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. Being made of diverse peoples, and being able to continue to use your own language may seem preferable as we encourage individuality and do not want anyone to disappear into the soup. This stand, however, also means that more people are needed as interpreters and that more programs and information needs to be readily available to ensure understanding. More people would have jobs associated with interpretation, whether on paper or face-to-face, in order to deal with the transition. If English was the official language, instead of just having interpreters in public places, there would be opportunities to learn the language with classes, etc. Presently, immigrants expect to have to learn some of English to get by, while the children have to learn it on their own to survive in school. With English as an official language, we would feel compelled to offer help to those we expect to learn the language. In part of Canada, where there are two languages, children are taught both languages. If we had an official language we would be responsible for insuring that everyone gets a chance to learn the language. As seen in the statutes of Section 3-3-31 of the Mississippi code, “…the purpose (of the st... ... middle of paper ... ...and/or immigrants, we would still be preserving the cultural heritage of early America. Works Cited Perea, Juan. Immigrants Out! The New Nativism and the Anti-Immigrant Impulse in the United States. New York or London: New York University Press, 1997. Print. Baron, Dennis. The English Language Amendment: Backgrounds And Prospects. 1988. ERIC. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. Daniels, Harvey A., and Urbana, IL. National Council of Teachers of English. Not Only English: Affirming America's Multilingual Heritage. 1990. ERIC. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. Lewelling, Vickie W., and Washington, DC. ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics. Official English And English Plus: An Update. ERIC Digest. 1997. ERIC. Web. 28 Nov. 2014. Crawford, James. Effective Language Education Practices and Native Language Survival. Reyhner, Jon. Montana:8m (NALI) Institute, 1990. Print.
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.
From the time the Pilgrims landed in this great nation at Plymouth Rock, immigrants have been culturally diverse and have spoken many languages. When the Pilgrims arrived in the New World, they did not know how to communicate with the natives. Through intense study the natives learned the Pilgrims’ language. Even with the common language they were still a melting pot of different culture. Some would say that America has gotten over the language/ cultural barriers and now almost everyone speaks the common language of English, but there are still many immigrants who do not know English. Bilingual education is put into public schools for this reason, so that immigrant children can be assimilated to English gradually. The national language should be English instead of the official language because America has prided herself in being very diverse. If we take away the diversity, then we take away the core values that America has always had since her founding.
To start, a second language should be mandatory in American schools because it makes employees more marketable.For example, 4 out of 5 new jobs in the US are created by foreign trade; therefore, foreign language is imperative for the future (Latimer). Also, when applying for a job position a person is more likely to get a job if he has previous foreign language skills because this makes him a more valuable employee to their potential
Language is part of the few benefits that immigrants bring with their culture. United States benefits from cultures of the many immigrants that migrate to the U.S. the variation of different languages brings great benefit to the U.
Our Founding Fathers of the United States embodies John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and George Washington who all spoke English. Let’s acknowledge that our entire presidential body is full of English speakers. Imagine seeing a non-English speaker in the store clueless because they don’t know how to ask for service in English? Because they know the bewilderment they’ll receive from the employee trying to interpret what their saying. Imagine how much better they would feel knowing English and not feeling discouraged to ask for guidance. Declaring English as the national would prevent situations like this, avoid excluding non-English speakers, and transform ways of life.
Blake, P (ND). “A Summary of Prop. 227” Second Language Acquisition University of California Davis Institute. www.secondlanguageacquisition.com. April 23, 2003.
The ongoing debate across our great and diverse nation is whether there should be enacted into law an official native tongue: that being English. Throughout the world, the United States has been viewed throughout its existence as a nation to be a melting pot of cultures and ethnicities unlike any seen before. Since the time of the settlers, one could take notice quite easily the German Jagerhaus, the British Pubs, as well as the Italian eateries- each flared with a distinct flavor and language. This vast difference seen is what makes America unique. Up until the very recent future, it was unheard of anywhere but our great land to be able to sit in a classroom and have classmates from Asia, Europe, Africa, The Middle East and Latin America. This great blend of society continues to advance our perceptions of the world as well as hone in on the principle that it is okay to be distinctive. What purpose, then, would having a law in place requiring one to utilize a certain language?
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.
Clark, Virginia P., Paul A. Eschholz, and Alfred F. Rosa. Language: Introductory Readings. 7th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2008. Print.
The federal government should not make English the national language of the United States of America because not everyone speaks it. Even though it is the most common spoken language do not forget about those who do not know it. The government can not force anyone to learn or know any language. If English did become the official language those who do not know it would have trouble. They would not know how to speak, it so they would probably make mistakes. While the ones that do know it, make fun of them. We would not have any cultural diversity here in the United States.
English should be the official language of the United States to give the citizens what they want. Some citizens of the United States are completely oblivious to the lack of an official language. If the United States is “run by the people” then should not the voice of Americans not only be heard but also acted upon? According to the U.S. census of 2012, 87% of Americans believe that English should be the official language of their proud country(Pro English). Even the states that make up the U.S.A. agree that English should become national. These states began a movement by making their official state language English. In the United States, there are currently 31 states possessing the official language of English(Krauthammer pg.145). Interesting enough, the majority of people who argue against English becoming official believe it would offend the American people.
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.
"By emphasizing the importance of a common language, we safeguard a proud legacy and help to ensure that America's future will be as great as her past." Ronald Reagan described it best. A vital part of any culture is language. Without language, there would be no communication, no conversation, no debate. I believe when immigrants come to America, a crucial part of their acceptance is whether or not they know the English language. In a census done by the US Census Bureau in 2011, it showed that 79% of the population speaks only English at home while only 21% spoke a language other than English at home. Meanwhile, of that 21%, 58.2% spoke English very well (Ryan). This shows how vital the English language is to American culture and how it is imperative for English to be a requirement for immigrants when they come to America. Not only when people immigrate here, but to other countries as well, I believe that it is, in some ways, a common courtesy to learn the native language. In comparison to other countries you can immigrate to, America is one of the best. America
Sharma, B., 2008. “World Englishes, English as a Lingua Franca, and English Pedagogy”, Journal of NELTA 13 (2), pp. 121-130. Available from
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