Credit: Twitter/SecCardona
Anne Vasquez
July 16, 2021
As I shook hands with U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona this week, I felt a sense of familiarity reminiscent of what I imagine students feel when they come across an educator with a shared background.
Upon hearing my last name, which I pronounce as it is spoken in Spanish (VAHS-kes), Cardona returned the sentiment (MEE-gel Ca-Donah). In that brief moment, so much was unspoken: Cardona, a child of Puerto Rican immigrants who grew up in a Spanish-speaking home, and I, the daughter of Cuban immigrants who long ago perfected the art of Spanglish, code-switched.