Out of the 430 languages spoken in a country established nearly 250 years ago, the United States’ official language has never been set. So why is it that there’s been a sudden urgency in designating English as the official language of the United States?
On March 1, the official White House website announced President Donald J. Trump’s order for English to be the United States’ official language as it stated English has been used for all governing historic documents like the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. The website also stated: “In welcoming new Americans, a policy of encouraging the learning and adoption of our national language will make the United States a shared home and empower new citizens to achieve the American dream” — a statement made clearly yet vaguely.
The “pros” of this order will only range from the topics of unification and economic advancement as the government saves more money by not printing documents in a variety of languages or by hiring translators.
Although, it’s obvious that setting English as the official language may also result in the discrimination of linguistic minorities, the inability to access proper help and/or care, and the English language being forced upon all residents.
We asked young people what they thought of this designation:
“Although I am not 100% sure of the effects it would have as a whole country, it would ignore the diversity we have in the United States. It would cut resources for a lot of people because a lot of our population in the United States are immigrants. So we won’t be able to have legal and vital resources for them in their native language.”
– Michelle Maldonado, student at Edison High
“Personally, I don’t feel offended about it, but I think it’s kind of dumb since the United States hasn’t had an official language. That being changed is a sense of ‘Oh, I have this power’ and making a change that doesn’t need to be made.”
– Joselin Tinoco, student at Fresno High
“I feel like it’s interesting. My first initial thought was how diverse the country is and how there are many people from a lot of different places. It’s just interesting how there has to be a certain language set; I don’t feel like there has to be an exact language set for the country. I feel like the United States itself is represented by different places in the world.”
– Cole Pulliam, student at Buchanan High
“Se me hace que no es apropiado debido a que Estados Unidos es conformado a inmigrantes y vienen de diferentes partes del mundo, adonde vayas va ver muchas culturas.” | “I think it is not appropriate because the United States is formed by immigrants that come from different parts of the world. Wherever you go, you will see many different cultures.”
– Jose Gonzalez, student at Fresno High
As seen, many young people think it is unnecessary to make English the official language. A significant part of the United States consists of immigrants. Declaring this move could restrict the culture and different ethnic backgrounds. This would lead to less inclusivity in schools, workplaces, and communities.
There’s not one way that will possibly satisfy both sides of the debate. We can only encourage and urge the public to voice their opinion even if their opinion isn’t made in the English language. This is a country built upon the efforts, hard work, culture, and language of not one, but many cultural backgrounds.
