Reject the ARC\u2019s siren call of multilingualism
\nBy Phil Kent<\/p>\n
\u201cLanguage is perhaps the strongest, perhaps most enduring link which unites men.\u201d\u2014Alexis de Tocqueville.<\/p>\n
Since our nation\u2019s founding, countless millions of immigrants forged new identities as Americans and succeeded in their new homeland by learning English and adopting our civic and cultural values. Now, in the midst of the largest wave of immigration in our history, we must not let this precious gift of unity, our common tongue, slip away.<\/p>\n
The latest example of how English is undermined comes by way of the Atlanta Regional Commission. To achieve a so-called \u201ccertification of excellence\u201d in order \u201cto gain more benefits,\u201d according to ARC spokeswoman Julie Ralston, the ARC advises counties and cities to provide multilingual services in key government operations for non-English speakers.<\/p>\n
First, some background. Georgia requires metro counties and cities to achieve \u201cqualified local government status.\u201d To obtain that distinction, the ARC forged a regional plan that coordinates growth in Cobb County and the nine other counties it serves. The Marietta Daily Journal found that three years after the ARC approves the regional plan, communities must come into compliance\u2014 and they have until January 2014 to turn in proposals showing how they are complying.<\/p>\n
This time, however, ARC bureaucrats are giving governments an option: apply for \u201cminimum certification\u201d or \u201cexcellence certification.\u201d It is the \u201cexcellence\u201d certification that includes the multilingualism program.<\/p>\n
ARC Chairman Tad Leithead, who at first claimed he didn\u2019t know much about the issue, eventually told this writer that the multilingual requirement is part of a \u201cmenu\u201d that can be chosen or not. The ARC spokeswoman, after conferring with colleagues, later said that the opportunity to obtain grants and loans would not be affected if a city or county chose \u201cminimal\u201d or \u201cexcellence\u201d certification. Interesting. Is this now back pedaling by the ARC since the MDJ broke the story?<\/p>\n
The ARC spokeswoman also gave this writer a sob story of how non-English speakers need to be helped. Yes, they do deserve help and compassion\u2014 yet they have traditionally gotten it from a support system of family, friends and private agencies that provide translation assistance in all sorts of situations.<\/p>\n
There are dozens of languages spoken in Georgia and over 300 languages spoken in this country. Providing taxpayer-supported translators and multilingual materials would be a huge burden for government. Besides, if you become a citizen or legal permanent resident, the basic requirement is to know English.<\/p>\n
There could hardly be an example in a democratic society of a more unpopular policy being imposed on the majority by a minority of ideologically-driven activists and unelected bureaucrats. That is why Georgia and 30 other states have had to pass laws designating English as the official language of government operations. Yet the ARC\u2019s half-baked multilingual idea blatantly undercuts Georgia\u2019s law!<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the ARC hasn\u2019t considered that accommodating some foreign languages and not others is discriminatory. The only way for a city or county to make it non-discriminatory is to communicate in one unifying tongue\u2014 English\u2014 to avoid the growing practice in some areas of favoring a select few immigrant languages over others.<\/p>\n
By the way, a recent Rasmussen poll found 87 percent of respondents from all ethnic backgrounds support English as the official language of government. Let\u2019s also remember that government has traditionally played an important role in encouraging the assimilation of new immigrants by communicating with them in English. Why change that successful model? The ARC\u2019s multilingual \u201coption\u201d is a reversal of the melting pot tradition by making it attractive to foster communication with non-English speaking persons.<\/p>\n
English is the undisputed language of success in the United States, and Census data underscore that the number of English learner families living in poverty is about twice the national rate. Lacking fluency in English traps non-English speakers in low-skilled, low wage jobs and keeps them heavily reliant on taxpayer-funded government programs.
\nMetro Atlanta cities and counties should reject the ARC\u2019s siren promotion of multilingualism\u2014 even if the ARC promises \u201cmore benefits\u201d if they go that route.
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As Appeared in the April 7, 2013 Marietta (Ga.) Daily Journal<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":75,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-250","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=250"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/250\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":316,"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/250\/revisions\/316"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/75"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philkentconsulting.com\/wp\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}