Speak English

[MsFoxyLoxy77]

Please excuse the blutness of my subject by I am too tired...I'm from South Florida which has a huge Hispanic population. Well I came home for the holidays and I it is almost the end of my break and I want to scream. Literally in practically every store I've went to or any place I've needed service at the workers have been speaking spanish in front of the customers, if the customers are Hispanic they speak spanish to them, if they're Black like me they speak little and when they speak English it ranges from being barely understandable to knowledgeable. I respect anyone who has pride in their culture BUT ON THE JOB you are there to work, we are in America a once English colony and when in Rome.. I could understand at the job if a customer came in who spoke poor English, then by all means speak spanish you are after all there to help people. I was out shopping the next day and I went into a bakery and I asked the lady at the counter for a pastry, she did not speak English at all, it took me a second to realize that I was in a Cuban bakery and was the only black person in the place...I was so upset and I wondered how the lady was given a job without atleast making an attempt to learn English. I'm really upset about this...I have plenty of friends who don't plan on moving back home after college, they say they won't get hired because they don't speak spanish.
Hell if I went into a job interview and said I speak a little standard English but I speak Ebonics very well and could communicate with the huge Black population in the city they throw me out on my ***

[RedefinedDiva]

Foxy, you sound very angry. You do bring up some valid points, yet, I do have to disagree with you. A LARGE amount of our population are native speakers of Spanish. Although it would be wonderful if the US would require all citizens (and immigrants for that matter) to become fluent in English before setting foot in the country, it wouldn't be fair. Many of these people are older and have never had the opportunity to learn our language. Believe it or not, English is the hardest language to learn. I still learn new things everyday. For non-native speakers of a language, the best way to learn is through total immersion.

Although I am not going to tell you to drop what you are doing and learn to speak their language, I can say that learning a few phrases of Spanish wouldn't hurt. It's actually a very nice language. I am trying to beome fluent. Not only will it be essential when travelling, it may, in fact, earn me some bonus points when looking for work. I am sure if you be patient and try to speak in their natve language, it may show them that not all Americans are as hostile and rude as they seem. It has to be hard not being able to communicate effectively. I have also seen people get down right ugly with folks that don't speak English well. Just work with them.

[ChaosDST]

If you come to AmeriKKKa, and you're not an illegal alien, you need to learn English. Foreigners should be required to learn English (not necessarily fluently, but functionally).

I don't think that's too much to ask. If having to learn English (not necessarily fluently, but functionally) is too much for people, perhaps they should consider remaining in their native country...where they can speak their native tongue all day and everyday regardless of where they go.

There has to be some trade-off.

[RedefinedDiva]

I think that it would be good to learn functional English, but some people are fleeing unsafe conditions. Is it fair to say, "Oh no. You don't know functional English, so go back to your poor, impoverished, war-torn country until you get it together. We have to work with some of these people.

[ChaosDST]

Originally posted by RedefinedDiva
I think that it would be good to learn functional English, but some people are fleeing unsafe conditions. Is it fair to say, "Oh no. You don't know functional English, so go back to your poor, impoverished, war-torn country until you get it together. We have to work with some of these people.

No.

But, the INS and other Federal agencies need to require these individuals to take courses upon their entry into the U.S. In addition, these individuals should take basic English "tests" in order to upgrade their citizenship status (VISA, Naturalization documentation, etc.).

[PearlEssence08]

Originally posted by RedefinedDiva
I think that it would be good to learn functional English, but some people are fleeing unsafe conditions. Is it fair to say, "Oh no. You don't know functional English, so go back to your poor, impoverished, war-torn country until you get it together. We have to work with some of these people.

I agree. Some people are fleeing unsafe conditions; however, I do believe that speaking some English is pertinent to living in an English speaking country. I also think that INS should require it, not to acquire citizenship, but definitely to keep citizenship. I understand one having pride in their culture. But when you decide to become "bicultural" then you also decide to accept both cultures and that includes learning the language as well as living the life.

[Honeykiss1974]

When immigrants come to america and apply for citizenship, there are English as a 2nd language classes availible to them.

However, I would dare to say that these types of services are not availible to ILLEGAL aliens. The only way they can learn is by total immersion.

Are there programs for illegal aliens to learn english?

Because this country has a large Chicano, Hispanic, Latino population, you actually would have an edge over any other applicants when it comes to applying for jobs and can command more money because of it.

[straightBOS]

The idea of "immersion" is good, but who wants to be the poor customer who has to suffer because you are unable to receive proper service because a worker cannot speak English?

If a restaurant or bakery or hardware store clearly has a certain clientele and cannot service customers who do not speak Spanish, then they should, as a courtesy, post a sign that lets potential customers know that they will be unable to assist them in English.

I am unsure if all English as a Second Language courses do background checks to weed out illegal aliens. But I do know that there are places-- the same places that English speakers can attend to learn foreign languages-- that do teach ESL classes.

The question is, do we, as English-speakers have a duty to "work through" language barriers using visual aids, etc. in order to conduct the basics? Or do we have a right to be fed up and extremely annoyed?

