Posted on 06/17/2011 5:15:27 AM PDT by tje
During committee testimony this week in Austin, a Texas senator interrupted a Spanish speaker and telling him he should "be speaking in English" during a committee hearing.
Antolin Aguirre of the Austin Immigrant Rights Coalition was testifying against Senate Bill 9 that would help crack down on illegal immigrants in Texas. Aguirre spoke through an interpreter even though he had been in the U.S. since 1988.
Two minutes into Antolin Aguirres testimony, Sen. Chris Harris, a Republican from Arlington, interrupted asking Aguirres interrupter, "Did I understand him correctly that he has been here since 1988?" Harris asked. "Why arent you speaking in English then?"
(Excerpt) Read more at ktrh.com ...
Even the UN specifies two “working languages.” English and French.
A Texas senator is in hot water for interrupting a Spanish speaker and telling him he should ‘be speaking in English’ during a committee hearing. Was the senator right when he asked his guest to speak English?
Yes
84.44 %
No
15.56 %
Read more: http://www.ktrh.com/main.html#ixzz1PXVzCc2F
not only speak English, pay taxes, denounce laraza
friggin mess is going to ruin us all
we need a few thousand more like Harris
Those were the good old days when you didn't have to constantly see signs written in English and Spanish in every damn store!
Then why are you speaking a European language like SPANISH instead of Incan or Mayan?
I have seen this in international relations. Helmut Kohl, Germany's former chancellor, spoke excellent English. However, when speaking off script in English in a formal diplomatic setting he preferred to use German so that there could be no question of his meaning. He couldn't accidentally get some slight nuance or local meaning of English wrong and create an international incident.
However, this isn't such a case, there's no danger of an international incident due to a misunderstanding.
Down to 82%. Vote often!
The people in my background that came here from non-English speaking countries learned it real quick after they came here.
They all came here legally. The didn’t protest and try to get Americans to cater to them by having pamphlet, driver’s tests, “Press 19 for language ‘B’”
Funny! My stepson came to America from Russia when he was 16 with no foreign language skills. In less than a year he was speaking perfectly good Texan (with no foreign accent)! His older brother had been taught the Queen's English in college and spoke that English when they arrived together. Today, they are humorous to listen to when they talk to each other. Neither like to speak Russian. In fact both are now serving in the U.S. Army have have asked their Russian born mother to neither talk nor write to them in Russian.
Sen. Chris Harris, a Republican from Arlington....a man with guts and integrity....
Sen Chris Harris’ email page-—contact him w/ your laudatory message right now.
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/senate/members/dist9/dist9.htm#email
YES HE DID!...but there were many testimonials run through translators....that one was simply the highpoint as the Senator took issue.
He SPOKE english just fine in the hearing in reply to the Seantor’s questions then, after consultation with his handler, reverted to mexican. At that point the Senator should have stopped him, demanded he speak english since that is the language the business of the State of Texas is conducted in and if he refused, the Senator should have refused to listen to him anymore.
These wetback bastards make my skin crawl. Just about ever reckless driver in Houston is a wetback. They are ignorant or insolent... take your pick.
Might want to add that God helps those that help themselves, as in TEXAS.
Thanks for his link. Just sent him a THANK YOU note.
Thanks magna. Good on this senator for calling him out!
Unless historians lied, there were damn few “mexicans” residing in Texas when the mexican government invited Americans to settle in Texas.
The new Texicans were OK with being part of Mexico until the Mexican government decided to start treating them like their other mexican peasants and were looking to take over the improvements the Texicans had made.
This BS claim about it being their land is BS.
This Spanish speaker called into KLBJ this morning and he speaks English very well. He just used a translator to spite the Tx Senate.
Ping!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.