Gingrich: Bilingualism is 'Ghetto'
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich equated bilingual education Saturday with
"the language of living in a ghetto" and mocked requirements that ballots be
printed in multiple languages.
"The government should quit mandating that various documents be printed in
any one of 700 languages depending on who randomly shows up" to vote, said
Gingrich, who is considering seeking the Republican presidential nomination
in 2008. He made the comments in a speech to the National Federation of
Republican Women.
"The American people believe English should be the official language of the
government. ... We should replace bilingual education with immersion in
English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn
the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto,"
Gingrich said to cheers from the crowd of more than 100.
"Citizenship requires passing a test on American history in English. If
that's true, then we do not have to create ballots in any language except
English," he said.
Peter Zamora, co-chair of the Washington-based Hispanic Education Coalition,
which supports bilingual education, said, "The tone of his comments was very
hateful. Spanish is spoken by many individuals who do not live in the
ghetto."
He said research has shown "that bilingual education is the best method of
teaching English to non-English speakers." Spanish-speakers, he said, know
they need to learn English. "There's no resistance to learning English,
really, among immigrants, among native-born citizens. Everyone wants to
learn English because it's what you need to thrive in this country."
In the past, Gingrich has supported making English the nation's official
language. He's also said all American children should learn English and that
other languages should be secondary in schools.
In 1995, for example, he said bilingualism poses "long-term dangers to the
fabric of our nation" and that "allowing bilingualism to continue to grow is
very dangerous."
Bilingual programs teach students reading, arithmetic and other basic skills
in their native language so they do not fall behind while mastering English.
Since 1975, the Voting Rights Act has required ballots and other election
assistance in languages other than English in jurisdictions where at least 5
percent of voting-age citizens are not proficient in English and literacy
rates are below the national average.
The issue of a national language will likely re-emerge when Congress
considers immigration legislation later this year.
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--
CB
Time to Put English First
Human Events Online
Newt Gingrich
http://www.newt.org/backpage.asp?art=4081
One of the most frequent complaints I hear when I'm out traveling and
speaking to groups is the lack of importance given to English as the
language of success in the United States today. Whether it's the
government's printing election ballots in other languages or bilingual
education, Americans are concerned about the future of English as a unifying
bond in our country.
Newt's got my vote...if he should run