Should English be the Official Language - Term Paper Example

Should English be the Official Language? Surprisingly enough, unlike the 92 percent of the countries in the world, United States does not have an official language. The country provides all the federal and state level services in English and all the laws are in English thus making it the de facto official language but not in the official sense. The constitution of the United States is silent about the issue of language and over the past centuries, this issue rarely received enough consideration and debate (Crawford, 1992). The politicians have always avoided the issue and there has always been a silent agreement that English is the official language. Nevertheless, during the history, there have been a few moments where the debate gained significant attention and discussion. For example, it was in the year 1907 when President Roosevelt wrote, “We have room for but one language in this country, and that is the English language, for we intend to see that the crucible turns our people out as Americans, of American nationality, and not as dwellers in a polyglot boarding house” (García, 2005). Furthermore, during the First World War, as an attempt to sideline the German language, along with removing the books in German language from the libraries, people were feeling the need of one common language. However, over the past few years, this debate has gained momentum and experts fear that the issue of national language that is alien to the culture of the United States may tear the country apart, as it has done in many other nations in the world (Simpson, 2009). As of 2010, thirty states had adopted English as the official language with laws protecting the same. It is interesting here to note the struggle in the state of Arizona where English recently became the only official language with full force. However, it was in 1998 when the Supreme Court gave its verdict in a case saying that the 1988 amendment to the constitution of the state, which restricts the business people of the state to conduct their businesses in English, is unlawful and its contradicts with the free speech right (Crawford, 1992). This was a serious sit back for the “official English” campaigners (García, 2005). Nevertheless, in the year 2005 another bill regarding making English as the official language was passed by the legislature but the Governor vetoed it. Finally, it was during the fall of 2010 when the struggle of the campaigners in Arizona bore fruit and English once again became the only official language of the state. A national language is very much like a national flag or a national anthem whose sole purpose is to protect the identity of the nation. Furthermore, the national language is symbolic of the nation and their culture and considering the diverse cultures in the United States, English as the official language will allow these diverse people to develop a sense of identity and association with their culture and country through the language (Cummins, 2000). Important here to note is that by making English as the national language, the country will save billions, if not trillions, every year from the money spent in the educational system. The governments spend a huge sum of money in order to improve the reading and speaking skills of students who are non-native speakers. In fact, for many years, this has remained a weak spot of our educational system. Making English as the official language will help the governments save the money spent on reading bills, translations and teaching more than one languages at schools (Simpson, 2009). Opponents of the current stance believe that by making English as the official language, one would suppress the other languages and the native languages of the immigrants thus making them lose the part of their culture. However, the same is not true. Making English as the official language will not mean that immigrants and natives will have to forgo their language. They would use that language in their families, houses and with their friends but for official purposes they will have to use English, which they use anyway. It will unite the country by bringing people close with the help of a single language (Cummins, 2000). There are many examples in the history where countries have done the same to bring people from diverse cultures together and create a sense of national identity. Consider the example of France. Towards the end of the 18th century, the French government wanted to end the revolution and create a “nation”. At that time, there were five different languages in France with man dialects. French language was not limited to the Paris and a few urban areas of the country (Crawford, 1992). However, the country decided to make French as the national language. Considering that era, there were strict punishments for the people and students who failed to learn and speak French. Within less than half a decade, the rest of the four languages disappeared from the scene (Stritikus, 2002). One of main reasons of high unemployment amongst the immigrants is because they fail to speak the English language fluently. Making English as the official language will force them to put in more effort in this regard thus opening more job opportunities for them. Furthermore, with learning of the English language, the immigrants will also get a better chance at assimilating in our culture (García, 2005). People who oppose such legislation put forward the argument that making English as the official language is not needed. More than 94 percent of the population of the country can speak English; therefore, there is no need for this formality. These people fail to understand the point that the prime reasons behind making English the official language is not to ensure 100 percent English speaking population but it is to instill a sense of unity and national integrity into the people and specially the coming generation of the country (Simpson, 2009). Another argument in the counter side is that when English receives the official status it will cause many problems for the immigrants and non-English speakers. However, the fact is that this legislation will only apply to the federal level documents, operations and processes (Cummins, 2000). Furthermore, none of the 30 states, which have passed the official English laws, prohibits their institutions to use other language for the matters for public health, safety, law and order, tourism, national defense, teaching foreign language and or whenever there is a common sense in doing so. English as the official language will primarily serve a bridge between various people in the United States who speak more than 322 languages (Stritikus, 2002). References Crawford, J. (1992). Language loyalties: a source book on the official English controversy. University of Chicago Press. Cummins, J. (2000). Language, power, and pedagogy: bilingual children in the crossfire. Multilingual Matters. García, E. E. (2005). Teaching and learning in two languages: bilingualism & schooling in the United States. Teachers College Press. Simpson, B. (2009). The American Language: The Case against the English-only Movement. Brandon Simpson. Stritikus, T. (2002). Immigrant children and the politics of English-only: views from the classroom. LFB Scholarly Publications LLC. Read More