Posted on 11/23/2001 7:03:00 PM PST by KQQL
Santa Ana adapts to culture changes
By CHELSEA J. CARTER
Associated Press
SANTA ANA - Before you can walk the beat as a police officer in this Southern California city, you have to be able to talk the talk.
Recruits must be bilingual before they can wear a badge. City Hall employees, from receptionists to telephone operators, are required to speak two languages. Even park workers must be able to speak more than English.
And for good reason: Santa Ana leads the nation in the percentage of non-English speakers.
More than 80 percent of residents age 5 and older speak another language at home, according to a U.S. Census survey of cities with more than 250,000 people.
Nationwide, 17.6 percent of people spoke a language other than English at home, according to the Census Bureau.
Rather than trying to pass English-only ordinances, the city is adapting to its newest residents.
Some school board meetings are translated to Spanish, as are some City Council meetings. A majority of the council even speaks Spanish.
''For years, we've been doing everything we can to diversify our work force by hiring Spanish speakers, Vietnamese speakers, Cambodian speakers,'' Santa Ana councilman Jose Folorio said.
California leads the country in the percentage of people who speak a language other than English at home - 39.4 percent, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. New Mexico was second with 35.5 percent and Texas third with 32 percent.
With 83.6 percent of its population in that category, Santa Ana is more than twice California's average and is ahead of Miami at 75.9 percent and El Paso, Texas, at 72.3 percent. Los Angeles was fourth with 58.8 percent, followed by another Orange County city, Anaheim, with 55.6 percent.
''These cities are magnets. They have thriving economies with relatively low unemployment rates'' and business connections to foreign countries, said William Gayk, director of the Center of Demographic Research at California State University at Fullerton.
''These are natural locations for immigration,'' he said.
Spanish is the predominant foreign language in city and state census counts.
The challenge for communities is balancing efforts to accommodate non-English speakers and helping them assimilate, said Kevin Johnson, a law professor and sociologist at the University of California at Davis.
Santa Ana has long attracted predominantly Latino immigrants thanks in part to its accessible housing, bilingual public service programs and business partnerships with companies based in Latin America.
''There are two worlds in Santa Ana,'' said Nativo Lopez, executive director of Hermandad Mexicana Nacional of Santa Ana, a Latino civil rights organization. ''You have one world that speaks Spanish and one world that speaks English.''
The city also is home to the Mexico Trade Center, which connects small companies from Mexico and California by providing services and information about legal matters, tax issues and business or cultural differences involved in trade.
In nearby Anaheim, where schools report up to 70 different languages, there are few bilingual policies.
While immigration to Santa Ana has been steady for decades, Anaheim's immigration influx has been relatively new in the past decade.
''Obviously with such a diverse community, we face challenges,'' city spokesman John Nicoletti said.
He said the city has begun compiling census data to help with its plan to address its changing needs. The city also offers a hiring program aimed at attracting bilingual candidates.
How can we absorb it?
Big business has been fleeing the state for over a decade. White flight has a problem. In short, the income base, tax base of California is fleeing the state. I wonder where the liberals think they're going to find their golden egg laying goose.
California is done. Stick a fork in it.
Suppose an aspiring police officer who was fluent in French,German or Italian was turned down,because he/she did not speak Spanish,Vietnamese or Cambodian. Since the bilingual criterion had been met,would that not be sufficient grounds for a discrimination suit?
Proven lie.
At least think of a new one, ca guy.
I've read it in both the LA Times and OC Register that got it from State records. This floors me as well.
Let's do the math. $10,000 times ? many illegal alien children in CA = How many billions?
I can go to the mountains, seashore and beach all in one day. We are getting over populated and they keep building dwellings despite the fact there isn't enough natural resources to support us all. We don't have the water or energy. My house is valued around $325,000 and shouldn't be going for more than $190,000. It's nuts.
The whole point of prop 187 was to stop the state from paying for illegals, it would have forced the federal government (which is responsible for keeping them out!) to pay for their education.
I am afraid you are right. Articles like this make me sick.
Rather than trying to pass English-only ordinances, the city is adapting to its newest residents.
Why are we knuckling under to these people. It is their responsibility to learn English. If they can't learn English, send them back to where they came from. I am English only and I intend to stay that way!!
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