James Inhofe, R-OK, has proposed an amendment to the Senate Immigration Bill (S. 2611) that would make English the official language of the United States, require new citizens to be proficient in English at the sixth grade level, and require citizens to demonstrate knowledge of US History. English proficiency tests and US history tests would be administered by the Department of Homeland Security. The only conclusion that I can reach from this proposed amendment is that only native born American citizens have the right to mangle English and be ignorant of history if this is adopted.
Text of amendment:
SA 3996. Mr. INHOFE (for himself, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Coburn, Mr. Bunning, and Mr. Burns) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 2611, to provide for comprehensive immigration reform and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
On page 295, line 22, strike ``the alien--'' and all that follows through page 296, line 5, and insert ``the alien meets the requirements of section 312.''.
On page 352, line 3, strike ``either--'' and all that follows through line 15, and insert ``meets the requirements of section 312(a) (relating to English proficiency and understanding of United States history and Government).''.
On page 614, after line 5, insert the following:
SEC. 766. ENGLISH AS OFFICIAL LANGUAGE.
(a) In General.--Title 4, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``CHAPTER 6--LANGUAGE OF THE GOVERNMENT
``Sec.
``161. Declaration of official language.
``162. Official Government activities in English.
``163. Preserving and enhancing the role of the official language. ``§161. Declaration of official language
``English shall be the official language of the Government of the United States. ``§162. Official Government activities in English
``The Government of the United States shall conduct its official business in English, including publications, income tax forms, and informational materials. ``§163. Preserving and enhancing the role of the official language
``The Government of the United States shall preserve and enhance the role of
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English as the official language of the United States of America. Unless specifically stated in applicable law, no person has a right, entitlement, or claim to have the Government of the United States or any of its officials or representatives act, communicate, perform or provide services, or provide materials in any language other than English. If exceptions are made, that does not create a legal entitlement to additional services in that language or any language other than English. If any forms are issued by the Federal Government in a language other than English (or such forms are completed in a language other than English), the English language version of the form is the sole authority for all legal purposes.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of chapters for title 4, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``6. Language of the Government
161''.
SEC. 767. REQUIREMENTS FOR NATURALIZATION.
(a) English Language Requirements.--Section 312(a)(1) (8 U.S.C. 1423(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows:
`` (1) an understanding of, and proficiency in, the English language on a sixth grade level, in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Education; and''.
(b) Requirement for History and Government Testing.--Section 312(a)(2) (8 U.S.C. 1423(a)(2)) is amended by striking the period at the end and inserting ``, as demonstrated by receiving a passing score on a standardized test administered by the Secretary of Homeland Security of not less than 50 randomly selected questions from a database of not less than 1000 questions developed by the Secretary.''.
I listened to a wingnut radio host this morning bloviating on the need for residents of the US to be fluent in English. Each and every justification he gave did not compell me to adopt his position. He stated that to fully assimilate, to be a good American, English fluency was a requirement. He stated that other countries had official languages and that national integrity was dependent on adhering to the use of those languages.
Right now, those arguments look like nothing more than cheap pandering to the right wing base, just like this amendment. We will always have immigrants; prospering in the United States mandates understanding of English. There is already a strong economic and cultural incentive to speak English. At this point, designating it the official language is xenophobic and pointless.