English Only Nation Essay

“We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language.” --Theodore Roosevelt, 1907. Declaring one language the official language to be spoken by all citizens in the United States, it professes unity, and portrays to all other countries that the country cannot be divided, especially not the border between languages. America was founded on the idea of something special, unity. (It is called the United States for a reason.) By speaking the same language it creates an unified environment. Creating an end to discrimination to those who do not speak English. It creates a better future, a safer future for every citizen in the country, by uniting together as a

As of 2011, in America, the Census Bureau had counted a total of 60 million people in America who are not fluent in speaking English. (Badger) Understanding that people may feel a bit trite over this area of topic but it would ultimately help America become one. It’s time to make English the official language of the United States because it would be saving the government billions from the cost of having extra translators and bil, presenting immigrants with job opportunities since they’d have to learn English before coming here, and it would majorly improve communication skills.

The fifteenth chapter of Susan Tamasi and Lamont Antieau’s Language and Linguistic Diversity in the US is titled “Official English.” This particular chapter briefly looks into the history of linguistic laws in the United States followed by an examination of whether or not the United States should have English as its official language. Tamasi and Antieau provide multiple convincing arguments for each side of this issue, which consists of those for English as the sole language of government and those against such a measure. Overall, however, there are many underlying beliefs and nonlinguistic concepts—like national identity and history, politics, and economics—related to language and its usage in America. First of all, Tamasi and Antieau debunk

Although the founding fathers decided to leave the idea of establishing a national language out of the Constitution, there have been several movements to establish English as the national language since then. Even though none of these movements could garnish enough support to make this into a reality, they have been influential in that English is the official language in 31 states. In recent years, five additional states have considered legislation that would mandate English as well (Schwarz 2014). Since many individual states have sided on the issue, it poses the question of if the national government should follow the trend as well. A strong argument can be made that the United States should make English as the official language because it would promote unity and patriotism among Americans, be economically beneficial for the nation while rightfully placing the responsibility to learn English on the non-English speaking immigrants.

There are many supporters in favor of English being the only recognized language spoken in America and there have also been many opponents. The debate has driven many states to pass their own laws concerning the English language. As we know, the United States is a nation known as a “ Great Melting Pot” built by immigrants whom many can not speak and parse English. Most immigrants faced difficult barriers by being discriminated against and the cause of their cultural name. If an immigrant name was stenuous to pronounce, they changed it. Immigrants brings their cultures and languages, as well as their customs and traditions. Making English the official language of the US

For many centuries Congress has been trying to pass a law making English the official language but has yet to be successful. In today’s society the most commonly used and heard language is English it is then followed by Spanish and so on. To pass the law that would make English the official language the government would have to provide programs to help the non-English speakers learn English. Thus getting rid of the language barriers that prevent people from understanding each other.

Too many times growing up has the phrase been said, “Speak English! This is America”. If the United States has always been the home to hundreds of immigrants, with different nationalities, can we say English is the only language to talk in America? Absolutely not. For many years, the United States has preferred monolingualism, the knowledge of one language however from hospitals to courts, the assistance to interpret different languages is now offered. Schools have now begun to implement programs that consist of teaching in two different languages, known as dual language classrooms. All coming together to push forward the rewarding benefit of knowing more than one language, of being bilingual. Just like manners, the knowledge of a second language must be taught at an early age by our first teachers, our parents.

