from English First

[Michael Erard]

For a taste of unmediated English-Only rhetoric, here's an email I
received because I'm on the mailing list of English First.

Michael Erard

>Dear Friends,
>
>Imagine my surprise to hear an old article of
>mine cited by Rush Limbaugh on his show today.
>You can read the full article, "Will Noncitizens
>Decide the Election," at
>http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment111000d.shtml.
>
>I did not hear the entire program, so I can't
>really comment upon what Rush said. The point of
>my article was show how one political party in
>1996, in this case the Democrats, sought to
>manipulate the "learn English" requirement of
>both the 1986 amnesty and the long-standing
>English requirement dating back to the turn of
>the 20th century.
>
>This is why I remain aggressively unimpressed
>with the English "requirements" contained in
>the McCain-Kennedy-whoever "compromise"
>immigration bill.
>
>There is no way to force
>someone to learn English who does not wish to
>do so. Even if there were, those doing the enforcing
>of any "learn English" requirement are generally
>uninterested in being strict.
>
>Political considerations alone will ensure that
>someone who can spell "cat" after ten tries will
>pass someone's idea of an English test.
>Now making the government address everyone in
>English, just as the Mexican government addresses
>all in Spanish, is something that can be done and
>easily enforced.
>
>Once immigrants learn that if they need a translator,
>it is their job -- not ours -- to bring one, a good
>many more immigrants will be investigating English classes.
>
>This idea, making the government speak only English,
>is precisely what Senator James Inhofe (R-OK)'s
>proposed amendment to the immigration bill would
>do. Senate Democrats blocked a vote on the Inhofe
>amendment last week. Wonder why?
>
>You can e-mail your two Senators in support of the
>Inhofe amendment at
>http://capwiz.com/ef/issues/alert/?alertid=8631446&type=CO.
>______________________
>
>Prepared on April 11, 2006, by English First,
>8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102,
>Springfield, VA 22151
>(703) 321-8818
>jboulet at englishfirst.org
>
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>
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