Amongst the readings for this week, Barrett's third chapter stood out to me. Barrett, especially in page 58, discusses the power structures at play in "standard English." They note that: "The problem is that those who declare themselves authorities on language tend to be white, upper-class, heterosexual, cisgender men and women who evaluate all other forms of language against their own" (Barrett, 58). As such, "standard" English, Barrett notes, serves as a means of maintaining power.
I found Barrett's "gate-keeping" explanation eye-opening. I had been aware of the racist connotations behind "standard" English and the ways in which "standard" English or ideas on what constitutes "good" English exclude immigrants, communities of color, and those who speak English as a second language. But I hadn't read any literature that outlined the reasoning or the systems at play that create/reinforce such systemic linguicism.
I appreciated Barrett’s point that arguments for "standard" English often rely on the claim that it’s necessary to “unite” society. But, as Barett explains, this kind of unity is only achieved through assimilation -- by forcing people to change how they speak in order to be "accepted." Instead of bringing people together, "standard" English often pushes people out or pressures them into silence. I found Barrett’s line that the ideology of "standard" English is "the heart of discourse structural racism" (Barrett, 58) powerful. It shows how language can be used to not only uphold systems of inequality but to create long-standing societies based in inequity.
I also found Barrett’s analysis on lactose intolerance in Chapter 2 incredibly interesting -- especially as someone who is lactose intolerant. What stood out to me was how this trait has become racialized, especially through white supremacists’ adoption of 'milk-drinking' as an indexical sign of whiteness. In these cases, the ability to digest lactose isn’t just seen as a trait -- it’s turned into a marker of racial identity and superiority. This example reminded me of how language works in similar ways. Just as "standard" English is positioned as the norm while other ways of speaking are seen as less legitimate, bodies that don’t align with white, Western norms are often pathologized or othered. Both language and biology become tools through which whiteness is centered and maintained as the standard. Barrett’s discussion helped me see how diet and digestion can be caught up in the same power structures that shape how we talk about language, race, and identity.