Imagine waking up one day and deciding to completely reinvent the way you speak, all because you think it’ll make life a little easier or perhaps fit in a bit better. It sounds intriguing, right? But what happens when that journey takes a toll on your identity? A captivating story unfolds as one woman delves into the challenging world of accent modification, aiming to shed her Kenyan roots in favor of an American accent. As she grapples with the technicalities of forming new sounds, she finds herself facing an unexpected emotional battle; it’s not just about pronunciation—it’s about losing a part of who she truly is. Join us as we explore the complexities of language, identity, and the heart-wrenching moments that accompany the desire to belong. LEARN MORE.
“The process of deciding, OK, I’m going to start working on my American accent, and I’m not going to allow myself to sound Kenyan, so I’m monitoring and really trying to understand my mouth in a technical way to make these new sounds. Making those new sounds in a context that wasn’t the classroom felt like betrayal,” she shared.
“You know, I didn’t feel like myself, and I cried many nights to sleep many, many nights,” she said.