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English Only Legislation Literature Review

Emmanuel Santiago ENG 201 Professor Sheila Figueroa January 9, 2011

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Our country was founded on the ideals of freedom and religious tolerance. Americas founding fathers intended for us to be a nation of tolerance towards cultural diversity too. Early projects by members of Congress to obtain an English only legislation have failed to make any significant progress. Immigrants already understand that success in America cannot be attained without proficiency in the English language. Do we need federal legislation to further assert this fact? Dennis Baron (1991) described a few instances in history around the English only official language debate. According to Baron, xenophobic feelings against German immigrants in the middle of the eighteen century initiated the language issue. The xenophobia against Germans and other Eastern European immigrants was intensified after World War I and World War II. During this period, some states passed legislations that went from a subtle effort to make English the official language, to the radical extreme of prohibiting citizens from speaking foreign languages on public settings. Dennis Baron also describes the instance of Spanish speaking peoples. He mentions how efforts to make New Mexico a state of the Union were delayed for over 60 years because of concerns about the Spanish language. According to Dennis Baron, politicians at the time believed a different language would prevent New Mexicos citizens from assimilating the American culture. Krauthammer (2006) brings the example of Canada as a concern. Canada has been a colony of both England and France. Much division has been created among supporters of both cultures. Krauthammer mentions language as a key on cultural identity. This cultural division has happened in other countries as well, and language has been a crucial aspect of it. However, it is worth mentioning that Americas only secession attempt, the civil war, had nothing to do with language or assimilation. Nancy Gibbs (2009) describes the secessionist movement in Texas. Anti-federal government ideals and nationalist pride thats unique in this state provide the grounds to this movement. Most current secession movements do not count with enough popular support to be considered a threat to our nation; like those in Vermont, Hawaii, California and Alaska. The only state that has the popular support and resources to secede in a near future is Texas. Their reasons to possibly secede the American nation have nothing to do with language. Rodriguez (2006) relates that the United States has always been a multilingual society. She rejects the idea of an English only mentality to achieve the American dream; and that this will be

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the only way an immigrant would assimilate into a so-called Anglo-Protestant society most conservative Americans believe in. Instead, she suggest that multilingualism can be made socially functional. She suggests that a multiethnic democracy should ultimately develop a participatory agenda suited to the linguistic dynamics that define its people. (p. 766) Robert King (1997) brings an interesting point about politics related to this issue. He points out the popular belief that conservative politicians support pro English-only legislation, while liberal politicians are against it. He mentions that a legislation of this type is currently opposed by a number of the traditionally right wing Republican Senators. While it would be in line with their political core values, supporting a legislation of this type by Republican politicians could possibly harm their support from Hispanic voters. While Hispanic voters have historically endorsed the Democratic party, a growing number have voted for Republican candidates in the past decade. Molly Knight (2008) describes Hispanic support as key to presidents Bush reelection in 2004. Knight points out: Of the six states where President George W. Bush won by margins of 5 percent or less in 2004, five have a sizeable Hispanic population: Nevada, Florida, Arizona. Colorado and New Mexico. (pp. 35) This success is the result of his campaign aimed to court Latino voters, his support for immigration reform, and his opposition to adopt any English legislation while serving as a governor of Texas (King, 1997). Robert King also describes an interesting idea, which he calls unique otherness. He defines this idea as a strong national identity that goes beyond language. He cites the examples of Switzerland as well as modern India. India has nineteen languages and Switzerland has four. He mentions Sri Lanka, Canada and Belgium as countries that have been divided by language because they dont have a strong cultural bond or national identity. King says that America has this unique otherness. Our countrys values, respect for individualism and opportunity set us apart from others. These values will keep our country together, regardless of the different cultures and multilingualism in our society. Jack Citrin (1990) mentions that opponents of official English perceive these legislations as a mechanism of exclusion instead of one that promotes assimilation. For the most part, immigrants want to learn English in order to succeed and achieve better economical opportunities; and to integrate into social and political participation. First generation immigrants have done so even when adult programs to learn English are scarce and mediocre. Citrin mentions that the instances where this legislation have succeeded its when it has been defined as a measure of patriotism rather than exclusion. He proposes an abandonment of current English-only efforts. Instead, he proposes better

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educational opportunities for adult first-generation immigrants. Zall and Jimenez (1988) have a similar point of view: no one is more aware of the importance of learning English than the person who is struggling to make it in this country without being able to speak English. They mentioned that (at the time their article was published) 40,000 people in Los Angeles and 25,000 people in New York City were on the waiting lists to learn English. As most authors have suggested, English is a requirement for a successful integration into the American society. Social involvement, political participation, and most important, economical success all depend on English proficiency. These should provide enough motivation and drive for an immigrant to learn English. We do not need federal legislation to command us into the path of success. We can celebrate diversity and ethnic pride while still being proud American citizens.

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References: Baron, D. (1991). English in a Multicultural America. Social Policy, 21(4), 5-14. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database. Citrin, J. (1990). Language politics and American identity. Public Interest, (99), 96-109. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database. Gibbs, N. (2009). Texas Tantrum. In , Time (p. 56). Time Inc. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Jimenez, M. and Zall, B. (1988). OFFICIAL USE OF ENGLISH. ABA Journal, 74(12), 34. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. King, R. D. (1997). Should English be the law?. Atlantic Monthly (10727825), 279(4), 5562. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Krauthammer, C. (2006). In Plain English: Let's Make It Official. Time, 167(24), 112. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Raskin, M. (2008). Which Party Will Hispanics Call Home?. Politics (Campaigns & Elections), 29(2), 34-39. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. Rodrguez, C. M. (2006). Language and Participation. California Law Review, 94(3), 687767. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.