I don't question that there are costs involved in accommodating other languages, but I think it's a cost worth bearing, that it pays for itself in keeping access to services more open and in increasing general civility. However, I've rarely seen the economic case made as you have made it. The case has generally been more nationalist. Every semester for fifteen years I had my undergrad Language and Society students conduct an in-class debate for which they formed teams and researched the issues in some depth. The economic side of it rarely came up as a major argument, and when it did it was easily countered. Students who were assigned the con side of the argument for making English the official language were able to argue that there were greater costs incurred by not providing multilingual services. The students were, by the way, assigned a side, and at the beginning of the project few of them were even aware that the issue existed.
Herb
Herbert F. W. Stahlke, Ph.D.
Emeritus Professor of English
Ball State University
Muncie, IN 47306
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________________________________
From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Erin Karl [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: December 13, 2009 10:55 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: "We speak English ...
For many the support of English-only is money-driven. The US and state governments spend millions every year printing signs, pamphlets, and other published material in lanuages other than English. They also spend money to have other-language phone support, "para espanol, marque numero dos," etc. I am a HUGE fan of the free market and have no problem with Americans having the freedom to speak or write whatever language they personally choose, but I would like to save the enormous amount of money spent every year on other-language pubs, recordings, and staff. Although many make conservatives' feelings on English-only out to be racist/anti-immigration/etc., the vast majority support these measures simply as a way to reign in spending.
Erin
________________________________
From: "STAHLKE, HERBERT F" <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Sun, December 13, 2009 10:44:17 PM
Subject: Re: "We speak English ...
The overwhelming success of English in this country and the eagerness of immigrants to learn English are evidence of the power of the free market. We became and have remained an English-speaking nation because of competition in the marketplace of language since colonial days, and the debate over English has frequently been intense, even acrimonious. Ben Franklin wrote a well-known attack on increasing German immigration into Pennsylvania and their continuing use of their language rather than English. In the late 20th c. there were predictions of a shift from English to Spanish; the President's Commission on Language under the Carter Administration estimated that by 2020 the US would be a majority Spanish-speaking nation. The success of English has required no legislation; it simply reflects the free market at work.
I've made this case with a number of friends of mine who favor legislation to make English the official language and to restrict the use of other languages in civic and governmental matters. They are largely conservative in their politics and so strongly favor free market solutions--except in the case of language, where it has obviously worked well but where they want government intervention nonetheless.
Herb
Herbert F. W. Stahlke, Ph.D.
Emeritus Professor of English
Ball State University
Muncie, IN 47306
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