When Julissa Arce was told that she had no trace of a Mexican accent, she took it as a compliment.
She has since changed her mind, quite emphatically. If we're a country of diverse people from all kinds of places, why is it so important to some of us that we all sound alike?
Sound is just one part of assimilation Arce explores in her book You Sound Like a White Girl: The Case for Rejecting Assimilation.
Our chat with the author is featured in this month's edition of The Keenest Observers, hosted by JX Producer Angela Decker.