this is NOT true. It's just hard for them cause many have lived in their country for so long that it's hard to learn another language. You try learning spanish or portugese or french. It's not an easy thing. Most of them speak english but with a heavy accent. If you're so appalled at how they don't speak english, why don't you teach them.
2007-01-17 05:50:18 · 39 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Immigration
That's a bunch of crap. Me personally I went to France a few years ago knowing very little French. And yes, even though me and my American friends spoke English back at the dorm, when I watched tv I watched French tv; when I read a newspaper I read French newspapers; when I listened to the radio, I listened to French music. And after a month and a half I was speaking fluently to the point that I was having dreams in French. So don't get up here and preach about it being difficult to learn another language when you're in another country living there. BTW, what about all the latinos that did learn to speak English in a few months???
.... and for 'colera667', english is actually one of the easiest languages to learn. For example, there's no formal conjugation. Whereas in spanish you conjugate the verb escuchar like this:
yo escucho
tu escuchas
el/ella/ud. "escucha
nosotros escuchamos
ellos/as/uds. escuchan
in english it's simply this:
I hear
you hear
he/she hears
we hear
they hear
........ that's much easier than the stem-changing verbs in spanish.
2007-01-17 05:54:10 · answer #1 · answered by baqq2cali 2 · 12⤊ 10⤋
First of all, if you are here illegally, you shouldn't be here.
That's crap for an excuse that because they've spoken another language for so long it's hard to do. That shouldn't be any excuse at all! If you go to another country to live, then you NEED to learn the language of that country not just here in the US. Sure it's hard to learn another language, but if you are in another country where the language is different than yours, you need to put forth the effort and learn it!
It's not my job to teach English to people, though there are people out there who do teach it. If I do encounter someone who has trouble with the language, I work with them and try to help them out.
My parents and many of their friends were immigrants to the US, they didn't know a spit of English and they had to learn the language. They were all in there mid 20s when then came over and they did it. Sure, some of them have an accent, some thicker than others, but they know the language.
There is no reason that we in the US should be teaching in another language unless it is a language specific course. Kids pick up languages the easiest. I myself didn't speak English until I started in kindergarten and had no problem.
2007-01-17 08:26:27 · answer #2 · answered by midnight skye 3 · 4⤊ 1⤋
In Mexico English is a mandatory subject in schools. The younger people do know some English and pick it up faster. The older ones may never learn much. I have tried to learn Spanish since i have been with my husband. 12 years and I still can not speak but can understand some.
2007-01-17 06:59:10 · answer #3 · answered by KRH 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It's not that they refuse to learn English, it's that they are embarrassed to speak it because of the fear of mispronouncing a word, saying something backwards and causing a big misunderstanding or someone laughing at them. It's true that the ESL (English as a Second Language) classes are full to capacity with a waiting list in some counties and states. Don't think that they don't understand any English at all, they may not speak English well, but they sure do comprehend more than you think. As for them not paying taxes, that's false. They do pay taxes and apply for their tax returns with tax ID #'s.
2007-01-17 06:24:26 · answer #4 · answered by Zodiac_Child 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
English is a really hard language to learn and I applaude anyone who makes the effort. However, I have come across some that refuse to learn or act like they don't know. English is my second language and the one I use often. When I go to Mexico, I'm expected to speak spanish, and get mad fun of if I don't say the words right. Some people have refused to help me in a store if I didn't know the spanish word for what I was looking for. Point being, it goes both ways.
2007-01-17 05:58:03 · answer #5 · answered by Jo 3 · 5⤊ 1⤋
Oh please. Those people don't REFUSE to speak English. Most learn the basics as best they can. Besides, millions of those people who were born and raised in the U.S.A. don't speak English that well themselves.In Kentucky a few years back----
Illiterates left and right. Adjectives jumping over adverbs; nouns describing nouns; --and so on and so forth. You are not going to stop the flow of illegals to the United States so you may as well get used to it. You are not going to pick strawberries at 1.00 dollar an hour; you are not going to wash dishes at 1.20 an hour. And if the employers hired US citizens to do these jobs they'd be forced to pay them minimum wage. Before you realized what was happening, you'd be paying $12.00 for a friggen 5-lb. bag of potatoes!
So stop your whining. Instead of criminalizing these people, work towards legal ways to let them work here.
Remember also, you live on stolen land. No matter how we look at it.
(and SOMEBODY wants them here!. Everywhere we look- from instructions as to how to put a toy together, to information from government agencies - we see both an English translation and a Spanish translation. They are here to stay. They are prolific. Deal with it).
2007-01-17 06:48:54 · answer #6 · answered by rare2findd 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
I'm trying to learn to speak Spanish and am grateful many kind people don't laugh at me or make fun of me...a little more kindness when they're trying might be in order!
I think a lot of people assume Hispanics can't speak English because they often continue to speak Spanish with each other and with family-this has been true in that culture for many years. I laughed because my visitors to Colorado saw a family speaking Spanish to each other (and commented about immigration problems). Soon after, the woman turned to us and spoke in perfect English! Need to be careful with assumptions..
2007-01-17 06:02:38 · answer #7 · answered by Middleclassandnotquiet 6 · 3⤊ 1⤋
I have lived here all my life and have had to learn Spanish for my line of work. I have tried to teach English, but I think the country does a disservice to Spanish -only speaking people by having many things posted in Spanish, for convenience. eg..many billboards / restaurant signs I have seen are only posted in Spanish, which upsets those who don't understand.I have seen some try, and some refuse...because "that is what's spoken in my house." It is not hard if you are dedicated to assimilate.
2007-01-17 06:04:51 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Because they don't have to. This country was built on the principle of assimilation. You came to America to be American. Now, however , it's Americas job to learn their language. Not anymore. Ask yourself why when you walk into a Dept. Of Motor Vehicles office you can take the test in over twenty languages? When all the signs are in English?
Their should be no Hyphens in the USA. I've looked on every globe and I have never seen Irish-America , Hispanic-America or African America or any whatever-America. If we don't start calling ourselves American and American only , we'll be living in the tower of Babel all over again.
2007-01-17 06:04:49 · answer #9 · answered by oldwolves 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Of course it's true that Illegals refuse to speak English. They chose not to learn, bottom line.
Like Illegals would really want Americans to teach them English. If you believe that I can sell you a bridge in New Jersey real cheap!! I speak another language and I know it is not easy, but Illegals don't even try to learn!
Fact is illegals don't care about American citizens or American laws. If they did they would learn to speak English, adapt to the American way of life and become US Citizens like the millions of other immigrants who came to the US!!!!!!!!!!!
2007-01-17 06:19:53 · answer #10 · answered by mikea_va 6 · 3⤊ 2⤋
It's hardly only illegal immigrants. There are plenty of legal immigrants who fail to speak English as well. In fact, you have to travel very little (Yahoo Answers for example) to find legal citizens who fail to be able to properly communicate in English.
All said, there are some illegal immigrants who refuse/fail to speak/learn English. The failure of the citizens of the United States to legislate any one language as our national language will be the further decline of America.
Why should businesses and government be legally forced to provide options in foreign languages just because some loser fails to learn English? We're talking about small businesses here which employ 2/3's of the American labor force.
Why are we allowing the disintegration of America as we know it just because someone wants to refuse to become an American and speak English?
2007-01-17 06:00:41 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 1⤋