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ENGLISH IS THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGE OF THE
USA
AND
FLORIDA
: PERIOD!
By
Jan Bergemann
Published
September 21, 2012
English
is the official language of this country – so says the law and
so it should be. Make no mistake: The USA is a melting pot, the
assimilation of immigrants from many nations. Many
languages are being spoken in this country, but there can be
only one official language: English. Believe me, it would be a lot easier for me if everybody
here would speak German, but since that’s not the case, I
quickly learned to improve my English skills. Unlike many other
immigrants I don’t expect everybody else to learn my mother
tongue. I was always under the impression that it was I who had
the obligation to learn the language of this country – the
country I chose to live in.
I
am always amazed about certain people who call me and then
demand that I speak perfect Spanish and hang up in disgust
complaining that I don’t speak their language. I always ask in
return: Why don’t you speak German?
I
understand that it takes a while to learn a foreign language,
but if one lives in a foreign country it should be the NUMBER
ONE PRIORITY of a person to learn the language of this
country – and that’s English -- last I heard?
In
my opinion folks who just arrived in this country still have an
excuse if their language skills are not perfect. But when I see
people living in this country for 20 or even 30 years and still
haven’t learned enough English to conduct a simple
conversation, my understanding plainly stops. Why are these
folks coming to live in a foreign country if they don’t even
want to bother to learn the language of the country they chose
to live in?
What
especially disturbs me is the attitude of quite a few of these
folks who expect that everybody else should speak their
language. But why are they getting away with this attitude?
The simple reason: The majority of
U.S.
citizens are trying to be “politically correct” – and not
to rock the boat. This costs our country billions of dollars,
spent because many official forms are printed in all kinds of
languages – when one version in English should be sufficient.
You
may consider my opinion radical, but it is not the obligation of
this country to accommodate the language and lifestyle of the
people immigrating to this country – it’s the obligation of
these immigrants to learn the language and to adopt the
lifestyle that is customary in this country. That’s minimum my
opinion – and I wasn’t born and raised in this country.
The
same goes as well for our community associations. All official
meetings should be conducted in English. I know that reality
dictates differently, but since statutes and deed restrictions
are written in English, the discussion to uphold these laws and
rules should be held in the English language.
I
know communities where all board meetings are being held in
Spanish and even the minutes and financial documents are written
in Spanish. What happens to the family that moves into such a
community but only speaks English? They are left out and can’t
even participate in the political and social life in their own
community – a community located in
Florida, according to official maps still part of the USA
with English being the official language – or is it?
There
are communities that will only hire foreign-speaking service
providers like attorneys and managers. Actually, these boards
don’t care if these service providers speak English – as
long as their Spanish is perfect.
Before
I moved to
Florida
I lived in
California
where you had to speak Mexican to communicate with many folks.
Here in
Florida
you find many more languages being spoken. But how far should
Florida
go to accommodate these folks who seem to be unwilling to learn
English? Should we teach our kids more foreign languages so they
can communicate with the people who immigrate to this country
– or should we make it more difficult for the folks living
here who are unwilling to learn English?
WHAT SAY YOU?
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