Spanish 4, English 0

In case you are keeping score, there have been some recent developments regarding the battle for the language of the United States, and more specifically Elgin. Spanish is winning points right and left.

Point 1- A recent Pew Hispanic Center study reveals that 65% of Hispanics living in the United States speak English “just a little or not at all”. That percentage rises to 71% if their country of origin is Mexico

Point 2- At the public radio forum at the Hemmens in October, a question was asked from the audience that went like this: “Moderator: Let’s go to Veronica from Elgin. Veronica: Thank you. Our local LULAC Council supports the Latino literacy project through the Salvation Army, which teaches basic Spanish literacy. Since basic native literacy is a must before anyone can learn a second language such as English, how can we garner support from the community at large for more of these types of programs and get past the fear.” Did you catch that? They want to teach Spanish to the immigrants. And do you think “garner support from the community” means tax money? It was sort of comical that the panelists thought Veronica was talking about learning English and gave answers accordingly. By the way, those answers mean that when they learn English they assimilate more quickly and make more money.

Point 3- Professor Chris Orem at NIU in DeKalb got a $1.5 million grant from the federal government (our tax dollars at work) because the bilingual students are learning English too quickly. Here’s the quote from the Courier article: "Children of these immigrants are learning English at a faster rate and losing their native tongues at a faster rate. There's no reason to force them into an English-only world," said Orem. And U46 lined up for some of the money.

Point 4- By federal demand, Elgin’s polling places will be staffed with Spanish language interpreters to help voters who do not speak English. The ballots in Spanish are not enough, they say.

I wonder what people think when they drive through town and see businesses making no effort at all in English. All the signage is in Spanish. If you are coming into town to look at a row house or a condo downtown, I’m guessing you make a quick U-turn and look somewhere else.

But more importantly, these points are an indication of surrender to Spanish. Without asking us, they are surrendering English and pushing for a bilingual nation. Our elected officials had better do something besides nod their heads in agreement just because it is politically correct to behave multiculturally. Wake up, city council. We’re talking to you.