We are multi-lingual and diverse
Three Wisconsin Republican lawmakers are trying to resurrect a bill that would make English the official language of state government. What that means is that governmental efforts to assist state residents for whom English is a second or third language by offering printed material in languages other than English would be abolished or curtailed. The bill is similar to one introduced in 2013 by the same authors that failed to even get a hearing in the Assembly.
The rationale offered for making English Wisconsin’s official language is that it would assist those whose mother tongue is not English to integrate more quickly into the dominant culture and help make them more attractive to prospective employers. What it really would do is make life more difficult for those not like white folks to fully understand how state government works and might be able to help those “outsiders” navigate state government systems.
English as official language laws have been enacted in other states and have uniformly been criticized as erecting barriers helping to exclude immigrants from becoming part of the mainstream society. If the bill’s authors were really serious about helping integrate non-English speakers into society, they would have coupled their bill with increased funding for English language instruction programs.
Rep. JoCasta Zamarripa, a Latina Democrat from Milwaukee, issued a statement Monday accusing Republicans of pushing an anti-Latino agenda to divide the state.
‘‘This bill reared its ugly head in previous sessions, but it didn’t even receive a public hearing because it is clear Wisconsinites do not support such extreme policies,’’ she said. ‘‘The shameful attacks on Latinos are divide and conquer politics at their worst.’’
Christine Neumann-Ortiz, founder and Executive Director of the immigration advocacy group Voices de la Frontera and Matt Rothschild of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, recently wrote an opinion piece in the Wisconsin Examiner highly critical of the proposal.
Noting that Gov. Evers would likely veto such a bill “in a heartbeat,” they opined that the law would only serve to fan the flames of bigotry and lead to increased hate crimes against those who speak a different language. They rightly cast this effort as part of the white nationalism policies championed by the Trump administration and the GOP nationally. Finally, they note that all state units of government would be required to issue documents only printed in English, with but a few limited exceptions, limiting what local governments could publish to assist non-English speaking residents of their communities.
It is time to stop trying to divide Wisconsin residents on the basis of race, national origin or primary spoken language. Such efforts to make Wisconsin great again do not unite or uplift. They just make it easier for white people to throw acid in the faces of perceived immigrant foreigners.
How difficult is it to remember that many of our Caucasian immigrant forbearers first came to this country speaking a language other than English? My ancestors came speaking German and I have friends and relations whose ancestors spoke French, Russian and a host of other European languages before learning, over generations, how to speak and write in English.
What will happen to my youngest grand-daughter who entered public school into a Spanish immersion program where most of her instruction has been in that language? She still speaks English to us, but now is all but fluent in a second language as well.
The bill’s authors, Senators David Craig, Andre Jacque, and Steve Nass, would be better served by working on legislation that commands support of people from around the state, like the bi-partisan package of bills aimed at reducing water pollution recently introduced in both houses of the legislature or the criminal justice reform bills proposed by Governor Evers and Democrats in both houses of the legislature. Our legislators need to stop arbitrarily dividing us and start finding ways we can all flourish in a multi-cultural and multi-lingual society.
No comments:
Post a Comment