How About NDN Only

[Andre Cramblit]

American Indians say English-only policy diminishes their tribal  
languages
, Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Legislation to make English the state's official  
language has run into opposition from American Indians, who say their  
native tongues are dying fast enough without any help from lawmakers.

As Oklahoma observes its centennial year, the English-only issue  
points up divisions that persist more than a century after Indians  
were forcibly marched to the region and then endured a series of land  
grabs.

Many of Oklahoma's 37 federally recognized tribes are fighting to  
save their languages and cultures from extinction years after the end  
of organized efforts to stamp them out.

Critics of the English-only Legislation point out that Oklahoma's  
very name is formed from two Choc! taw Indian words - "okla'' and  
"homma'' - that mean "red man.''

"If you go to English only, what are we going to call the state of  
Oklahoma?'' said Terry Ragan, director of the Choctaw Nation's  
language program. "Even town names in the state will have to be named  
differently.''

Supporters of the legislation say it could end bilingual state  
government documents, such as driver's license tests, and force  
immigrants to learn English and assimilate into American society.

English-only legislation has been adopted in 28 states and measures  
are pending in 12 states, said Rob Toonkel, director of  
communications for U.S. English, Inc. of Washington, D.C., an  
interest-group that supports making English the nation's official  
language. A similar measure has been filed in Congress.

The national English-only movement does not want to deprive American  
Indians of their native languages but is aimed at standardizing  
government documents into a sin! gle language as a symbol of unity  
for immigrant populations, T! oonkel s aid.

"It's very much an assimilation issue,'' he said. "We should make  
sure they become part of the country.''

But assimilation is a charged word for many American Indians, whose  
ancestors were forced from their traditional lands and sent on the  
Trail of Tears in the 19th century.

English-only restrictions were imposed in Indian Territory to expunge  
tribal languages and culture, said Kirke Kickingbird, an Oklahoma  
City attorney and member of the Kiowa tribe.

"That whole era was really about assimilation,'' he said.

Chad Smith, chief of the 250,000-member Cherokee Nation, the largest  
American Indian tribe in the United States, said the state's image is  
harmed when cultural differences are not embraced.

"There's a message sent to those outside of Oklahoma that we're  
intolerant, we're colloquial and we want to isolate ourselves from  
the rest of the world,'' Smith said.

"To our tribes it says that if th! ere's an official language, your  
language is secondary and all other languages are secondary,'' said  
Smith, who has also criticized athletic teams using Indian mascots  
and names.

Supporters point out that the legislation doesn't interfere with the  
teaching or learning of American Indian languages. But critics said a  
government policy could impede efforts to revive tribal languages.

The Intertribal Wordpath Society, a nonprofit group based in Norman,  
estimates that only about 9,000 people are fluent in the Cherokee  
language and 4,000 in the Choctaw language.

Fewer than a dozen people are fluent in other American Indian  
languages, including those of the Osage, Pawnee and Chiricahua Apache  
tribes, according to the group.

"We have absolutely nothing against English. It's great if people  
speak English,'' said Alice Anderton, a former linguist at the  
University of Oklahoma and executive director of the Intertribal  
Wordpath Society. "But! it's great if people speak English plus some  
other language o! f herita ge.''





On the Net:

Intertribal Wordpath Society: http://www.ahalenia.com/iws
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