Declaring the English as an Official Language in the United States - Research Paper Example

Ye Leah ENGL120 SEC: 092 November 19th Should English Be Declared An Official Language In The United s? United States attracts many immigrants because of its empowerment in terms of economy and social resources which support better living conditions. It is argued that the state should not have one official language as such a move will deny immigrants the right to freedom of speech through controlling what and how people speak and will also jeopardize the country’s growth as it will not employ experts from the other countries because of the language barrier. On the other hand, people are arguing that English should be made an official Language because it promotes the cohesiveness of the country. I feel that immigrants should learn English at their own will and benefit. Though Official English cohorts assert that America needs English-Only as law as making it the official language will segregate the immigrants, English needs no defender as it is the language with the fastest expanding usage worldwide. While the English cohorts also argue that Official English will speed up English assimilation, statistics prove otherwise by the waiting list for English as a second language, which would be cut down by law. Statistics show that in that last two centuries, proponents for having English as an official language have justified their position by stating only tow main themes, patriotism and rational and racism. Official English also can contribute to segregation of U.S. citizens from noncitizens, despite their country of residence. Let us have Belgium, Turkey and Canada as examples: In these countries, no hitch was experienced and benefit achieved by the proposed law on having one official language. This should to be taken as a lesson to the Americans. Having English as an official Language will make communication for non-English speaking immigrants extremely hard. Federal publications in other languages, for instance, are used to clarify tax laws, veterans’ benefits, consumer protection, medical precautions, fair housing rules, and business regulations. The process involved in enacting the rules governing law, and its implementation is also wanting. Yaldem points out that there will be need to have departments to define English and how it must officially be used. Alignment on how it is to be taught in schools and creating a list of possible exceptions with the likes of airport signs should also be implemented. Such processes are too involving and costly thus not worth it. The most affected are non English speaking immigrants because accessing and rendering services becomes a significant problem. Communication is an essential aspect of the day to day life. Without it, it leads to frustrations and other adverse psychological traumas associated. Making English as an official Language in America will deny foreigners a chance to live in United States as the foreigners will be expected to be in a position to speak English before they are allowed entry into the country. Immigration interpreters who help during mental and physical examination of aliens seeking entry to the State will not be availed which means the burden of communication lies squarely on the foreigners. The immigrants involved in court cases will also have a rough time in defending themselves because of lack of interpreters in civic, federal and criminal proceedings. Accessing social and health care services becomes a problem too. Employing people with a variety of languages is advantageous especially in public places such as in hospitals as it makes communication easy among people from different backgrounds hence this should be taken into consideration by those proponents of a single official language. Since early 19th century, United States has been allowing immigrants to the country. An analysis made from the census report indicates that there has been a fast growth in immigrants learning English. The number of immigrants who have developed interest in learning English has grown from 1.9 percent to 6.2 percent in the last centaury (Baron 78). This is a positive gesture of patriotism to the country. At the same time, it means that it is not necessary to make the language official because immigrants inherently have the desire to understand the Language. The prime reason why I oppose the idea is in the interest of the minority; the immigrants struggling to settle in the country. The English as Second Language, ESL classes are often extremely expensive. The immigrants have other responsibilities other than learning English. Study shows that 1.1 million students were served by the federal adult education though the demand for the instructions was out spaced by the supply. Recent reports show that there was an enormous waiting list where in Massachusetts the number was more than 17,000 adults and 12,000 in Houston (Baron 90). This statistics indicate that immigrants have developed the interest of learning English on their own hence there is no need for a specific language to be forced to them. According to king “the proponents behind having English as the main language believe that learning English will assist the immigrants to assimilate for them to achieve the dreams that attracted them to America (King 61). The earliest generation immigrant maintained their native language as they learnt some English. The second generation spoke their native language at home and English language when out. The third generation does speak English all the time. This trend is similar to what was witnessed in the Irish or Germans thus it the situation in America should be left to assimilate on its own without imposing a specific language to be the official language. To add on that, United States has been identified as the highest rate of mother-tongue. From research, 95% of all Americans speak English. This high number imply that the remaining five percent can be hindered from being assimilated if Official, English laws is enacted. The population being represented by this percentage will be forced to spend a lot of time attending the ESL classes. Ricento views ‘language as a tie that should unite mankind’ and hence should not be used to segregate them (Ricento 78). Laws are never just about language, but do reflect peoples' attitude that discriminates against speakers of certain languages. Most countries which have English as an official language are either bilingual or multi lingual. For instance, we have Canada, the Philippines, India and South Africa. The countries offer legal protection to speakers of other languages in addition to English. None of them has imposed English only regime that today’s advocates are proposing. The legislation is expected to devote some money in the learning of English but not to coming up with laws to force everyone to speak the language overnight. According to Crawford, official English movement is primarily driven by anti-migrant and racist sentiments. Most of the people involved in the movement particularly do it out of pure racism. According to Ricento, considering English as a ‘language of liberty’ the non speakers will be culturally oppressed (Ricento 90). Those in support of English being an Official Language State that English promote clear communication reducing the number of medical mistakes through misunderstandings. They argue that multilingualism undermines the sheer basis on which the State is made where diverse nationalities are assimilated into a new nationality. They add that the English language has acted as an adhesive that has held the United States together throughout its history. I think if we improve the health and other social sectors by employing experts from different ethical backgrounds, the miscommunication can be addressed appropriately thus unifying all Americans even if they speak different languages. The government should instead provide translators and essential translated documents; tax information, driver education documents to boost communication in an effort to boost togetherness between immigrants and native English speakers. