Our Official Language by Bonnie Le Hamilton

 

Not too long ago, I saw a post online asking whether people thought it should be made the law that everyone needed to be able to speak English before becoming a citizen of America.

I pointed out that we have no official language, so that wouldn’t work.

Though it seems now that I was quite a bit behind the times. It seems President Trump made a proclamation last year stating that English should be our official language to promote unity in this country.

The big problem with this is that it isn’t the law. A presidential statement lacks the backing of the Constitution and is therefore unenforceable.

Yes, he said English is now our official language, but there is no amendment or even legal language giving that statement any legal weight.

Government agencies still print all their forms in a long list of languages to accommodate everyone, and/or supply an interpreter, because there is no law requiring a person to know English to get those services, as in countries that have their laws backing up their official language.

And I might point out that even if English were legally our language, that wouldn’t mean no one could speak any other language. That would be a violation of their rights.

Even in countries where they do have a legal official language, people still speak their native tongue.

President Trump says having an official language will bring us together, but other countries have more than one official language without the divisive problems we have. I don’t think language is really the issue, but aside from that, some people seem to think that means no one can ever speak a different language than the official one.

How wrong can you get?

Even if we have a legal official language, people can still speak their native tongue, still hold conversations some people won’t be able to eavesdrop on, and Karens are still going to scream at them to speak English.

Which brings me to the point of my post.

I see no problem with people speaking something other than English when they are only speaking to someone who speaks the same tongue.

Around here, I have identified three non-English languages being used when I was out and about.

Some Arabic language (based on the attire of the speakers), Spanish (based on the fact they were working in the kitchen of a locally owned Mexican restaurant), and Sho-Ban (also based on the attire of the speakers and the major tribe at the nearest reservation).

In none of the cases where I overheard these languages were they being rude.

The Arabic couple was a clear married couple speaking to each other; ergo, none of my business. The Spanish speakers could be seen and heard from the tables in the restaurant, but they were talking to each other, not the patrons. The several times I’ve heard Sho-Ban, it was clearly either a family or a group of friends from the nearby reservation. They were not talking to me or with me.

It all reminds me of Konnie’s epic sci-fi where they have an official language, but other languages do exist; they just have rules for when each language can and shouldn’t be used.

When speaking in a group, they use the language known by everyone present, so no one is left out. When speaking privately, they either use a casual language they both know or an intimate language, which is generally the ancestral language if both of them know it. Again, there are rules for when each can be used.

The official language is always used at work or when giving orders.

The casual language is used when it isn’t official, and if everyone knows the one you are using.

The intimate language falls into the category of PDAs.

This is a basic breakdown, and it is more complex than that because of the sheer volume of languages available, but that’s the gist of it.

Though I might point out there is no rule against using casual language in public spaces, only against using it when not everyone included in the conversation knows the language used.

In other words, if you are not part of the conversation, mind your own business! If you are, they’re being rude or deceptive.

Like a story of a guy whose wife and sister-in-law used sign language to scheme about divorcing him while he was out of town on a long-planned business trip. He had taken sign language in college and was able to learn her plans in advance rather than being blindsided by her.

And having an official language is not going to outlaw that sort of thing from happening. Nor should it. Everyone has the right to use whatever language they are comfortable with.

Anyway, happy writing, everyone!