I've decided a long time ago to put politics in the back burner. I've realized over the years that it only brings hate. Candidates rarely make things better, but usually let things go. Anyway, I have to take issue with certain things. Newt Gingrich must have said the stupidest comment I have heard a candidate say thus far. He made a speech to the National Federation of Republican Women about bilingual education. His stance is that it should be abolished. Alright, some people don't agree with bilingual education. They feel it undermines the English language and the country.
Let me quote you exactly what he said:
"The American people believe English should be the official language of the government. ... We should replace bilingual education with immersion in English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto," Gingrich said to cheers from the crowd of more than 100.
Since when does having another native language is the "language of living in a ghetto?" Are you kidding me? How many people who speak the "language of prosperity" live in a ghetto? I only knew Spanish when I started school. I'm American, meaning I was born here. I never took bilingual education because my parents never thought I would need to. I was also 4 when I started school (my birthday is in September) and learned English just fine. But let's say I would not have been born in the United States and gotten here when I was older, I would have needed bilingual education.
Should everyone learn English? Absolutely. There's no question about it. The problem is that people who come from other countries are usually poor and need to work more than the regular 40 hour work week to support his/her family. If minimum wage was viable, than they would have the time to learn English. Children who do not speak English are not stupid. They just need a little help with the language. Remember that some of these kids have never heard English until they have stepped into a school. How would you feel if you didn't understand what your teaching is saying?
Has Newt Gingrich lost his mind saying what he said? There are millions of people who speak other languages and are not ghetto or living in a ghetto. Has Gingrich not stepped into the prominent neighborhoods of Miami where everyone speaks Spanish? Or in other neighborhoods throughout the country that speak only Korean and are not in ghettos?
I'm furious with his tone of hate and how he's insulted what makes this country work. All throughout American History there have been immigrants that speak other languages and make this country strong. There are countless children of immigrants that have sacrificed their lives for American wars. How many Puerto Rican men who did not speak English have been whisked away to war without even knowing why they were fighting to begin with? How dare he insult us?
So in my anger, I decided to google Gingrich and came across his website: newt.org. Guess what I found on his site? A Spanish tab! Why? This is what he said on that same speech: "Citizenship requires passing a test on American history in English. If that's true, then we do not have to create ballots in any language except English," he said. The three Spanish tabs available are his biography, frequent questions, and op-ed. In frequent questions, the first question is how to obtain an autographed picture of Newt Gingrich himself. Yup, that's exactly what I want after learning about his speech. Get the Spanish tab out of your website! There is no point of it according to your speech. Do not cater to the Spanish community if you're going to insult us. You are a disgrace and none of us appreciate your hateful speech.
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2 comments:
Newt's an idiot. Una masa de estupidez y con un voz tan... enfadando! Como se puede aguantar escuchar a sus tonterias?
Earth to Newt, Sr. Gingrich, please come in...
Spanish is not a foreign language in the USA, and it's certainly not a ghetto language! Spanish was in active use, and the public language, in official use, in cities throughout the US Southwest for centuries before they ever became part of the United States-- through the Mexican War one should hasten to add, a very ugly, disgusting war of aggression launched by the Anglos for the "noble" purpose of spreading slavery to mestizo lands.
Spanish, thus, was the founding language of a very large and economically important section of the United States, and it got legal recognition as such in the statutes and treaties that concluded the war. It was the only way to achieve some measure of reconciliation with the Latino people.
That applies just the same today, and it's true-- Spanish is a basic part of the American fabric, not just in e.g. California and Arizona but in Florida, and in Puerto Rico. The whole US SW has Spanish as an original language of discourse, and it's a public language for legislatures and schools as much as a private one. It should be picked up by schoolkids and actively used from the earliest ages.
Newt should take another history lesson before he continues spouting out his drivel.
As a gringa, I absolutely agree with the previous comment. Newt is an absolute MORON and I am mortified to think that anyone might assume that his opinion is the general consensus. He gives white Americans and Republicans a bad name. I guess everyone has forgotten that America is called the "Melting Pot" for a reason. With the exception of Native Americans, NONE of us are FROM here.
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