B. C. REPEAL OF LAWS MANDATING FOREIGN LANGUAGE VOTING BALLOTS (See supporting document B1) AMEND THE BILINGUAL EDUCATION ACT TO ALLOW FOR GREATER (See supporting document C1) We are most grateful for the chance to present these important issues to you. From our experience, we can unequivically assure you that they are perceived as matters of the highest priority by rank-and-file Americans everywhere. We hope that you will give them serious consideration, and include them in the 1984 Republican Party Platform. We'll be pleased to answer any questions, and to assist the Committee in any way it wishes. US ENGLISII 1424 16th Street, N.W., Suite 714 Washington, D.C. 20036 FACT SHEET ENGLISH LANGUAGE AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION What is the English Language Amendment? The English Language Amendment was first introduced in 1981 by former Senator S.I. Hayakawa (see reverse side for excerpts of his statement introducing the ELA). The 98th session of Congress has two versions of the English Language Amendment, S.J. Res. 167 and H.R. Res. 169. S.J. Res. 167 reads as follows: "Section 1. The English language shall be the official language of the United States. "Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation." The House version, H.R. Res. 169, adds the following paragraphs between the first and last sections: "Section 2. Neither the United States nor any State shall require by law, ordinance, regulation, order, decree, program, or policy, the use in the United States of any language other than English. of "Section 3. This article shall not prohibit any law, ordinance, regulation, order, decree, program or policy requiring educational instruction in a language other than English for the purpose making students who use a language other than English proficient English." What Would the ELA Do? in 1. It would establish English as the official language of Federal, State and local governments throughout the United States. 2. It would bring official recognition to the principle that a common language is necessary to preserve the basic internal unity required for political stability and national cohesion. 3. It would prevent governments from mandating multilingual postings or publications. is 4. An ELA would reaffirm the importance of English in our national life. It would clarify to newcomers that learning English indispensable for full participation in American society and economy. 5. It would reaffirm that we are truly "one Nation...indivisible..." What Wouldn't the ELA DO? 1. The ELA would not prohibit or discourage the use of foreign languages and cultures in private contexts, such as in homes, churches, communities, private organizations, commerce, and private schools. (over) 2. It would not prohibit the teaching of foreign languages in the nation's public schools or colleges, nor would it prohibit foreign language requirements in academic institutions. 3. It would not prevent the use of foreign languages for public convenience and safety. 4. It would not prohibit short-term transitional bilingual education programs. The above statements are based on the studied views of ELA sponsors Senator Huddleston, Congressman Shumway, and other ELA supporters. A 8 with any legislation, the interpretation must be based on legislative history and the intent of the legislators. As with other Constitutional Amendments, the courts will over time clarify its applications. Excerpt from the Congressional Record, April 27, 1981: "PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT WITH RESPECT TO PROCEEDINGS AND DOCUMENTS IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE a "Mr. HAYAKAWA. Mr. President, language is a powerful tool. A common language can unify; separate languages can fracture and fragment society. The American "melting pot" has succeeded in creating a vibrant new culture among peoples of many different cultural backgrounds largely because of the widespread use of a common language, English. "Learning English has been the primary task of every immigrant group for two centuries. Participation in the common language has rapidly made available to each new group the political and economic benefits of American society. Those who have mastered English have overcome the major hurdle to full participation in our democracy. "Today I am introducing a constitutional amendment declaring as the law of the land what is already a political and social reality: That English is the official language of the United States. "This amendment is needed to clarify the confusing signals we have given in recent years to immigrant groups. For example, the requirements for naturalization as a U.S. citizen say you must be able to "read, write, and speak words in ordinary usage in the English language." And though you must be a citizen to vote, some recent legislation has required bilingual ballots in some areas. This amendment would end that contradictory, logically conflicting situation." "I am proposing this amendment because I believe that we are being dishonest with linguistic minority groups if we tell them they can take full part in American life without learning the English language. We may wish it were otherwise, but it is simply not 80. A s the Bon of an immigrant to an English-speaking country, I know this from personal experience. If I spoke no English, my world would be limited to the Japanese-speaking community, and no matter how talented I was, I could never do business, seek employment, or take part in public affairs outside that community." We "The ability to forge unity from diversity makes our