[OOhsoflyDELTA#9]

I agree that if you are working in a customer service based job then you should have to speak English......I also agree that a conversational english class should be mandatory for any person seeking a permanent visa.....I'm majoring in Biology premed and Spanish because I want to be able to communicate with my hispanic patients also...but I shouldn't be required to speak Spanish to find employment in the U.S. and unfortunately I think thats where we are headed...

[ChaosDST]

Well, ILLEGAL aliens have a bigger problem than learning English. They are ILLEGAL in the first place. Why should there be programs for them? They need to gain legit citizenship status or be forced to go back to their native country. Sounds harsh, but there are Federal regulations for a reason. After their citizenship status is legit, they need to learn English.

Originally posted by Honeykiss1974
When immigrants come to america and apply for citizenship, there are English as a 2nd language classes availible to them.

However, I would dare to say that these types of services are not availible to ILLEGAL aliens. The only way they can learn is by total immersion.

Are there programs for illegal aliens to learn english?

Because this country has a large Chicano, Hispanic, Latino population, you actually would have an edge over any other applicants when it comes to applying for jobs and can command more money because of it.

[KELLYGIRL]

Being born and raised in Texas you get used to certain things. In school my best friend was Mexican and we taught her mother english when I was in 3rd grade...

Fast forward 15+ yrs later when I can't go to the freakin' Mc Donalds next to my job because no one that works there speaks intelligible Engilsh!

It's quite frustrating to know that someone can come to this country, get a job and live happily ever after without knowing the language. If I moved to Mexico you better believe that they would hire people specifcally to help me. Unless it was a tourist area, in the mountan areas I'd be stuck out.

I don't think that it's to much to ask for them to learn the language. I would require classes for all people who would like to pecome citizens. As as a business owner I wouldn't hire anyone whose English wasn't good enough to serve my engish speaking customers. Maybe that would encourage them to learn the language.

[KELLYGIRL]

Being born and raised in Texas you get used to certain things. In school my best friend was Mexican and we taught her mother english when I was in 3rd grade...

Fast forward 15+ yrs later when I can't go to the freakin' Mc Donalds next to my job because no one that works there speaks intelligible Engilsh!

It's quite frustrating to know that someone can come to this country, get a job and live happily ever after without knowing the language. If I moved to Mexico you better believe that they would hire people specifcally to help me. Unless it was a tourist area, in the mountan areas I'd be stuck out.

I don't think that it's to much to ask for them to learn the language. I would require classes for all people who would like to pecome citizens. As as a business owner I wouldn't hire anyone whose English wasn't good enough to serve my engish speaking customers. Maybe that would encourage them to learn the language.

[sigmadiva]

Originally posted by MsFoxyLoxy77
I was out shopping the next day and I went into a bakery and I asked the lady at the counter for a pastry, she did not speak English at all, it took me a second to realize that I was in a Cuban bakery and was the only black person in the place...I

The owner is probably Hispanic and hired a friend or relative. I will assume that you were probably in a predominatly Hispanic area so the need to speak English all the time everyday is not great. I've been told that in San Francisco's China town there are people who ONLY speak Chinese. Since foreigners come here and establish their own communities, the need to become totally part of the English speaking community is not necessary. Not to beat a 'dead horse', but if our African ancestors came here free on their own will, then I am sure we would have more African-language communities. Also, look at Brazil. There is a stronger African influence in their language and culture.

[Gyrl7]

Ronaldoooooooooo McDonaldo!!! Tell me why is the McDonalds in my home town virtually hispanic???

I do have a small problem with some [/I] of the Hispanic race seeming to be able to use the excuse of not speaking English as a crutch, however some hispanics are more understanding of the English language as they let on.

Also, what about some of our own people who cannot speak a proper sentence without completely jacking it up??? What about some of our kids who are not even reading on their current grade level and were born here???

I can't make too many comments about the Hispanic community unless I know that my nieces and nephew can read and read well.

[ChaosDST]

Many of us are not specifically targeting Spanish speakers. We're talking about ANYONE who comes to AmeriKKKa and dwells here w/o speaking and understanding, atleast functional, English.

AmeriKKKans have poor grammar as well. My parents were ALWAYS very strict about grammar. This is why I'm so anal about grammar...and choose to speak poorly at times

I noticed a bit of poor grammar in the original post that started this thread. However, we're specifically talking about persons who are not native English speakers.

Even AmeriKKKans with poor grammar (which 95% of AmeriKKKans have from time-to-time---regardless of level of education) have English speaking skills.

So, with that said...why shouldn't those entering the country be expected to achieve the same?

Originally posted by Gyrl7
Ronaldoooooooooo McDonaldo!!! Tell me why is the McDonalds in my home town virtually hispanic???

I do have a small problem with some [/I] of the Hispanic race seeming to be able to use the excuse of not speaking English as a crutch, however some hispanics are more understanding of the English language as they let on.

Also, what about some of our own people who cannot speak a proper sentence without completely jacking it up??? What about some of our kids who are not even reading on their current grade level and were born here???

I can't make too many comments about the Hispanic community unless I know that my nieces and nephew can read and read well.