Late 20th Century Immigrants in South-Eastern Michigan on Identity, Bilingualism, and Benefit

Late 20^th Century Immigrants in South-Eastern Michigan on Identity, Bilingualism, and Benefit

Agata Borowiecki

Identity has been a theme in the modern world for decades, from colonialism, through the Civil Rights movement, LGBTQ+ rights movement, and the immigrant crises. For those who have moved to the United States in recent years, their identity has changed and shifted, which has been influenced by how they experience and live a bilingual lifestyle. This paper investigates why late 20^th century Polish immigrants maintain their mother language and speak it in public and if they see bilingualism as an identity or a benefit in the United States? To answer this question, the paper focuses on the experiences of Polish immigrants in southeastern Michigan. The paper includes information from Polish news sources in America, as well as personal and phone interview data. Information on identity, bilingualism, and linguistic capital include academic journals as well as these interviews. In white-coded immigrant communities like that of the late 20^th century Polish wave of immigrants, there is value from bilingualism in the United States including economic, social, cultural and possibly even personal and health benefits. Further research may look into other immigrant communities in southeastern Michigan (and beyond) such as the Arab and Latino communities.