Amendment would require English
By JIM SALTER
Associated Press Writer
Associated Press Writer
Saturday, October 4, 2008 7:04 AM CDT
A proposal on the Nov. 4 ballot would change that. Voters will consider whether to approve a constitutional amendment making English the “official” language for all governmental proceedings conducted in Missouri. Amendment 1 would prohibit the use of other languages in meetings ranging from local committees to the state legislature.
Lawmakers recognized English as the “common” language in 1998. That law carries no stipulations or requirements.
“We have gotten reports during testimony in the Legislature that there have been city council meetings in the state of Missouri done partially in languages other than English to accommodate business owners, which is a huge problem in my mind,” said state Rep. Brian Nieves, R-Union, who sponsored the measure.
“The issue in my opinion is when an American citizen walks into any official proceeding, be that a city council meeting or something being done by the state Legislature, anyone should be able to understand what his or her government is doing,” Nieves said.
Saint Louis University political scientist Ken Warren said the measure might cause an uproar in some states, but not Missouri, where the immigrant population is relatively small.
“You’re talking about a state with almost no Hispanic population,” Warren said. “With Missouri being so conservative socially, this thing will pass easily.”
Still, there is opposition. Paromita Shah of the Boston-based immigrant rights group the National Immigration Project said the amendment is unnecessary and could lead to discrimination against those who don’t speak or who are just learning English.
“The people who come here and English is not their first language, where they may not be able to have complicated discussions, are going to be taken out of the political process,” Shah said. “That’s really a senseless application of the law.”
State Rep. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, D-University City, noted that her suburban St. Louis town has many new arrivals from Russia, Ethiopia and other nations. She also pointed to St. Louis, where a large and vibrant Bosnian community has emerged.
“You think about the guys who are Bosnian who are trying to get their trucking license,” Chappelle-Nadal said. “They know the rules but don’t speak conversational English. I think this could be a hindrance to business.”
Nieves disagrees. He cited instances in other states like Texas and Washington “where city council meetings are conducted entirely in other languages.” That hasn’t happened in Missouri, he said, but it could.
“Basically my amendment is intended to be one of those ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure measures,” Nieves said.
Chappelle-Nadal finds nothing wrong with someone in a governmental meeting using another language to converse with a resident.
“If there are people who are trying to help this guy along, they should not be prohibited from doing that,” she said. “He’s just trying to live the American dream.”
The amendment requires that English be the official language not only for in-person meetings but also for those conducted via conference call, video conference, Internet chat and message board. The ballot measure would also mean that English would be the language for ballots, driver’s license exams and other documents. It would not apply to informal gatherings.
Similar laws are already in place in about 30 states, according to U.S. English, a citizens action group dedicated to making English the official language. The organization notes that more than 322 languages are spoken in the nation. It says making English the official language provides a common means of communication and encourages immigrants to learn English.
U.S. English says the Missouri ballot issue marks the ninth time that voters in a state have been asked to make English the official language. The other ballot issues all passed, most recently in Arizona in 2006. ———
On the Net:
National Immigration Project: http://www.nationalimmigrationproject.org
U.S. English: www.usenglish.org
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Reader Comments (2)The comments below are from readers and do not represent the views of the Daily Journal
anomalouspropagation posted on Sunday, October 5th, 2008 at 10:42 am
Who voted these representatives in? "You think about the guys who are Bosnian who are trying to get their trucking license, Chappelle-Nadal said. They know the rules but dont speak conversational English. I think this could be a hindrance to business. Someone in her district needs to informed this poorly educated Representative that a FEDERAL law already stipulates these "Commercial" operators be able to speak English well enough to conversate with law enforcement-paraphrased. Yes, English should be the official language but the language spoken needs to be that of commerce and business. Fortunately, most others speak English already. While onthe point-I'll support this waste of energy if their is an Ammendment to make English the official "legal" language mandatory of our laws and procedures. Why do I need to know Latin to file and Ex-Parte? Nonsense, this bill is a feel good measure and it is time to change our legal system before the gov't procedures and meetings. This is like doing "Chinese Algebra" with an abacus in America. Less gov't and only gov't that works for the people!
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mofirefighter posted on Saturday, October 4th, 2008 at 8:34 am
I must agree with this. Anyone that wants to "begin a new life" in this country should be able to read, write, and speak english. After working with some "immigrants" at a factory (unsure of legal status) I think it should be mandatory. They would expect us to learn the language of their country if we were to go there, wouldn't they?
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