English Should be America's Official Language The government implementing English as the official legal language of America is imperative because a conformity of communication within our borders is needed to unify the vast diversity. Our mighty country was founded on providing all citizens with equality including inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The United States is a progressive nation that welcomes people from far and wide to come and savor the God-given freedoms enjoyed by all. With all of the diversity from the countless immigrants coming in to our port cities, looking for a more prosperous future, a necessary tie is needed to bring the people of the nation together. Interaction with others --communicating-- is what gets everyone through their days and is essential to living. Without communication between people daily, the lack of communication would bring consequences throughout the world. Transactions among businesses would not be completed, sharing a story with a friend would never happen, the difficulty of understanding a problem of a neighbor, all of these and other necessities in daily life would never happen. The country, which we as citizens have created, needs to implement conformity among ethnicities to lessen the large variances of society to unite the entire nation. The people of America need to reshape the country in which we live, to show off the patriotism expressed so warmly after the horrific attacks of September 11. American citizens must come to unison with the most vital tool we can use to combat those problems, our communication between different dialects. Senator Hayakawa writes in his essay, The Case for Official English, that ?[i]t is with a common la... ... middle of paper ... ...ies, speaking little or no English, cannot make it through High School? (450-451). The democratic process that is the embodiment of the country needs to be the determining factor in the English Only laws, not some power-driven Hispanics that want recognition. The real necessity is a connection through communication between every person in America, every person in America to keep the society together instead of tearing it apart by fighting with legislation over the laws. Works Cited - Hayakawa, S.I. The Case for Official English. Edit. Ann Dobyns & Patsy Callaghan Boston: Longman Publishers, 2004. - Will, George. ?Bilingual Ballots Provide a Sense of Reality.? The Times Union 2 May 2006: A11. - Rodriguez, Richard. Public and Private Language. Edit. Ann Dobyns & Patsy Callaghan. Boston: Longman Publishers, 2004.
Language can bring people together but can also isolate. The United States is known as a melting pot, not only does that refer to culture but also the many different languages. We know of language barriers, but very seldom do we think of the language barriers within our borders. Even with the language barriers it solidifies the need for a national language, the United States of America should allow the freedom to express one’s culture while maintaining English as our national language, therefore offering common ground to its citizens.
What is the official language or the United States? 90% of the people would answer English, but guess again. The United States doesn’t have an official language. The subject of English as the official language of the United States has been covered intensively by the world press over the past decade. Declaring it the official language of United States can make an improvement in many areas, and is very relevant for future generations. Even though English-only movement has close connections to restrictionist and anti-immigration organizations. Which suggests that the movement has a wider, more far-reaching, and more negative agenda than simply advocating an official English language policy. English should be the official language of United States because making it the official language of the United States refers solely to the language of the government, not of the people, private business, classrooms, etc., and in 1990 US census reported that 97.1% of the US population speak English.
The English-only movement, also known as the Official English Movement, refers to a political movement whose principle goal is ratify a constitutional amendment declaring the English language as the only official language in the U.S. government. Its policies would pervade through operations at all levels of government. Once such an amendment comes into effect, all bilingual programs and translation services provided by federal, state, and local governments will be outlawed. Official government business will be conducted solely in English. This includes all public documents, records, legislation and regulations, as well as hearings, official ceremonies and public meetings ("What is Official English?" 1).
The United States is made up of many different ethic groups. These groups vary from Latinos, Asian American, African American, Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, and etc. These ethnic groups come into America speaking many different languages. However, many people are still surprised to learn that the United States has no official language. Many assume that English is the official language of the United States. But despite efforts over the years, the United States has no official language. Because the United States has no official language, it is suffering with large costs. These large costs will lead us on a road to wasteful government expenses, language battles that fuel ethnic resentment, and in the long run serious ethnic and linguistic separatist movements. An official English legislation is the answer to the problem.
The United States is made up of multiple cultures, race, and languages. Many people come from Mexico or Asian parts of the world, like China in search for a better life. One of the struggles many people have when coming from a different country is the language, in this case English. Everyone has a unique way of communicating. In the United States, after people learn English they realize they use different Englishes without knowing, in order to communicate, whether it be with parents, professors, or your own pets.
On February 2009, The English Language Unity Act was introduced. This act would make english the official language of the U.S. What does that mean? It means that every service given by the government will only be given in english. So what's going to happen to all the people that don't know how to speak English? How are they going to understand? Well the only way is to force them to learn english. How can we do that? We can do this by showing them the benefits of knowing how to speak english.
