Why do people care if "mexicans" speak English?

Question

Do they get all mad at the chinese for speaking only their own language?
Are they just afraid of what they don't know?

It is true that they "should" learn English for their own good, but why do you care?

Answer 1

Because I am NOT speaking Spanish. Speak to me in English...or not at all!

Answer 2

Personally, I don't give a damn what anyone does including Mexicans. Today people are so concerned with everyone else, when they should be concerned with their families and themselves. It makes me SICK! I've met only a couple of Mexicans who can't speak English, the majority of Mexicans I've meet are at least bilingual. I agree that if some English speaking Americans attempted to learn some Spanish, that they would be surprised at how rewarding it is to learn a new language. But if I said this in public around some of my "all-American" friends, they would have a stroke!

Answer 3

I care very much because history is a good guide to what happens to any nation which is not reasonably homogeneous in its outlooks and beliefs.

The reason that the USA exists in its current form has largely to do with a public education system (in English) which has taken each generation of immigrants (whatever their origin) and introduced them to the belief system, language, and the modus operandi of the United States. The net result is is a body of citizens who share the same values and are willing to pull in the same direction on the rope.

All of that means that despite the size of the USA, and the enormous diversity of the immigrants who have arrived, new and "old" Americans right across the country subscribe to a common belief system and sense of values. They can understand each other not only in language terms, but also in idealistic and cultural terms.

If you look at most countries in the world today which have huge internal problems, you will normally find it is because the general population does not subscribe to a set of common ideals or beliefs about what way of life they want to pursue and how they want to do it. In many case it is simply because they cannot even communicate with each other in a common language.

So, if you think that the US can continue in its current form if a significant percentage of the population does not share a common language or beliefs with the rest of the country, you have been smoking something very strong indeed!

If, after thinking about this, you are happy to have multi-lingual public education (which most immigrants do not even support), and do not support English as a common language, you are woefully unaware of history or the world as you can see it today. Or, you don't really give a damn about where the USA is headed.

Answer 4

Most Immigrants come here and learn English, however we are finding second generation Spanish speaking immigrants not speaking English. Past generations have been required to share in the common language. This prevents confusion and suffering. In a country of immigrants, it is important for us to be on the same page. Chinese or any other type of immigrant understands this they do not try to pass laws to have Spanish taught in school. Or have a country divided by two languages. Even though Spanish is considered the second language we must hold firm on this standard for the good of all people who live here.

Answer 5

If you are going to go to a country,you should at least have a working knowledge of the language and then make an attempt to learn the language.Mostly every immigrant group who came over learned English.Why should it be different for anyone else ? I have a friend who is a citizen,has been here for 22 years,and still can't speak English.Now how pathetic is that ? I blame,in part a system that overly caters to the Spanish speaking communities.Many other immigrant groups,such as the Italian and Portuguese communities resent this because when they came over,they HAD to learn English.

Answer 6

Because this is America, and our language is English. If you choose to live here, then you should learn to speak, read, and write English, just as if you choose to live in Mexico, you should learn to speak, read, and write Spanish.

I've lived all over the world in my travels while in the military, and I can tell you that the United States is the only country I've ever heard of where you are not EXPECTED to learn the native language! It makes absolutely ZERO sense to me that the country should adapt to the immigrant...I always thought it was the other way around, and that's how it should be.

Personally, I take it as an insult when anyone from another country moves here permanently and doesn't take the time and expend the effort to adapt to their new home - a part of which is learning the language. I also think that fluency in English should be REQUIRED before being allowed to become an American citizen.

Answer 7

All the Chines/Asians I have encountered can speak fluent English. It may be a bit broken, but at least they're making an EFFORT Key word E-F-F-O-RT. They don't come into my country and wave their flag. It also gets annoying when I go to Walmart or a store like that and encounter a cashier who can barely speak the language. What am i to do when a problem occurs? I'm the one who has to wait for her to get her manager because she's the idiot who didn't have the decency to learn English

Answer 8

IF YOU COME TO AN ENGLISH SPEAKING COUNTRY, SPEAK THE LANGUAGE OR GET OUT OF THE COUNTRY AND GO BACK TO WHATEVER HOLE YOU CAME OUT OF.

I cannot stand to see people come here and not learn the language. I am married to a latino and his mother has lived here for 20+yrs and still does not speak english and it really ticks me off. If you want to live here and be treated as an equal and be given the rights we give you, then have the respect to learn the language. You other option is to go back to the country that you spent a whole lot of time trying to escape.

I CARE BECAUSE I LIVE IN AMERICA, a home that I live in, and here they speak ENGLISH! I don't want to feel like a foreigner in my own country because I walk into the store and everyone is speaking in another language. If I moved to another country, it would be expected of me to speak the language and respectful to the people of the country. It is disrespectful to this country to come here and not care whether or not you speak English. There is nothing wrong with speaking their own language amongst themselves, but in public, they should be speaking English period!!!

Answer 9

We Americans' care that "Mexicans'" speak English because if their going to live in our country,filling our jobs then the least they can do to show appreciation is learn our language, so while filling the jobs here in the U.S,(dealing mainly with English speaking people)they don't make going threw the drive threw at MacDonald's a two hour ordeal.Or calling a phone company,or a customers service dept.,when you don't understand whats being said,and simply being sure if you were understood,( so you can be correctly assisted,) is as much as a mystery.

Answer 10

Because most asians, and europeans who have a native language other than english also know how to speak english.

But with mexican and central american people in the USA there is an much larger percentage of them who do not know how to speak english.. and many of them do not seem to want to learn english.

The attitude that they do not want to learn english is something that I have never seen among any other people than Mexican and some Central American ( El Salvadorans, Hondurans etc.. )

Answer 11

Ignorant people will always think like that
But did you know that right now many americans are not competitive for international positions in many companies because they didn´t want to learn any other language?
Companies want to go to make business in other countries but they have people who speak only english and the costumers choose other company with people who speaks their language
So, now many americans who want that kind of good positions are studing other languages.

Some others stay ingnorant, but it´s their lose If they don´t want to learn more and to understand the world better.