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 should be observed prohibits discrimination based on race, ancestry, national origin or ethnicity hence the English non-speakers should not be discriminated. The supporters of English to be an official language insist that having English as a common language will ‘bind out diverse people’ (Crawford 45) Another issue that the supporter for the implementation of English as an official language is that it will promote unity of the country. As noted earlier, the United States unity has never relied on language but political and social ideals. A number of countries have been noted to do well with multiple languages. A case in point is Switzerland with four official languages which are Italian, German, French and Romansh. The languages had equal status since children are educated in the language used in their region (Crawford 55). Despite embracing multilingualism, Switzerland has exceptionally strong unity and economic functionality. In addition, English-only opponents with the national unity argument are only but hiding reality, the iron fist of prejudice and discrimination. They believe that such movements have been born from a belief that minorities and Hispanics in particular are a threat to the superior Anglo way of life. To them, language becomes a substitute system for identifying undesirables. Even if English-speaking communities see English-only legislation as symbolic and harmless, language minorities argue that this legislation is xenophobic and stigmatizes (Crawford 56). Supporters of English Only movement state that the law will decreases costs and governmental Inefficiency. They argue that the Government should not provide services in the 322 languages spoken in United States. They feel that the resources should instead be used in teaching English and that the minority should take the responsibility to learn the Language or get someone to translate for them. English only as an official language policy is not going to help to enhance the harmony in the country and foster cultural expression. The official language policy promotes division through racisms leaving the immigrants disadvantaged in accessing services and jobs. I support that we should not have English as an official language rather embrace the other ways of improving communication between speakers and non speakers. Some of the ways to be employed include lowering the cost of ESL classes, employing translators, translating essential documents required in the State and also introducing part-time English classes at work. Through the above mentioned measures, English as a language will be widely spoken even without making it an official language. In conclusion, there is no need to have English as an official Language for various reasons discussed in the essay. The most affected people are the Immigrants who are the minority in the United States. In today’s economy, English alone is not enough. The State needs English and other developed skills in diverse languages to boost international competitiveness and national security. The language policy should value other languages of immigrants and indigenous minorities and recognize them as resources rather than a problem. Multiple Languages skills should be developed to enhance the community’s harmony, meet the national’s needs and foster cultural expression. Annotated Bibliography Baron, Dennis. The English Only Question: An Official Language for Americans? Connecticut: Yale University Press, 1999. Print This is a personal account of Dennis Baron on the issues he went through while trying to live as a normal citizen in America. He had it rough now that he was not good in English. The situation made him feel intentionally discriminated as he spoke a language that was regarded as a minority language in the U. S. In his personal account, Baron goes further to explore the history of America with regards to having English as a superior language while the other languages to be inferior. By doing this, he describes the legal, educational, sociological and political effects of having English being considered as the official language on U.S. It is a relevant book as it highlights the risks of having English as an official language. Crawford, James. Baron, Dennis. The English Only Question: An Official Language for Americans? Connecticut: Yale University Press, 1999. Print Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999, Print Language Loyalties is a book made up of a number of sources which provide an informed and fair view at the different sides of United State’s language debate. The book includes historical issues as well as facts on the views of American’s on English language. This approach enables readers to learn how far the nation has achieved and how it has failed with regards to language. With more than 85 articles put together, the book provides a rich source on recent history debates and makes comparison with the modern opinions and topics. Ferguson, Charles. et al. Baron, Dennis. The English Only Question: An Official Language for Americans? Connecticut: Yale University Press, 1999. Print . London: Cambridge University Press, 2004 This book looks at the history of English as an American language as well as the social and regional varieties. In this book, the English idea has been discussed as the un-official U S language. It provides a valuable source to any reader researching on English as a language. It does this through its insights that are useful with regards to language sociolinguistic in America. Ricento, Thomas. Political Theory and Language Policy: An Introduction to Language Policy. London: Blackwell Publishing, 2006. Ricento discusses the language policy complexities as he seeks to get to the reason behind the emotional intensity associated with policy debates on language and more so on the arguments in support of legislation on official English. Ricento goes further to explore the rationale behind the arguments on the official English and tries to come up with explanations on the strong legislation push with the way English has already been considered as the U.S official language. He accomplishes this through a deep analysis of the motives for specific arguments so as to have the root cause unearthed. King, Robert. “Should English Be The Law? The Atlantic Online. April 1997.55-64. The Atlantic Monthly Company. 13 Nov. 2012. http://www.theatlantic.com/issues/97apr/english.htm In this article, the language debates have been discussed by King highlighting how the debates have led to conflicts among many countries across the world. Kings fears are that the U.S could be getting to that level if it continues with its efforts of having English as the official language. King believes that it has been the tradition of Americans to have English as their official language quietly. Read More