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From: Jillian <zazee27@yahoo.com>
To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov>
Subject: [NIFL-ESL:9385] Accept English-only donation, etc.
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I just want to clarify a few things. The donation
question: as much as some people have tried to think
of a way the money could be accepted with a clear
conscience, to accept a donation from an organization
one fundamentally opposes (or which fundamentally
opposes what one is trying to achieve) would be
destructive, because nowadays publicity would
inevitably result. A photo of oneself accepting a
check from the donor could be broadcast via the
Internet; therefore, all the caveats and explanations
one made at the time would be useless.
The English Only question, etc.: Ken Tabor has
provided very useful resource info on federal law,
among other things. I've printed it all out to keep
on hand. However, he seemed to think (after reading
my message) that I am an English-Only-ite (-ist?
-er?), which couldn't be further from the truth! When
I heard that some people wanted to require workers to
speak only English at work, I was incredulous. Why?
Well, remember that I usually look at things from a
different angle. You are all talking about the
foreigners or immigrants who need to speak their first
language. I was thinking of *myself*--imagine if I
were practicing my French with a co-worker ("Comment
allez-vous, Jim?") and was told that it was against
the law!
The sad fact is that many people, at least in this
country, are uncomfortable when they hear others
speaking a different language. People have even
written to Dear Abby to complain about being in such
situations socially (for example, if their in-laws
speak a foreign language). For such people, it's not
so much "hatred" of foreigners as "fear" of anything
strange. Some paranoid people fear that co-workers
talking in a foreign language are talking about THEM!
Regarding legal/illegal status: I suppose that at one
time people could wander about the world freely and
work anywhere they could find a job. In our era, this
is impossible. Every country, so far as I know, has
regulations and laws about who may enter and for how
long and whether they may work. Can you possibly
imagine what would happen if all these laws
disappeared tomorrow? Countries like England and
Sweden are already accepting as many immigrants as
they can handle--they'd be overwhelmed! Therefore,
there is a meaningful difference in being an illegal
or legal alien in a country. To me, to say that you
can enter a country illegally, send your children to
high school there, and then have them enter college as
if they were residents (of that state), is
preposterously unreasonable.
Oh, by the way, I admit that I myself have been an
illegal worker in foreign countries, having entered
(legally) as a tourist and while awaiting a work
permit. But during my time as an illegal worker, I
did not receive free health care and education. (And
no, I am not comparing my living situation to that of
migrant field workers, and so on. I am comparing
legal situations.)
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