Amén. Spanish for: Amen. Shared from Eric T. Scott, who got it from a friend. THE PROBLEM WITH SAYING THIS IS AMERICA, WE SPEAK ENGLISH One of the first published versions of the Declaration of Independence appeared in Philadelphia newspaper for German speakers on July 9, 1776. Thousands of proud new Americans in the city where the United States was born wouldnt have fully known the reasons for their newfound independence if it had only been readable in English. America has NEVER been a nation of one language. Ever. Never, ever, ever. The first president born in the United States of America after independence, Martin Van Buren, spoke Dutch as his first language. We have achieved some of our greatest triumphs in war, in peace, in trade and commerce, in art and culture and ideology and diplomacy and history, in part because the languages of our rival nations ARE ALSO AMERICAN LANGUAGES. Another nation may proudly consider itself a nation of one language, and thats great for them. But they know theyll face the world at a disadvantage if they do not learn our most prevalent tongue. They cant hold that same advantage over us because ANY language that travels through the cables and corridors of power becomes, before long, the native language of a man or woman who stands up proudly under the banner of the fifty stars and the thirteen stripes. The growing audibility of Spanish in America seems specifically to irk some people. We boast the fifth-largest population of Spanish speakers in the world. Some of the Spanish languages greatest writers, singers, journalists, scholars, preachers, artists and dreamers come from the USA. Those who would expel non-English languages from our national conversation would rob us of our place as a dominant nation in the discourse, culture and media of the most common language in the Western Hemisphere and the second most common language on the planet. Why do they want to diminish America like that? What is it about the American system, and the ideals and values and aspiration of our people, that makes some people think its too fragile and anemic to survive in a language besides English? How does the American dream come under threat if we proclaim it to the world in ways that reach straight to the heart of every person under the sun? This is America. We speak English. We speak Spanish, Mandarin, Arabic, German, Bengali, Cherokee, Portugese, Maori, Japanese, Yoruba, Russian, Hmong, Lakota, Hindi, French, Tagalog, Navajo, Swahili and Klingon. This is America. We speak human.
Posted on: Mon, 03 Feb 2014 18:46:06 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015