'This Is Alabama; We Speak English'

[one...two...tree 2,762]

(Interesting history about German in early America)

The Legendary English-Only

Vote of 1795

This isn’t the first time that Americans have argued about whether English-only should be the law of the land. Dennis Baron delves into the origins of the myth of an early move to outlaw German and relates more recent measures to discourage bilingualism, including by the U.S. Constitution.

In April, 1987, an election judge from Missouri wrote to Ann Landers citing the following excerpt from the local Election Manual to support the argument that everyone's vote counts: “In 1776, one vote gave America the English language instead of German.” The statement is not strictly true, as many of Landers' more alert readers quickly pointed out. The vote in question did not take place. However, language became a political and an emotional issue as early as the 1750s, when British settlers in Pennsylvania began to fear and resent the fact that a third of their fellow Pennsylvanians were German speakers.

Since that time, American nativists have sought to eradicate minority languages and discourage bilingualism wherever it could be found: in Maine and Louisiana, California and New Mexico, Hawaii and Puerto Rico, as well as in Pennsylvania. Complaints about Germans as well as other non-English-speakers became all too common in the last quarter of the 19th century, and again during and after World War I, when the fear of immigrants and their languages prompted protective English-only legislation. Many Americans considered non-Anglophones to be less than human: in 1904 a railroad president told a congressional hearing on the mistreatment of immigrant workers, “These workers don’t suffer—they don't even speak English” (Shanahan, 1989.) Today as well there is opposition to non-Anglophones and bilinguals—this time not Germans but Hispanic and Asian Americans. The result is the proposed English Language Amendment (ELA), a Constitutional amendment making English the official language of the United States.

Despite the latest rehearsal in Ann Landers’ advice column of the myth that German had once come close to replacing English in the United States, Americans have never had a legally-established official language. The so-called German vote did not take place in 1776, and it had nothing to do with privileging German over English. The legend that it did, which has gone around since at least the 1850s, was spread initially by propagandists celebrating German contributions to American culture. It has since been taken over by those who claim that the English language in the United States is an endangered species. The story of the German Vote is occasionally trotted out by ELA supporters to demonstrate the power of ethnic groups to subvert national unity and to warn Americans that although the German threat to English has been defused, the Spanish one has not.

The events whose misinterpretation gave rise to the legend of the German vote occurred in 1795, though the date is frequently changed to the more patriotically crucial year of 1776. As is characteristic of such stories, what actually occurred is not entirely clear. What is clear is that Congress never considered replacing English with any other language or giving any other tongue equal status with English. In the 18th century there were rumors that a few Brit-bashing superpatriots campaigned to have the new nation drop English in favor of Hebrew, French, or Greek, considered in the late 18th century to be the languages of God, rationality, and democracy, respectively. But the desire to found a New Eden rather than a New Babel assured that the United States would be united both legally and socially under a single language, and that language would be English. Noah Webster championed a dialect-free Federal English based on his spelling book. John Adams rightly predicted that English would become the next world language. And Roger Sherman of Connecticut is reported to have urged Americans to retain English and make the British speak Greek. (See Baron, 1982.) Despite the solid position of English both initially and throughout American history, the legend of the German vote persists.

....

Official English Then and Now

Opponents of moves to make English the official language of the United States frequently suspect that English-only advocates are motivated by more than political idealism. This suspicion is certainly justified by the historical record. For the past two centuries, proponents of official-English have sounded two separate themes, one rational and patriotic, the other emotional and racist. The Enlightenment belief that language and nation are inextricably intertwined, coupled with the chauvinist notion that English is a language particularly suited to democratically constituted societies, are convincing to many Americans who find discrimination on non-linguistic grounds thoroughly reprehensible (see Baron, 1990). More prominent though, throughout American history, have been the nativist attacks on minority languages and their speakers: Native Americans, Asians, the French, Germans, Jews and Hispanics, to name only the most frequently targeted groups.

The English-only nativists who attacked the Germans used arguments similar to those heard nowadays against newer immigrants. Benjamin Franklin considered the Pennsylvania Germans to be a “swarthy” racial group distinct from the English majority in the colony. In 1751 he complained, “Why should the Palatine Boors be suffered to swarm into our Settlements, and by herding together establish their Language and Manners to the exclusion of ours? Why should Pennsylvania, founded by the English, become a Colony of Aliens, who will shortly be so numerous as to Germanize us instead of our Anglifying them, and will never adopt our Language or Customs, any more than they can acquire our Complexion?” (The papers of Benjamin Franklin. Ed. Leonard W. Labaree. New Haven: Yale Univ. Press, 1959. vol 4:234).

The Germans were accused by other eighteenth-century Anglos of laziness, illiteracy, clannishness, a reluctance to assimilate, excessive fertility, and Catholicism. They were even blamed for the severe Pennsylvania winters. (Feer 1952, 403; Mittelberger 1898, 104). Most irritating to Pennsylvania’s English-firsters in the latter 1700s was German language loyalty, although it was clear that, despite community efforts to preserve their language, Germans were adopting English and abandoning German at a rate that should have impressed the rest of the English-speaking population.

Anti-German sentiment spread along with German immigration, and the nation as a whole resisted both the German bilingual schools that were established in parts of the Midwest in the 19th century and the common practise of publishing legal notices in German American newspapers. On a number of occasions the U.S. Congress again rejected motions to print laws or other documents in German as well as English. The motions were often treated jocularly and were shouted down amidst racist cries of, “What! In the Cherokee? [and in] the Old Congo language!” (Congressional Globe 1844, 7)

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[Heracles 417]

It's quite simple. Once and for all, the country needs to vote on it and be over with it.

