Everytime I call anywhere, I am forced to decide between Spanish or English. I find that it isn't fair that I am having to cater to them in my own country. Sholdn't is be a law tat they HAVE to Speak fluent English before they can have a Green card?
2007-02-26 16:37:28 · 30 answers · asked by hawkeefan 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Immigration
Our president barely knows English, and he got elected twice somehow.
2007-02-26 16:40:30 · answer #1 · answered by ßαßε 5 · 10⤊ 3⤋
The choice of Spanish or English is not a great hardship. Many countries have more than one official language.
You can live here legally and not have a green card. You could have some kind of visa. A green card is hard to get.
Some people don't plan to live here a long time anyway so mastering the language shouldn't be required for everyone.
While speaking English well would make one's life easier, it's like not smoking or eating lots of vegetables would improve one's life too, but they're not laws. We favor a free society. People can better themselves or not.
Moreover, as an English teacher, it's impossible to force someone to learn anything. They must want it.
2007-02-27 01:08:37 · answer #2 · answered by sksogang 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
there is a reason this country does not have an official language. we are a nation of immigrants. If it wasn't you it was your mom or your grandfather or your great great grandmother. if the US wants to require all citizens to learn a single language they'll have to provide the classes for it to all non-english speakers, not just Mexicans. And we'll ahve to pick a dialect, cause I don't think that people from Maine will think that people from Louisiana are speaking proper English. And you know why? Because that's how new we ALL are here - we still haven't fully combined the cultures began by early settlers all over the country so we all sound different.
Don't forget where you came from, and don't be such a hater. There is a lot of history that came before us.
2007-02-27 00:45:40 · answer #3 · answered by imnotachickenyoureaturkey 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Should not this be the case for all other languages, not just Spanish? People naturalizing have the choice of taking the citizenship test in their own language, or in English. There is also an iterview process, where a gov. official asks people questions about the U.S., so it's not as if people do not know anything about this country. Don't just focus on the Latinos, because it's every foreigner as well.
2007-02-27 00:49:42 · answer #4 · answered by nicoyaforever 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
And you are assuming they have a Green Card? Most do not who only speak Spanish. Puerto Rico a territory of the US predominantly speaks Spanish and they get permission to come here. Cubans who come here from Cuba get Political Asylum such that Miami is a bilingual city where you can live without barely speaking English. When Texas was purchased the Mexicans who lived there came with Texas and were never asked if they wanted to be a part of the US my friend pointed out to me. To become a citizen you must pass the exam in English this was established when people began to try adding Spanish as a second language when the constitution named English as the US language. I speak English and Spanish. I chose to learn it. If you do not want to deal with them walk away. If it is a part of your job try it out. Spanish can be a fun interesting language I learned after changing my attitude after having to learn it for a degree and then learning it the right way from my friends' trilingual children. You do not have to speak English to get a green card but you have to understand it well enough to get US citizenship and the questions are not easy to memorize even for a US citizen. They have a very large bank of questions from which they select questions from I have been told that are relevant to the United States History and laws.
For that reason many people never get beyond the green card residency stage in the US who are from many foreign countries with permission to be here such that finally the US decided if they were over 50 they could get citizenship finally I believe.
If you do not have citizenship nor speak fluent English generally in all job fields I have seen where they take people who speak Spanish they never get the better paying jobs so there is incentive for both legals and illegals to learn English. As my husband said they are lazy and do not care about the money. So just keep in mind they probably cannot take your job ever if they stick to Spanish and do not invest any time in learning English.
But if you as a US citizen get a degree and are bilingual in any language that is in demand it will increase your job opportunties like one young lady I know who is a single mom and translates for a major cell phone company down in South Florida. With all her Holiday and overtime pay two years ago she made 80 thousand dollars with a BA. Not bad for a young unwed mother aye? She has a University degree also. Those who are just bilingual get some of the better contractural jobs like being a part time court translator around a regular full time job. If you are a lawyer you do not have to speak Spanish you just hire someone without a degree who is bilingual so keep in mind just speaking English and Spanish fluently is so common that it is not worth much without the education to back it up.
2007-02-27 00:46:32 · answer #5 · answered by Faerieeeiren 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Their language is a part of their culture! Your argument is silly. You're upset because you're "forced" to decide between English and Spanish? LOL! My, my, what shall we do? And this isn't "your" country. It's home to many people from different backgrounds. This country is a rainbow of differnt people. It's called diversity. I'm pretty sure if you'll trace your geneology back, you'll find out that you're not exactly just what you thought you were. You probably have a little Spanish in your blood. :)
2007-02-27 00:45:39 · answer #6 · answered by miss_slyik_kiss 3 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Those who are going to work in this country should be required to be able to speak English If we were working in their country we would have to at least have a basic knowledge of their language The same should apply here in this country Bottom line is If you are going to work in this country at least learn the language we should not have to have to cater to you because you can not do so.
2007-02-27 00:54:10 · answer #7 · answered by bisquedog 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I agree we need to have congress put into law that English is our official language. You want to come to our country and live show some respect and learn the language.
Europeans live in small countries bordered by many other countries.. thats why many are multilingual in Europe.
Sorry to burst your bubble ms angry Native..but not all land was taken by force and a lot of our land was purchased from other Nations our uninhabited.
2007-02-27 01:17:47 · answer #8 · answered by . 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
There is no official American language, believe it or not. English just happens to be a standard.
Keep in mind that America is a nation of immigrants. Our founding fathers tried to be as inclusive as possible, which is only fair, since they didn't learn the Native American tongue.
It used to be that immigrants came and tried to fit in. They learned English, got jobs, and moved up the social ladder. Modern immigrants are the complete opposite- they come to our country and try to retain as much of their previous culture as possible for some reason. Schools used to teach the Melting Pot analogy- now, the Salad Bowl is the official comparison.
I do agree with you, though. An official national language would be inconvenient to some for a couple of years, but the long term economic and social payoff would be well worth it. We need to think about the future, but our politicians are only concerned with not alienating the Mexican base right now.
2007-02-27 00:44:04 · answer #9 · answered by Bobby S 4 · 1⤊ 3⤋
YOU don't have to cater to them, but businesses wanting to sell their products to everyone will probably do so. Having to select either English or Spanish (or any other language) on your touchtone phone when you call tech support is NO significant burden to you, yet the business who allows that choice is performing better customer service and may have a competitive advantage against other companies. Why do you hate capitalism!
Seriously, why require anyone to learn English to live in the US? If they want to get ahead, economically, they'll learn it and the more they want to get ahead, the faster they'll learn it. Leave it to the free market to happen, rather than control it.
2007-02-27 00:44:26 · answer #10 · answered by bdunn91 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Before I got my citizenship I had to prove that I could read and speak English. They gave me a text to read out loud then asked me a couple of comprehension questions about it. That was after I had to answer American Government questions
2007-02-27 00:44:59 · answer #11 · answered by scarlettt_ohara 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