Posted on 11/23/2007 8:04:33 AM PST by Zakeet
The Culture: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants employers who require English in the workplace to be sued for discrimination. Workplaces like the House of Representatives? To continue this editorial in English, press one.
Supporters of open borders like to point out we are a nation of immigrants, which is true. But until recently, the newest immigrants were largely legal ones who didn't just come to America, but also wanted to be part of America — to be Americans.
America was called a melting pot of different cultures and ethnicities. The process of becoming an American was called assimilation. That included learning English. Lately we've seen the balkanization of America, a kind of cultural apartheid run amok.
Efforts in this regard have included bilingual education, multilingual ballots and now the insistence that a common language is racist and discriminatory. The American melting pot has become a smorgasbord.
Earlier this year, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed suit against a Salvation Army Thrift Store in Massachusetts that fired two Hispanic employees for speaking Spanish while sorting clothes. The two women, one from the Dominican Republic and one from El Salvador, were given a year to learn rudimentary English. They refused.
The EEOC line is that language skills are not relevant to the job of sorting donated clothing, so therefore the store was in violation of the 1964 Civil Rights Act that bars discrimination on the basis of national origin.
But is such a requirement any more discriminatory than, say, a dress code that bars an employee from wearing a native costume?
(Excerpt) Read more at ibdeditorials.com ...
I write paychecks in English. Comprende?
Check her own Congressional office staff in DC to test for her compliance. Why do I get the feeling they all speak English?
a common language is discriminatory because liberal research has determined that immigrants are far too stupid and lazy to learn english.
Liberals, your friendly neighborhood eugenists.
On the other hand, in our central California city, most entry-level jobs these days have a little requirement which disqualifies a lot of good people: “Must be bi-lingual”.
So can I encrypt my email communications at the job to stifle the corporate policy of screening my outgoing emails for offensive, non-work related content or corporate espionage?
I have a great solution to both help integration of foreign language speakers into the US and help our public libraries.
That is, libraries are being closed because of a lack of visitors. But they are ideally suited to being used as ESL facilities.
From open to close, a section of a library could be used not just for all-ages English instruction, but English cultural literacy as well. It would be inexpensive, but pay huge dividends. People who know English earn more money, and pay a lot more taxes.
On their spare time, or all day, foreign language speakers could go to the public library for free instruction not only in English, but in government, and all sorts of other subjects that would help them integrate as good citizens.
Since most librarians have considerable training in English grammar and composition, they would be naturals for teaching it. It might even be worth hiring more librarians just for that purpose.
The benefits of doing this keep coming. It helps the schools by tutoring their foreign language students. It also keeps libraries open for students as well. It reduces the need and expense for bilingualism. It even helps bust up ethnic communities and their problems by helping them integrate.
The stipulation is vague. They won’t accept those who don’t ALSO speak Spanish. Keep your Farsi, Swahili, Japanese, Esperanto, and Gallic knowledge to yourself.
It even helps bust up ethnic communities and their problems by helping them integrate.
There are unelected "community leaders" who derive their power by keeping them ignorant and needy. You will face opposition.
They require someone who speaks English AND Spanish so they can serve Spanish-speakers.
On the other hand, in our central California city, most entry-level jobs these days have a little requirement which disqualifies a lot of good people: “Must be bi-lingual”.
Accordingly ..thats discrimination.
Not under the description of discrimination in vogue now where the majority cannot suffer discrimination. Many of the ads say, to protect themselves, bi-lingual preferred but job seekers know what that means.
And I’ll bet that bi-lingual doesn’t mean English and French or English and Chinese.
Pelosi is the perfect example of what’s wrong with liberalism today: it has NO common sense.
Is there any other country in the world where millions can just walk in, squat, and then demand that the rest of us, here legally, defer to their language and culture.
The good news is, this is going to kill the Dems next year.
I believe that English can legally be required in customer service jobs, where customers speak English, or when the employee needs to speak English for other legitimate business reasons. Spanish can be legally required if it is legitimately required to perform the job. There is no discrimination if there is a legitimate purpose in requiring an employee to speak a certain language. ie. Someone applying to teach Spanish in schools, can legitimatley be required to speak English and Spanish.
If there isn’t a legitimate reason, as EEOC has determined in this case, then it is considered discrimination. This seems fair to me.
I didn’t speak English until I started 1st grade, and many of my family members still struggle to speak it. It takes a while to learn another language. By the second generation, most of the children become proficient at both languages. Third generation, English is usually the only language used.
You are correct. English and Spanish only.
Im sorry but why is Spanish required in the USA. My family is from Italy and the Ukraine. This is the USA, and other than English no other language should be taken to be more important than any other immigrant that comes to this country.
I would think it is reasonable to require someone to speak Spanish if they were applying for a job as a Spanish teacher, or maybe if they worked for an international organization, that did business with Spanish speaking countries. Also, for customer service jobs in areas where many Spanish speaking people live. When I applied for my job as a paramedic, I applied for a bilingual position, and work in a mostly Hispanic area.
English is important and always will be, but speaking more than one language is becoming less of an advantage and more of a requirement in many areas. My son is applying to colleges, and all of them require at least 3 years of the same foreign language. Some majors require proficiency at another language.
The business world is becoming global. Employees must be bi- or tri- lingual to compete, and colleges must comply with this demand. So, colleges are now requiring training in another language from high school applicants, and it won’t be long before high schools are requiring it from middle school students.
I can understand a business requiring employees to speak English, when it is necessary. An employee that fails to meet this requirement should be fired, and this is not discrimination. Firing and employee for having a conversation in Spanish, with another employee is unfair, and seems to meet the definition of discrimination.
“Firing and employee for having a conversation in Spanish, with another employee is unfair, and seems to meet the definition of discrimination.”
I might agree with you on this if Spanish wasnt being shoved down my throat every single day. I cant go to a store now without having to read it on the doors and on merchandise. I cant make a phone call without having to press one. If the employees conversations are being used to exclude other workers or becomes exclusive period for whatever reason....I have a problem with that especially if they use the ..”its my right to speak as I wish inspite of where I am card”
This again is the USA and I dont get where it becomes inappropriate to expect people to speak the language of the country. When did this become the “norm” and expected? Try this in other countries.
I took six years of French throughout high school and college. My kids took German and one took German and Japanese throughout school. I have no problem with learning another language and encourage my children to learn another language. I also speak some Italian. Only some Italian because my immigrant grandmother thought it such an honor to be in this country that she taught herself to read and write English and wouldnt speak Italian with me or her own children because she was proud to be in America and found her English only got better if she used it. By the time she died, it was her that taught me about Dante and Michelangelo but it was in English.She was proud of her heritage but was prouder that she was now American. She was a remarkable intelligent woman and I learned about character and strength from her. She did not have it easy by any means when she first came to this country. But through hard work and perseverance she raised a wonderful family and left a huge legacy to all of us. I speak that some Italian because I took courses on my own to learn it.
But thats my point. I get to pick what language I want to learn and not be told I must learn Spanish to live in my own dang country or to work a job in the USA. My grandmother had the right idea that if one doesnt use the language how will they learn it. As for having a bilingual position ..you are opening a door to a sticky wicket. What of those who are not of Hispanic origin? Do we then require bilingual workers in Korean?Italian? Arabic? German? for those areas?
Those people can lay claim then to the same lingual rights.
If you want to speak Spanish among family friends etc...have at it. But dont expect me to be happy about it when you bring it and expect it and even further demand it on the public stage.
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