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Our educational as well as our social system is put under serious financial strain by the over application of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 under the pretense of non-discrimination. Immigrants are being provided a false sense of security by not being encouraged to learn English, which would yield far greater advancement opportunities in employment. Our melting pot is fast becoming a salad bowl, where unity and patriotism cannot exist. Education is one of the foremost issues in the English as the official language debate. A thorough understanding of what the English-only amendment would mean to the process of educating students who are non-native English speakers is essential. First, state and federally funded bilingual education programs, reach only a fraction of eligible students. Three quarters of limited English proficient students receive ESL instruction, while only one-third to one-half of these students receive any instruction in their native language (National Center for Education Statistics, 1997, p. 13). In 1996, more than one-third of teachers in bilingual classrooms were not fully credentialed, and while little is actually known about these teachers, the likelihood is that many were relying heavily on one of the 29,000 bilingual paraprofessionals employed in California’s schools. What is clear from the foregoing discussion is that neither the successes nor the failures of the current system can provide a basis for attacking English-only initiatives. There is a need for regulation, so that all students can receive the instruction they need to enter into mainstream society with a full understanding in English. Proponents of English-only initiatives do not oppose an end to all English as a Second Language programs, though many bilingual programs would likely be affected. The goal would be shifted to assimilation and immersion programs as opposed to programs centered around teaching and maintaining a proficiency in both languages. Several other nations are just as intent on providing English education to their students, it is a mandatory course in both the Philippines and Japan to name the most prominent supporters. English has become the language of business in our global marketing system. Within the confines of our nation, countless studies confirm that immigrants who do not speak English are at a distinct disadvantage in the workplace. They are remitted to low-skill positions and though this may entitle them to wages for the moment, there jobs are precarious because they are so easily replaced. "In this strong economy many who can't speak English can find service work. Just let the economy take a dive, as it did in the early 1990s or late 1970s, and you'll see how vulnerable so many of the immigrants are" (Gimpel, 14). Immigrants themselves constantly urge their compatriots to relinquish their refusal to learn English. Since even early immigration, take an 1856 in a pamphlet entitled “advice and instruction for German emigrants,” declared “as it concerns our means of living, we must above and beyond all, rely upon a knowledge of the English language.” (Wagner, 32). Even in places where Spanish-speakers are at a distinct advantage, such as along the United States-Mexico border, wages are significantly lower for those employed who do not hold an English proficiency. For example with the least proficiency in English tended to settle where the least skilled natives or remain along the border while the immigrant counterparts seemingly locate in interior cities. The indication that native Mexican Americans lacking English proficiency along the border exhibit a greater "attachment" to the region than immigrants. This finding has interpretive implications, in comparing English skill premium results; one can anticipate the relatively higher location preference of native Mexican Americans may yield differences in the English-deficiency earnings penalties similar to that of non-border workers. Additionally, these Mexican immigrants earn less, and fewer hold "white collar" jobs than U.S.-born Mexican Americans, who have a higher proficiency of the English language. If immigrants are being denied opportunity and put under financial strain by being unable to speak English, the same can be said of our government. The economic strain of maintaining public services in other languages cannot currently be estimated. The wide expanse of documents and services spanning the social system, from driver’s license examinations and voter ballots to health care services and ESL programs are only a trivial portion of this cost. The enormity of the cost is likely however with interpreters affiliated with the nation's more than 3,000 interpreting-translating firms charging $35 and up per hour and working many hours. The Supreme Court has interpreted Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which bars "discrimination, under any program or activity receiving federal assistance, against any person because of his race, color or national origin," to guarantee that services not be denied someone who speaks a foreign language. Political scientist James Gimpel, a University of Maryland specialist on immigration and public policy: “Sure providing interpreting and translating services is costly. That makes it a public policy problem. So does the fact that our information-based economy demands knowledge of English and so many more people than before don't speak it.” What is more than the financial strain is maintaining certain documents in other languages without regulation poses serious questions. Are drivers going to be able to understand the instructions of a police officers if their English is not proficient enough to pass a drivers examination? Are voters fully informed of the issues, with our primary media both broadcast and print being in English? Unification of such a diverse nation relies upon a sense of unity and nationalism. Each unique culture and language contributes to the nation as a whole, but without a common bond, without any form of unification our nation suffers. The current state of the language policy is contributing to ramifications on all spectrums of the system. Children, especially immigrant children, are being denied the opportunity to be educated in English. They become workers who do not earn the wages they could be earning were they properly educated. They are at a distinct disadvantage on a number of levels. Government pays enormous amounts of money to print documents and provide services in a language other than English, which only further perpetuates their inability to move forward. Currently, twenty-six states have declared English the official language of their state or passed similar legislation. It is time that the nation makes a stand. It is time that English become the official language of the United States by constitutional amendment, to ensure equal opportunity and unity of our nation. Bibliography: Word Count: 1114
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