From time to time, a story rolls around which will clearly illustrate the absurdities of the institutional biases at Univision News. The latest instance of such a story is the network's coverage of the controversy surrounding a Wisconsin frozen custard establishment's decision to implement an "English-Only" ordering policy.
The story's graphic, featured above, reads as "Problematic Policy" in Spanish, and in prominent display as weekend anchor Felix de Bedout describes how leftist immigrant activist groups and Latino politicians alike are pressuring a private business to ending a private business practice.
The story, as reported by Chicago correspondent Viviana Avila, goes on to describe the plight of a person who attempted to place an order in Spanish at this frozen custard business, only to be rebuffed. Missing from the story is whether the person taking the order had any ability to understand the customer, or whether the customer actually knew enough English to place an order. In fact, the actual exchange between customer and establishment takes a back seat to what is best for business- the marketing of racial grievance.
Avila gets the obligatory reaction from the local LULAC head, and later cites the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's language rule. But this is misdirection, because the real question is whether the government can compel an establishment to conduct business in languages other than English. Helping that narrative along is this quote from another unidentified immigration activist, who said:
It's difficult for (us) persons who speak Spanish, and to try to become accustomed to his language - I hope he changes his way of thinking some day, and gives us the possibility of speaking Spanish.
Again, more misdirection. No one is preventing this person from speaking Spanish, but this is what Univision must run in order to continue to stoke immigration and ethnic grievance. But here is something that doesn't usually happen at Univision News - a differing opinion was featured which, in this case, blew the story into a million little pieces:
OMAR JUAREZ, MILWAUKEE RESIDENT: I'm Latino, I understand that we Latinos need accessible services, but no one here is discrimating against any Latino. I believe that if we Latinos want to be a part of this society, that we need to adapt. And adapting means learning the language. And I'll give you a very simple example: On the highways, there isn't a single sign that says "exit" in Spanish.
I don't know which producer stuck that quote into this story, but I sure hope that they don't get into any trouble because it is the most liberating thing to air at Univision in a very long time. Instead of fomenting outrage and suggesting that the government may force individual businesses into using certain types of speech as part of the services they provide to the general public (oh, wait...), Univision could instead serve as a bridge between its viewership and the community at large. That might come at the expense of political influence, but it would be the right thing.
