During an event celebrating labor union leader Cesar Chavez, First Lady Jill Biden attempted to speak Spanish, failing on the first word that was more than one syllable.
The moment was mocked on social media, with people criticizing Biden for pandering and not really coming close to correct pronunciation of basic Spanish.
“It’s ‘Si se puede’ (Yes you/we can) not ‘Si se pwadueh,’” RGA Deputy Communications Director Joanna Rodriguez, who is fluent in Spanish, tweeted. “I can’t even imagine what word she was trying to say. Seriously why even try pandering if you’re going to butcher it and not practice before?!”
First Lady Jill Biden’s attempt at Spanish presented an interesting contrast to the previous First Lady Melania Trump, who is fluent in five languages.
The event was celebrating Cesar Chavez, who founded the United Farm Workers union (UFW); the union’s motto is “Si se puede.” Chavez was widely criticized for his bigoted views on immigrants.
In the 1970s, Chavez accused the CIA of bringing illegal immigrants into the country to undermine the UFW’s strikes. In 1974, Chavez launched the “Illegals Campaign,” which aimed to identify illegal immigrants and get them deported. Chavez also created what the UFW called “wet lines,” which consisted of groups of UFW members stopping people from crossing the border. The UFW members would then brutally beat and rob the border crossers.