Immigration, legal or not, has been a problem for the United States for a long time. In the U.S., promoters of bilingualism have supported the use of other languages for public services, including government documents, hospitals services, voting ballots, and bilingual education. In their essays “A Nation Divided by One Language” and “Viva Bilingualism”, James Crawford and James Fallows claim that it is not necessary to declare English the official language of the U.S. On the other hand, in their essays “English Should Be the Only Language” and “Why the U.S. Needs an Official Language”, S. I. Hayakawa and Mauro E. Mujica argue that English should be made the official language. They contend that

All languages are important and realizing it will make you become a stronger, more diverse human being. We need take make an effort not only for ourselves but for other citizens living in the United States who don’t speak English; we need to make them feel welcomed into our country. Marjorie Agosín described that,”here in the United States, where I have lived since I was a young girl, the solitude of exile makes me feel that so little is mine, that not even the sky has the same constellations, the trees and the fauna the same names or sounds, or the rubbish the same smell. These are the dilemmas of one who writes in Spanish and lives in translation”(Agosin 599). Agosín has lived in the United States for quite some time now, yet still feels like she is living a life through “translation”. She should not feel this way, Agosin should feel apart of our country and feel as if she is a citizen. It is important for us to take a stand now to make language become apart of the curriculum within our school systems starting in Kindergarten, so that our children have a more diverse life filled with opportunities. One thing we know about the future for sure is that we will still have our knowledge about language, but it is how we use that knowledge that will depict how we will succeed in life and as a

The debate of instituting English as the official language in the United States is a debate that has been going on for centuries. Many people believe that English should be the official language because we are American, and Americans speak English. However, many of those people fail to realize that we all come from different heritages and corners of the world. Language should be an art of expression, one where people of all heritages and backgrounds can speak in the language that they have learned. Implementing English as the official language in the United States would be to essentially ignore and disrespect all of the heritages, nationalities, and religions that make the United States a unique place to live. The United States is

The United States is built up of different ethnic groups such as Latinos, Asians, African- Americans, Native Americans, etc. People from these groups speak different languages. In the U.S. majority of the people speak English; one might think that English is the official language, but the U.S. does not have an official language. Some might have a problem with this idea. In “Why the U.S. Needs an Official Language” by Mauro E. Mujica, he argues that America needs to adopt English as its language. He states many factors on why the U.S. needs an official language are because it costs too much if people do learn it and he believes the U.S. is losing its sense of unity. I disagree with Mujica, I do not believe the U.S. needs an official language

The government implementing English as the official legal language of America is imperative because a conformity of communication within our borders is needed to unify the vast diversity. Our mighty country was founded on providing all citizens with equality including inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The United States is a progressive nation that welcomes people from far and wide to come and savor the God-given freedoms enjoyed by all. With all of the diversity from the countless immigrants coming in to our port cities, looking for a more prosperous future, a necessary tie is needed to bring the people of the nation together. Interaction with others

In the novel “In Country” by Bobbie Ann Mason, we find the story of a young girl who struggles in life to find out about her father and the history of the Vietnam War. Throughout the book, the reader finds out that this girl, Sam Hughes, is not your every day teenager. She is faced with the responsibility of dealing with her unmotivated uncle and a boyfriend she really doesn’t care for anymore. She’s confronted with the fact that she really knows nothing about her father and the War he took part in. All of the people she knows who were involved in Vietnam have been touched somehow by the war. What are some of the things she learns from these people? What does she find out about herself and about the father she has

From the time the Pilgrims landed in this great nation at Plymouth Rock, immigrants have been culturally diverse and have spoken many languages. When the Pilgrims arrived in the New World, they did not know how to communicate with the natives. Through intense study the natives learned the Pilgrims’ language. Even with the common language they were still a melting pot of different culture. Some would say that America has gotten over the language/ cultural barriers and now almost everyone speaks the common language of English, but there are still many immigrants who do not know English. Bilingual education is put into public schools for this reason, so that immigrant children can be assimilated to English gradually. The national language

     “In the world were over seven thousand languages have exisisted, one language had become dominate. This dominant language is English.” “In the majority of countries throughout the world speak English as their second or first language, no longer just America or England.” English has taken many forms, American English, the Queen’s English, Australian, Canadian English, and several others. Even American English has taken several types of English, Jersey English, East Coast English, West Coast English, Southern English, slang English, and Ebonics. All of these languages have major variants between them, but are all of them are still understood aboard. Without English the world couldn’t operate,