English in the United States?

Question

There are many people from different countries legally in the United States and they each speak their native tounge. Though they are legal here, and are trying to learn English, they are still looked upon because they can't learn it quick enough or perfectly. Should we as Americans be this way toward those who are really trying?

Answer 1

"Though they are legal here, and are trying to learn English..."

How do you know they're "trying"? When you drive down a steet and all the signs are in spanish or korean or whatever, I doubt if they're trying all that hard. Why should they? We bend over backwards to make sure they get everything bilingual, like driving licences, voting ballots and whatnot.

If they want to hang out here, fine. If they want to hang out here and :
1. Own property
2. Have a job
3. Drive a car

LEARN THE LANGUAGE!!!!
or go home

Answer 2

More English-speaking Americans should be respectful towards immigrants who are trying to learn English. God knows most Americans don't even try learning languages other than English and when they do, they often suck at it! Also, English-speaking Americans should be more respectful towards the immigrants who speak their native languages amongst themselves. After all, just because they come to the US and learn English, it doesn't mean that they should abandon their own languages and cultures.

Answer 3

lol .. there are many Americans who can't speak English either .. look at some of the posts on this site ... :) I don't think anybody should look down on people who have difficulty with the language, but I do think we should demand that they should be proficient enough in English by the time they become citizens ... after all, it does take a good few years from acquiring legal immigration status to becoming a full blown citizen ...

Answer 4

I fully approve of people learning english. I think that's a superlative idea. I also think that those that choose NOT to need to go back where their language is more prominently spoken. Yes, there are 'that kind' here, and those are the ones that people have a 'beef' with, the ones that come to the US only to live in some little group that rejects outsiders etc.

Answer 5

Theodore Roosevelt, one of the great American presidents, signed a law requiring those seeking to become American citizens demonstrate ‘oral English literacy’.

Roosevelt said one of the most profound remarks on this subject in our nation’s history.

In 1919, shortly before he died, Roosevelt said,

"In the first place,
we should insist that if the immigrant
who comes here in good faith
becomes an American and assimilates himself to us,
he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else,
for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin.
But this is predicated upon the person's becoming in every facet an American,
and nothing but an American...
There can be no divided allegiance here.
Any man who says he is an American,
but something else also,
isn't an American at all.
We have room for but one flag,
the American flag...
We have room for but one language here,
and that is the English language...
and we have room for but one sole loyalty
and that is a loyalty to the American people."

************************************************

Roosevelt, A Man Before His Time,
Realized The Implications Of THIS VERY ISSUE
One Hundred Years Ago



Here Are A Few More Words Of Wisdom To Ponder

Food For Thought, As You Like To Say, enterrador




We can have no "50-50" allegiance in this country. Either a man is an American and nothing else, or he is not an American at all.

Theodore Roosevelt

***********************************


There is no room in this country
for hyphenated Americanism. . . .
The one absolutely certain way of bringing this nation to ruin,
of preventing all possibility of its continuing to be a nation at all, would be to permit it to become
a tangle of squabbling nationalities.

Theodore Roosevelt
Source: Speech before the Knights of Columbus, New York, October 12, 1915

***********************************

Should we, as Americans,
Ignore The Wisdom Of One Of Our Greatest Presidents
Or Should We Heed The Wisely Spoken Words

Because They Were Obviously Spoken For A Reason

And The Reason Is Staring Us In The Face

Answer 6

some americans act this way because although a handful of immigrants are trying to learn our language, there are so many more who make no effort. when you work in the customer service industry and are trying to help someone who has no interest in speaking your language, it becomes very frustrating. if i am trying to help you, you should at least give me the respect of trying to speak my language. but, for those who try and speak broken english, i will always help them out and i think others should too.

Answer 7

I do not think American's should look down upon them. Yes, it's difficult to understand them sometimes, but give them credit..they are trying. This country is built on immigrants and in the early years the people who helped build this nation spoke Gaelic, Italian, Greek, etc.

This country is a place for opportunity and immigrants see that. They come here and they want to be part of our world, but remember too, they want to keep certain ties to their original culture and they have every right to. We should support them and applaud them for trying to make life better fot themselves and their future generations.

Answer 8

No, if they are trying I give them credit for that. However, we should not have to accommodate Mexicans by putting everything in Spanish. This is not Mexico. I don't care how many times they say it is their country. It is not. This is still America and we speak English and our flag has stars and stripes. There should never be another flag flown here.

Answer 9

No. I don't know where you live, but I don't see anyone looking down on those who truly try here in Chicago. When I go out to the parks, stores etc. I can hear many languages being spoken but they also try and communicate in english. As long as they TRY, I am happy.

Answer 10

If they're honestly trying to learn.. as in taking classes and using self taught books and lessons, they deserve recognition. If they're using their language barrier as a handicap as most do, then absolutely not they deserve the harshness they receive. Its like the girl, Gourmet, above me states; I wouldn't travel abroad and expect everyone to bend over backwards for me because I couldn't understand their native language, nor WILL they accommodate people who don't speak their language, they expect us to be able to communicate with them, the SAME WAY we as Americans expect immigrants to be able to communicate with us. To those that are learning... kudos!