I am doing a paper for a linguistics class and would like to know your opinion on this topic. Should America claim English as its official language or maybe "American English" can become an altogether different distinct language that we can claim. Your thoughts?
2006-10-04 05:11:10 · 26 answers · asked by collegemom0215 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Other - Politics & Government
isn't it already? There should be one official language, and why not english? There's nothing the matter with it. And hey, what do you know, the majority of the people already speak it, so there won't be a lot time money and effort wasted on changing everything for those people incapable of adapting. I'm puerto rican and colombian. I was born in the USA, and these are my thoughts. One language unites people. Multiple languages divides the people. When people are divided there are conflicts because there are differences. You're not the same color as me, you don't believe what i believe, you're just a girl, or typical you're a man. Differences amongst people lead to conflict, and allowing for different languages will lead to more conflict. All the while those in power stay in power because the people are too busy fighting over their differences.
There will always be differences, but we can minimize them. If we pushed for allowing different languages, it would be harder to get important messages out to the people especially during emergencies. Besides, everybody knows about the old military strategy divide and conquer. Any politician who advocated for more than one language would automatically be suspect to me. The nation is already divided between the democratic and republican party, and we're thusly more controlled. Why do we need more division?
2006-10-04 05:36:05 · answer #1 · answered by l_tone 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is really no point in declaring English as the official language. We already have the world's strongest language as our national language, and all government business is already done exclusively in English.
A lot of people think that if English was the official language, this would force immigrants to learn English, but immigrants who come to this country already know that learning English is necessary. No law is required to tell them this, and no law is going to make them learn English faster.
Additionally, declaring English the official language could be destructive. It could open the door to a variety of problems, including no longer printing non-English safety messages on chemicals and other products. This could be dangerous to the users of these products and others around them.
Also, it would be stupid to claim that American English is a distinct language. That is linguistically invalid. American English is just one dialect of English. It is not a distinct language. You can communicate with people who speak British English or Australian English, so therefore you are speaking the same language. If American English truly was a distinct language from other English dialects, then we would not be able to understand people speaking the other dialects. So you would have no idea what British people are saying, which is just not true.
2006-10-05 10:43:10 · answer #2 · answered by Tara 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, English should be declared our official language. We should not have to pay extra to get all our official papers printed in multiple languages. Becoming a citizen should require a working knowledge of the English language. All children should be in immersion classes so they will learn English quickly. Bilingual classes just slow the process down.
2006-10-04 05:32:37 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
I think it is long overdue that 'American English' be the official language of the US. Having an official language helps the country to know its identity. I believe also that it would then be good to require citizens to know the official language. All government communications, forms, etc would then only have to be printed in the official language.
I do not see anything bad about an official language. While yes, we are a land of immigrants, we have also taken English and spun it off on a slight tangent and made it our own. What we speak is not the King's English. What we speak is now a language of its own. It is our language, and we should support it as such.
2006-10-04 05:20:07 · answer #4 · answered by DiamondDave 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Simple practicality. Every country has a primary language. The primary should be spoken by all of it's citizens thus officials don't have to be multi lingual to get business done. How many languages would a los angeles or new york city clerk have to speak to do there job? English,Spanish,Russian,French,Italian,Chinese,a dozen African tribal languages? It's much easier for the immigrant to learn the central language of the US English. All the other immigrants did there is no reason for the latinos to be any different. If I immigrate to another country I would learn to speak,read and write in that language. I would not expect that country to learn my native language.
2006-10-04 05:29:07 · answer #5 · answered by brian L 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Yes. There are numerous reasons, both economic and social.
Look at all the problems it causes in countries that have multiple languages and don't define an official language.
It alienates and segregates groups in the country. We're all immigrants, but what makes us united is that we all become Americans when we immigrate her legally. This creates a unity amongst all ethnic types and gives equal opportunity to all.
Also, think of the absolute billions we spend on making every government document (tax forms included) that have to be printed in multiple languages.
I'm all for uniting people and saving money, so I'm all for an official language.
2006-10-04 05:23:58 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
No!! there are hundreds of folk contained in the states who communicate Spanish so why no longer pass with it!! Canada has 2 first rate languages English and French works for us!! American is the 1st rate language proper now contained in the States it truly is kind of an English slang yet i could call it English !! in basic terms no longer perfect English as any Brit may be useful comprehend i'm optimistic! there are a great form of accents too in basic terms like contained in the united kingdom and eire! once you have that a lot of people conversing Spanish it may be the superb concern to do!! this would not recommend English would desire to be abolished it truly is going to nonetheless be the key language spoken!!
2016-10-01 22:27:51 · answer #7 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The US Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, all written in english, I think you could make a case that english should be the official language.
2006-10-04 05:24:03 · answer #8 · answered by Nick F 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Yes. Consider the savings if, no bilingual education. Census forms in only one language. Voting ballots in only one language. Licensed drivers who can actually understand the road signs. etc. Etc. ETC.
Further, it would stop nonsense like this recent news item out of Dallas. A hispanic man (I believe an illegal alien) was apprehended by police after a traffic stop. The man claims he was 'roughed up' by the police who refused to speak to him in Spanish. He is suing the city, the Dallas PD and the officers involved for $1 million. Sorry, dude, it is not the responsibility of the police to speak any language other than english. What's next, a vietnamese immigrant suing because the police didn't speak vietnamese or a filipino suing because the police didn't speak tagalog. Where does it end?
2006-10-04 05:25:21 · answer #9 · answered by mzJakes 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Yes!
Use of more languages in one area divides people and make difference in between them.
The basic element for better together living is the communication. With different Languages used there is the threat to great living.
Due to English always being "Main" language, why not keep it that way! Who does not like it....well, though!
I my self came from somewhere else and I have managed as much as possible to speak English, therefor I do not have sympathy or understanding for people who live here for many years and don't speak a word!
Go anywhere else and you'll see...People don't care! They will not go out of their way to accommodate people who don't speak they language. You'll either learn or go somewhere else!
2006-10-04 05:20:17 · answer #10 · answered by Jax4all 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