Every single document in the country's history and of importance has been in English but let's ignore all of that.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

It's quite simple. Once and for all, the country needs to vote on it and be over with it.

Every single document in the country's history and of importance has been in English but let's ignore all of that.

Oh no, we can't discriminate against the Hispanic people. They have rights too ya know. They are special and deserve to speak their own language in the United States and we should have to accomodate them. If our business doesn't have a spanish speaking person available, we should be able to be sued for discrimination, especially if we won't hire someone who can't speak English. It's just not fair that they should have to learn the language of the land.

[Heracles 417]

Oh no, we can't discriminate against the Hispanic people. They have rights too ya know. They are special and deserve to speak their own language in the United States and we should have to accomodate them. If our business doesn't have a spanish speaking person available, we should be able to be sued for discrimination, especially if we won't hire someone who can't speak English. It's just not fair that they should have to learn the language of the land.

It's funny how everyone else has to cater for Hispanics, yet God forbid you ask they try to assimilate or learn something about the country they have chosen to migrate to. More often than not, given themselves permission to migrate to. I now understand why Australia allocates the least amount of Visa's to Northern Latin America.

Edited April 28, 2010 by Booyah!

[Nina~ 431]

Pointing out that a drivers license exam is in multiple languages hardly proves anything. Newsflash: all English countries print documents in a variety of languages to cater for their diverse range of new immigrants. By the way, immigrants here now means Hispanics. What they don't do is change everything for one particular new group of foreigners that cannot be bothered learning the native language. Especially not the same group of foreigners that simply jumped the border and entered willy-nilly.

It's unfathomable that anyone with a clue would push for a two-tier America. Hispanics speaking Latin Spanish and the rest speaking English. That is not diversity, it's stupidity. You have clearly never traveled or lived abroad so think Hispanic alone equates to diversity.

When an immigrant moves here, their primary goals are going to be getting a social security number, getting a d/l, enrolling their kids in school and getting a job to put food on the table. They will probably worry about learning English after they have settled down. And so having government forms in multiple language is a darn good idea to help a new immigrant assimilate into the society.

Moreover, 2nd generation immigrants usually have a strong grasp of English and the 3rd generation immigrants almost always do not speak their grandparent's native language. So really, I mean REALLY there is no threat against English in this country!

And also, I have lived, worked & visited more countries than you can name including god-awful Australia

[Heracles 417]

When an immigrant moves here, their primary goals are going to be getting a social security number, getting a d/l, enrolling their kids in school and getting a job to put food on the table. They will probably worry about learning English after they have settled down. And so having government forms in multiple language is a darn good idea to help a new immigrant assimilate into the society.

Moreover, 2nd generation immigrants usually have a strong grasp of English and the 3rd generation immigrants almost always do not speak their grandparent's native language. So really, I mean REALLY there is no threat against English in this country!

And also, I have lived, worked & visited more countries than you can name including god-awful Australia

It's funny to hear clowns from Texas claim that a country which receives more awards than Texas has people insured is awful. It's called speaking out of your azz.

Actually a number of teachers I have spoken with who teach across a number of grade levels say that they have a large number of Hispanic students that do not speak a word of English, though they were born in the US. You are right though, other immigrants do attempt to learn the language.

[Nina~ 431]

It's funny to hear clowns from Texas claim that a country which receives more awards than Texas has people insured is awful. It's called speaking out of your azz.

Actually a number of teachers I have spoken with who teach across a number of grade levels say that they have a large number of Hispanic students that do not speak a word of English, though they were born in the US. You are right though, other immigrants do attempt to learn the language.

I am not "from Texas" and so that does not offend me one bit.. But I have seen rural "award-winning" Australia that is worse than a third world country.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I am not "from Texas" and so that does not offend me one bit.. But I have seen rural "award-winning" Australia that is worse than a third world country.

You must have seen the Lebanese part That part doesn't count as they're not proper white Ozzies.

[Heracles 417]

I am not "from Texas" and so that does not offend me one bit.. But I have seen rural "award-winning" Australia that is worse than a third world country.

Riiiight, because rural America is prospering. Too bad the majority of people live along the coast in AUS.

Do you even think before you post?

You must have seen the Lebanese part That part doesn't count as they're not proper white Ozzies.

She has seen what LuckyTXN has seen: diddly-squat.

Edited April 28, 2010 by Booyah!

[sachinky 464]

I don't want to get sucked into another debate so treat this like an off-topic comment (well, sort of) but I was at the Calcutta VFS office the other day and an elderly gentlemen was submitting his documents for his IR5 visa before mine. Before he left he asked the agent helping out whether they had any language programs to help him acquire a smoother accent. He spoke flawless English but, of course, with an Indian accent and I suprised at how much effort he was willing to make to assimilate even before entering the U.S.

I guess I'd never move to Greece to live on a permanent basis if I didn't speak a smidgeon of Greek. Isn't life easier when you can speak the language of the land?

Edited April 28, 2010 by sachinky

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I guess I'd never move to Greece to live on a permanent basis if I didn't speak a smidgeon of Greek. Isn't life easier when you can speak the language of the land?

While you're still there, do me a favor and teach those Bihari taxi drivers some goddamn Bangla, will ya? Thanks.

[sachinky 464]

Those Bihari taxi drivers usually know enough Bangla to get by, if not, there's always Hindi to fall back on.

Using Indian languages to compare it with the U.S. situation simply doesn't work because every Indian state/region has their own language/dialect.

Do the good folk of Michigan speak a different language than those in New York?

Edited April 28, 2010 by sachinky

[Niels Bohr 72]

One problem.

The market today is a global market. So, limiting yourselves to one language puts you at a slight disadvantage.