stupid ethnic writers

Okay, one more post before I get back to work.

Do you ever hear Chinese-American writers use a lot of Chinese in the things that they write? Probably not, right? Why do Spanish speaking writers always feel the need to write things in Spanish? Does it make it more authentic? It sounds pretentious to me. Especially when they don't translate in the text. I was listening to some short stories written by some Latina women last night on NPR, and nearly all of them felt the need to be all authentic and write random words in Spanish, when English would have been perfectly acceptable. It's formulaic! It's not just Spanish speakers. I went to a show where some random semi-popular Samoan girls were reading their poetry and doing the same thing. After a while it got annoying. Japanese writers don't do that. In an Ethnic Lit class I took at Cal, the Indian writer didn't do it, the Native writer didn't do it, the Chinese writer didn't do it, but the Mexican one did. It's like a prerequisite! I can do it too. Here:

I sat down with Obaachan at the kitchen table.
Rice powder gracing the stained wood grain.
I put the picture in my pocket.
Nani sore, musuko?
Nothing, Obaachan, I say
Sou desu ka.
Yes, Obaachan, I say
Atashi wa...
Obaachan doesn't finish her sentence.
The deep red maguro and nearly pink toro
Fitted perfectly on the cooked kome, the gohan
She used the chawan and tsugued the rice in the rice-cooker
Nee...
I pay no answer
Nee, musuko. Ano hito... Dare kashira?
I don't know how to respond.
Linguistically, intellectually, emotionally
Ano hito wa... anata no... ne?
She doesn't know how to ask the question. I don't know how to answer.
Ano hito...
Yes.
Ah. Sou desu ka.
The amaebi, tai, hamachi, all finding their place on the sweetened gohan
Ganbatte ne.
She puts down the sashimi and looks at me over her purple megane
Kono kazoku wa... Gomen nasai.
She bows her head slightly. I don't know why she's apologizing.
Aishiteru, musuko.
I love you too, Obaachan.
She starts in on the saba.
I am puzzled.
My phone rings.
It's him.

See?? It's great, isn't it? BECAUSE YOU CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT SHE'S SAYING. It's a stupid device. They use the language like it's a device. So annoying.