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!
