"In many tongues, Alaskans debate English as official =

language" (fwd)
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---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 1998 09:51:42 +0200
=46rom: nowak elke <elke.n at t-online.de>
To: drobert at tincan.tincan.org
Subject: Re: "In many tongues, Alaskans debate English as official =
language"

id Robertson schrieb:
>
> Title of an article in the Christian Science Monitor, Tuesday, =
September
> 15, 1998, page 3 (and a wonderful photo on the front page).  Very good.
> Thanks to Tina Wynecoop for this one.
>
> It is important to consider the effects on Native American languages of

> these populist moves to make English the ONLY official language of the
> land.  The folks who start these initiatives up never seem to be =
thinking
> of the indigenous languages -- and that's nice, insofar as it means =
they
> have no conscious malice toward Natives.  But it's true that this also
> means they aren't inclined to look out for endangered languages, =
period. =20
>
> This article especially discusses the effects of the proposed Alaska =
law
> on Yup'ik and other Native languages.  The quote at the end, from a =
leader
> of the English - only movement,  says it all, perhaps: =20
>
> "They're not going to be able to speak Yup'ik in Germany."
>
>
This is a serious argument against the English only policy - people in =
Germany=20
would regret it very much if they could not learn how to speak Yup'ik =
anymore.=20

Elke Nowak, Germany=20