I have studied at UB for three years. There is a language requirement in order to get my B.A. I wanted to take Portuguese because my parents are both from Portugal. I am requesting that UB teach Portuguese because as a Portuguese-American, I feel like I am being discriminated against.
Though Portuguese 440 is being taught next semester, it is useless for those of us just trying to pursue our B.A. I don't know where this Portuguese 440 (I can't find a course description anywhere) is coming from and who can possibly benefit from it.
We need Portuguese 101 or 102. UB lists Portuguese 101, 102, 103, and 104 under a Portuguese minor, but UB has not taught any of these courses for the last three semesters.
It is time to teach basic Portuguese, like UB is doing for many other languages. UB teaches Danish, Irish, Italian, German, Spanish, Hebrew, Vietnamese, etc. The list goes on. Check it out.
Over 200 million people in the world speak Portuguese. Portuguese is the number six most-spoken language in the world. Portuguese is spoken in Brazil, which has about 40% of the population of South America. Also, Portugal has over 10 million people.
For me, UB is not diverse. This has been a problem throughout history. One group is always trying to exclude another group. True diversity includes everyone!
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