society strong. need all the elements, Germans, Hispanics, Hellenes, Italians, Chinese, all the cultures that make our Nation unique. Unless we have a common basis for communicating and sharing ideas, we all lose. The purpose of this proposal is to insure that American democracy always strives include in its mainstream everyone who aspires to citizenship, to that no one gets locked out by permanent language barriers." to insure (3/30/84) FACT SHEET BILINGUAL VOTING BALLOTS US ENGLISII 1424 16th Street, N.W., Suite 714 Washington, D.C. 20036 What Is The Issue? In 1975, with little public discussion and virtually no input from the American public, amendments mandating foreign language ballots were added to the Voting Rights Act. Foreign language ballots are now required in places where (1) more than five percent of a jurisdiction's citizens of voting age are members of a specified language minority group, and (2) their illiteracy rate is higher than the national rate. The law affects 505 counties in 30 states. Only Spanish, Native American and Asian Pacific languages are targeted in the law. The Proposal: Opponents of federally mandated voting in foreign languages want this law repealed. The case for repeal is based on the following considerations: had *Bilingual ballots are deeply resented by earlier immigrants who process. *Bilingual ballots are highly symbolic of the official recognition won by other languages, in competition with English. *Bilingual ballots dissolve the traditional bond between English and citizenship. *Bilingual ballots are unnecessary, as virtually all applicants for U.S. citizenship must pa88 an examination demonstrating knowledge of simple English. *Bilingual ballots are costly. While the cost of English ballots is usually less than $2.00 per registered voter, non-English ballots range from $6.00 upwards. The City of San Francisco spent about $150,000 for bilingual ballots in 1983; in another case, county spent $6,619 producing foreign language ballots and not 8 single one was used. BILLS AND ACTIONS TO MONITOR a In November, 1983, 63 percent of the voters in San Francisco approved an initiative urging that federal law be amended so that ballots, voters' pamphlets, and all other official voting materials be printed in English only. A similar effort is now underway statewide in California. Two bills to repeal the provisions of the Voting Rights Act that mandates foreign language ballots have been introduced in the House, in the Senate. They are H.R. 4429, sponsored by Congressman William Thomas (R CA), H.R. 4917, sponsored by Congressman Robert Badham (R CA), and S. 2488, sponsored by Senator Burdick (D ND). one (3/30/84) 7 FACT SHEET BILINGUAL EDUCATION ACT REVISIONS US ENGLISII 1424 16th Street, N.W., Suite 714 Washington, DC. 20036 The Bilingual Education Act, also known as Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, is up for reauthorization in 1984. This presents an opportunity for reassessment of the Act, which has become increasingly controversial and politicized since its original enactment in 1969. To assist children of limited English proficiency integrate more fully and rapidly into the regular school curriculum, U.S.ENGLISH proposes the following changes: 1. The name of the Act should reflect the primary purpose of the legislation, which is not to run programs for these students in native languages, but to teach them English so that they can function in the schools. The name of the Act, therefore, should be changed to "The English Language Acquisition Opportunity Act". The name of the office in the Department of Education administering the Act should be changed to the "Office of English Language Acquisition", and the National Advisory Council on Bilingual Education should be renamed the "National Advisory Council on English Language Acquisition". Its composition should be broadened to reflect the interest of the publicat-large in the education of our immigrant children. 2. Despite enormous amounts of money, time, and effort spent on bilingual education, there is no convincing evidence to prove that this is the best--and certainly not the only--method for teaching children of limited English proficiency. It is time to end the monopoly granted bilingual education programs in the federal law, and to open the educational process to other approaches, including structured immersion and English-as-a-Second Language programs. 3. The "bicultural education" requirement should be removed from the law. Culture is the province of the family, of the church, of the voluntary sector. The role of the public school is to inculcate in the new generation of Americans the civic culture we all share. 4. Students in programs funded under Title VII are permitted an indefinite period of time to make the transition from the bilingual to the regular classroom. As in incentive for the local school districts to find the most effective method of teaching English, a two year limitation on the use of Title VII monies for any one student's bilingual education is proposed. 5. The original Bilingual Education Act called for innovative and imaginative programs. In that spirit, the Act should designate specific funding for research and demonstration projects on using television for teaching English to children and adults. 6. Authorization levels for English language acquisition programs should not exceed $200,000,000. Appropriations above the current amount of $139,000,000 are not difficult, clearly, those proposals that suggest authorizations of a half-billion dollars should not be considered. (4/11/84) |