• kraftpudding@lemmy.world
    103·
    1 year ago

    Not being able to read also doesn’t auromatically equate dumb though. It just highlights a systemic failure of the educations system. And arguably a country experiencing a language divide to this degree is a systemic failure of some kind as well.

    • darq@kbin.social
      71·
      1 year ago

      Many countries have myriad languages in them, often because they contain myriad cultures. That’s not a failing at any level, it’s just diversity.

      • kraftpudding@lemmy.world
        43·
        1 year ago

        Yeah, but I’d argue those countries either have people being decently fluent in multiple languages (which is not what this graph implies) or they have evolved their institutions and society in a way where meaningful societal and political participation is possible regardless of what language you speak. I don’t think the US is at that level, and I think it being that way if this is lived reality for a lot of Americans IS a systemic failure.

        The failure is not necessarily having multiple languages spoken, but the institutions not reflecting this reality. So you can either invest in people being fluent in a common language in addition to whatever languages they may speak OR redesign institutions and reshape society. Not doing any of the two is a systemic failure imo.