value of a diverse paper.
A newspaper with a staff that is directly proportional to the makeup of the community is the new foundation of journalism. Without diversity, a newspaper is meaningless newsprint.
Minority voices can no longer be denied. The limits imposed by simply having a page or a special box dedicated to part of a rapidly growing community is not only wrong, it’s frightening.
I fear, looking at the newsroom of the ASNE Reporter, that we will only be a showroom model and not a reality.
