Acquiring Foreign-Born Clients: Marketing Legal Services to a Growing Niche
Copyright © 2004 by Nina Ivanichvili, CEO, All Language Alliance, Inc.
Use Bias-Free Language
Foreign-born clients, as a rule, are proud of their ethnic identity, and law firm personnel should be respectful of that. For example, attorneys need to recognize the possibility that many Spanish-speaking individuals do not think of themselves as "Latino" or "Hispanic," but as Mexican, for example, or as Puerto Rican, or Argentinean. Generally, "Latino" and "Latina" should be used to refer only to persons who have Latin-American ancestry. Also, although "Hispanic" may be an accurate term for describing people in the United States whose ancestors came from a Spanish-speaking country, it "homogenizes" many diverse peoples. It could be offensive to some because it was coined by the U.S. government and does not have the benefit of "being self-chosen."16
Similarly, the word "Oriental" may be considered by some to be an ethnic slur. Not only does this term reflect a Eurocentric perspective, but it also retains a long-ago connotation of Asian countries as exotic lands of romance and intrigue.17 As with the words "Hispanic" and "Latino," the term "Oriental" tends to reduce an entire continent of diverse races and cultures to a single ethnic identity. Although some may think "Asian American" is an appropriate generic term, it is better to use a more specific term,18 such as "Chinese American" or "Filipino American," whenever possible.
Another important fact to remember is that certain Middle Eastern people should be called Arab or Arabic (coffee and language also are Arabic). However, horses are Arabian. Also, the "terms 'Arab' and 'Muslim' are not interchangeable-most Muslims are not Arab, and many Arabs are not Muslim."19 Likewise, ethnic Armenians or Kazakhs, who come from the republics that used to be part of the former Soviet Union, do not appreciate being referred to as "Russians," even though they may be fluent in Russian.
Generally, it is not recommended to lump groups of people with varying histories, cultures, and languages under a generic term. To avoid inadvertently offending and alienating prospective and existing clients, it is better not to use a label in communication with them until the attorney determines how the client wants to be identified; that is, which appellation, if any, the client prefers.
