English-only bill to get new life...

Language: Some immigrants say they are trying hard to conform in America


English-only bill to get new life


By Devona Walker
The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City), March 19, 2008

State Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, wants voters to make English the official language of the state, putting a stop to bilingual driver's license testing and 'press one for English and two for Spanish' voice recordings at all state agencies.

The proposal is the only surviving provision of the once-called Son of House Bill 1804. Earlier plans called for ending birthright citizenship and included a provision to give law enforcement the ability to seize the property and assets of those convicted of harboring illegals.

'Official English was my personal priority item from Son of House Bill 1804,' Terrill said, adding that he will file the item as an amendment to existing Senate Bill 163.

Swift approval expected

It could be heard in a House committee as early as next week. Terrill says it might be on the governor's desk for approval in two weeks.

'We made a strategic decision not to send this through as a stand-alone bill, not for lack of support in the House. But it would have been difficult, if not impossible, to get it out of the Senate,' Terrill said, adding he was fearful it would either be killed or altered in a way that might soften the existing House Bill 1804 law.

House Bill 1804, commonly referred to as one of the strictest immigration enforcement laws in the nation, prohibits illegal immigrants from obtaining driver's licenses or public services. It criminalizes transporting or harboring them. It requires state agencies to verify the citizenship status of all new hires.

The purpose of the 'official English' proposal, according to Terrill, is to stop the state from having to provide taxpayer services in any other language but English. It seeks to avoid the costs, conflicts and burden associated with 'bilingualism,' he said. It would also force immigrants to conform.

'I would think it would be incumbent upon us as Americans to encourage all immigrants to assimilate - meaning learning the English language, our culture and our history,' Terrill said.

Is English hard to learn?

Greg Nguyen, a small-business owner, and his mother, Nhung Le, came to this country as Vietnamese refugees shortly after communists took over their native country.

'I don't know about the Mexicans. But I know that Asians, we try very hard to learn English. My parents, even my grandparents, they have all taken classes to learn,' he said. 'My parents have been here, my mother as long as I have. They speak just enough to get by.

'They try to do their best to make people understand them. When you are older, it's just harder to learn.'

The Vietnamese government stripped them of their property and imprisoned his father.

Father Gaio Nguyen fought alongside U.S. soldiers in Vietnam. He remained a captive of the newly-empowered North Vietnamese government for six years before escaping.

'They took everything,' Gaio Nguyen said. 'But here, if you work hard, you can succeed. Here, you don't have to worry about the government taking something away.'

What would the bill do?

The official English proposal would not govern language spoken between individual citizens nor would it prevent business owners from advertising in foreign languages.

It also includes numerous exceptions, specifically for American Indian languages and in cases where it would be to the state's advantage to offer a translator, specifically if the non-English-speaking person has been victimized by a crime.

Thirty states around the nation have similar statutes.



http://newsok.com/article/3218019/1205926206