Evanston resident Desiree Schippers (Communication ’22) initially started learning Russian to speak to her partner’s family, but said she struggled to find a place to practice.
Along with more than 30 others, she attended the Evanston Public Library’s monthly Language Cafe on Saturday. The event brings together members of the community to engage in conversation in various languages.
Schippers mingled with other speakers at the Russian table.
“This is a really safe space where everybody’s patient with you,” Schippers said.,” Schippers said. ““It helps me build my confidence and find ways to talk to people in Russian, and it’s a great way to make intergenerational friends..”
Schippers is a regular at the Language Cafe, and she has attended it on and off for a year.
The Language Cafe included other tables for French, Spanish, English, Esperanto, German, Japanese and Italian speakers. The program attracts a diverse group of community members and it seeks to provide a casual setting to practice speaking different languages.
“There’s a lot of ways to learn a language, but there’s not a ton of free opportunities to practice speaking, which is often what people really struggle with, so that’s what I really love about this,” said Katy Jacob, Language Cafe organizer and lifelong learning and literacy librarian at EPL.
Offered on the second Saturday of each month in the EPL Main branch’s community meeting room, the Language Cafe has seen an uptick in attendance since partnering with the International Cafe — an organization that hosts similar programs throughout Chicago and in cities across the country.
Ultimately, Jacob hopes they can grow the program at the EPL, citing positive feedback and consistent attendance.
Both organizations seek to create a judgment-free, supportive environment for linguistic and cultural immersion and exchange. They also celebrate language diversity and appreciate teaching about lived experiences, according to International Cafe founder Jessica Ames Pappalardo.
“I’m second-generation Sicilian, and my dad’s family had a really difficult time when they were integrating into Chicago,” Pappalardo said. “It would be nice to have a community that was more accepting and interested in the language and culture of incoming groups.”
The communities at the Language and International Cafes seek to do just that. With over 7,000 registered members and a return rate of 72%, Pappalardo said she is eager to see her organization grow throughout Chicago and beyond.
Jacob said they are encouraged by the positive feedback EPL receives for the Language Cafe. They are also happy to provide a space for attendees to engage in dialogue and learn a new language for fun or necessity, they said.
“It’s an amazing group, and if you look around, you see how many people are in all of these different languages,” said attendee Jacqueline Drake, who was brushing up on Italian at the Language Cafe. “It’s a really good support group for someone to come in and actually practice.”
Some attendees at the English table said they wanted to enhance their conversational skills in English, since it’s not their first language.
“This is a great initiative to bring people together from different cultures,,” said Muhhamad Usman, an attendee at the English table. “I think it can help a lot in improving shared language.” “I think it can help a lot in improving shared language.”
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