Subject: q : " english only "

content - length : 1562 my recent query on wwi era suppression of german in iowa has brought up another issue . many in the linguistics field commonly use a term " english only " by which they mean a movement whose members ( many of whom are non-native english speakers ) refer to themselves as the " official english movement " . to me the term " english only " , possibly intentionally , implies a total ban on the use of any other language . the only proposed " official english " amendment i ' ve seen is the one proposed by the organization u . s . english . it stated very clearly that it was not to be construed as restricting the use of languages other than english in private life , daily business affairs , or in situations in which the speaker 's safety is at stake . i ' ve also seen polls , particularly from california , that claim that anywhere from 60 % to 85 % of various immigrant groups , that would be affected by such an amendment , actually favor one , in direct opposition to activist groups claiming to represent them . i can't imagine people favoring an " english only " amendment that would place a total ban on use of their native languages . leaving aside the blanket idea that " life is politics , " can anyone tell me of a recent case ( say , in the last 30 years ) in which a law that would completely ban use of languages other than english has come up for a vote somewhere in the u . s . ? i do n't think it 's impossible . i 'd just like to see one , if there have been any . james kirchner