In the United States of America we have become a large melting pot of ethnic and cultural peoples. Along with these peoples have come many different languages and alphabets. However the US has been seen as a mostly English speaking country. Yet many of this country's newcomers do not speak English. Adults and children alike come into the US speaking and writing only their native tongue. This poses a huge gap in communication. If the adults are unable to teach their children English, then it becomes the school districts' responsibility. However to make learning easier on the child, many school districts choose to teach the child in their native language, while they receive English lessons on the side.
Inhofe, James M. and Cecilia Munoz. "Should English be declared America’s national language? A nation of immigrants considers the pros and cons of giving English official status." New York Times Upfront 23 Oct. 2006: 3. Bnet. Web. 6 Dec. 2014.
English as the official language of the United States could benefit the U.S. Government and America as a whole. America has long since been a multicultural nation and has been an English speaking nation since it was founded. The constitutional and federal documents are all in English, which furthers the American people, believing English should be our official language. The majority of states already have English as their official language, for English has always provided a much needed cohesion to our diverse citizens since it was founded.
In conclusion, the motion to make English the official language of the United states is on I strongly oppose. To do so would result in the further segregation of American people because it chooses to ignore the population's diversity. If the English Language Empowerment Act of 1996 were to pass, it would only add to the confusion that immigrants are overwhelmed with upon entering America. The act requires that governmental ballots be in English, which further complicates and deters non-English speaking citizens a role in government. Instead of passing laws which threaten and penalize non-English speaking citizens, the government should develop programs with incentives that encourage people to steadily convert to English. Furthermore, Dickstein holds that people should not be limited to only English. It is important to remember that every American citizen is an individual and therefor has a right to maintain their own identity.
United States is a nation accommodating multi-ethnic groups of almost 500000 Americans. Since 1960s, America has received an increasing number of newcomers and immigrants from all over the world. However, language communication has somehow become a latent problem, whether in economical, political, or social aspects. Although English has been the common language of America for over two hundred years, it has never become the official language. Therefore, question like "Does America need an official language?" has been raised and argued in recent decades. Both sides hold very strong arguments on this controversial issue. In the articles "English Should Be Official" by Bradley S. O' Leary and "Language Cements Nationhood" by Ron Saunders, two authors uphold to make English the nation's official language, while the articles "English Shouldn't Be Official" by Victor Kamber, and "Does America Need an "Official" Language" by Tuben G. Rumbaut and Alejandro Portes are opposed to this resolution. The different attitude toward common language, money, and communication are the major arguments discussed in these four articles.
Since English is widely acknowledged as the language of “political and economic adaptability,” it is technically already the official language in practice if not in theory; an official declaration of a national language would be superfluous and redundant (Nature of Language, p. 98). Also, if an official declaration of an official language were to deny services such as translation and other benefits to foreign-born immigrants and their children—as nativists advocate—then such a declaration would only serve to subvert the progress that America has made over the past centuries as the world’s melting pot. Therefore, the U.S. does not need to declare English as the official language since that would exclude many non-English-speaking Americans who have just as many rights to services and benefits as other Americans do.
In the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the government signed a bill commanding that no matter the race, gender, religion, or national origin of a person they cannot be discriminated by the government or a government agency. Making English the official language would be a form of discrimination to those who speak other languages. If there is an official language, then it would mean that the ballots would be written in the official language which would deter those of other languages, especially new voters. Even worse is that with English as an official language this would end the funding to translators who today help translate ballots and legal documents to those who speak another language. Restricting someone’s right to vote, refranchising someone, is terrible and destroys one of the biggest social responsibilities that this country offers. In addition, if the language of the government becomes officially English this would cause the government to discriminate on those of other national origin, as people from other countries don’t always speak English. This is a blatant attack on the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Making English the official language would inhibit the rights of those who speak other
For many years, the thought of English being the official language of the United States has come with a little controversy. Some argue that English should be the official language because it is the most dominant language in the world. Some believe by doing so, it would create a stronger unity among the American people. Proponents believe that although the United States is diverse, it may be too much for the American people to juggle multiple languages. Others believe that English shouldn’t be the official language and instead be one of many prominent languages that are widely used in our nation such as Spanish, French, and Chinese. I believe English should be the official language in the United States. However, I believe more emphasis should be placed on learning new languages especially among youths in school and during developmental stages.
English is, almost certainly, the most important subject that a child can learn in school. Without knowing proper English, a child will not be able to communicate effectively with the English speaking nation. They would be shut off from education and other people in this country. A person who does not poses proper English limits his or her ability to achieve their highest potential. Knowledge of the English language is important to learn to be able to communicate with others, in the teaching of immigrant students, and in finding and maintaining a job.