From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!esquire!brl-bmd!wmartin
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Title: Re: Official Languages - (nf)
Article-I.D.: brl-bmd.330
Posted: Thu Aug 19 10:40:07 1982
Received: Fri Aug 20 04:24:48 1982
References: pur-ee.513

Undoubtedly those 21 senators have heavy Hispanic, oriental, or
other ethnic constituencies.  This whole issue is based on court
decisions which have required schools to offer curricula in Spanish
or other local languages, and not force children to operate in
English in school. Many people believe that such maintenance of
ethnic solidarity, or catering to minorities, depending on your
viewpoint, has ill effects for the long term quality of the sense
of "nationhood" and patriotism for the United States. Up until
recently, every immigrant or child of immigrants was routinely
expected to learn English to be able to exist in the general
American lifestyle. Even though ethnic neighborhoods permitted
adults to live out their lives speaking only their "old-country"
language, their children were forced into learning English in
school. These court decisions have changed that, and this has
upset some people. Hence the "official language" legislative
efforts.

Will Martin