English as the Official Language
The issue: An English-only Ordinance
The city said:
“I am not in favor of declaring English as the official language of Elgin. There are several reasons
for this:
a) Municipal laws that require city business to be conducted in "English only" have been found to
be unconstitutional by the courts that have reviewed them;
b) The official language of the state of Illinois is English. As a municipality in the state of Illinois,
Elgin falls under the jurisdiction of this law. This statute is viewed as largely symbolic and has no
enforcement provisions, but it does exist;
c) We are in a global economy and do business with companies from all over the world. We have a
number of Asian and European companies in our city. These are sophisticated business people
who are often multilingual. An "English only" law would not only offend them but would make us
look like provincial isolationists who are not prepared to do business in today's world economy. It
would be exactly the wrong message to send. It should also be noted that English is the
international language of business, so it is imperative that any educated person anywhere in the
world learn it. This is dictated by the marketplace and does not require any legislation;
d) such a law would be patently offensive to any number of my friends and acquaintances,
including an Indian doctor, and Iranian florist, a Mexican attorney, a Belgian chef and a Danish
businessman. It offends me, and though I don't speak any Gaelic, I am one quarter Irish.
Additionally, my father's medical partners were Albanian, Persian and Korean. I find such laws are
typically the product of uninformed xenophobia."
~Councilman Mike Powers
AFLA says:
Once again the city fathers have told us, “No problem. We’re covered.” Why then do we have the
situation we live in? Do they even see a problem with the image of our town?
Let’s try to explain the impact of the current situation here. The citizens of Elgin are paying for
Spanish language interpreters at polling places. (OK. Settle down. I know the city has nothing to
do with the election process.)
We’ve had enough of the enclave. Stores have Spanish-only signage. Residents are staying clear
of certain stores because everyone is speaking Spanish. Billboards are in Spanish. A recent study
by the Pew Hispanic Center revealed that 65% of Hispanic immigrants speak little or no English
(and we can certainly relate to that here).
So when the city prints up materials in Spanish, they become part of the problem. They have
contributed to the mindset that immigrants (and illegals) do not need to learn English because it
isn’t necessary to get along.
In coddling them, we are actually hindering their assimilation and their earning potential! And by
sheltering the enclave we are hindering the progress of their children as well. English is how we
convey our culture and customs. It is how we communicate.
So how does the city of Elgin fit into this equation? By passing an English-only ordinance.
Hampshire has one. You would do well to look at how they did it.
One council member responded that English only laws are unconstitutional. He forgot the word
“some”, as in "SOME English only laws are unconstitutional." Not all. A little research will expose
the flaws and allow them to avoid those pitfalls.
And not one of them addressed the inequality of our current practice. What about the family living
here who came from Egypt? Do you have all the same materials in Arabic for their benefit? Or the
family from Brazil? Or France? Where are your materials for those who speak Urdu or Uzbek?
The answer is that the city is disenfranchising these people because they don’t have a vocal
advocacy group breathing down their necks. Let’s not pretend that you are playing favorites with
one group of squeaky wheels and ignoring all the rest.
And our lack of resolve in this matter has earned Illinois the unenviable position of being the
fourth most popular destination for illegal aliens, behind California, Texas, and Florida. Who can
blame them? We tell them to “Come as you are and don’t change a thing.”
Our only question to Elgin’s elected officials is this: “What do you suggest we do?”
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The city said:
“I am not in favor of declaring English as the official language of Elgin. There are several reasons
for this:
a) Municipal laws that require city business to be conducted in "English only" have been found to
be unconstitutional by the courts that have reviewed them;
b) The official language of the state of Illinois is English. As a municipality in the state of Illinois,
Elgin falls under the jurisdiction of this law. This statute is viewed as largely symbolic and has no
enforcement provisions, but it does exist;
c) We are in a global economy and do business with companies from all over the world. We have a
number of Asian and European companies in our city. These are sophisticated business people
who are often multilingual. An "English only" law would not only offend them but would make us
look like provincial isolationists who are not prepared to do business in today's world economy. It
would be exactly the wrong message to send. It should also be noted that English is the
international language of business, so it is imperative that any educated person anywhere in the
world learn it. This is dictated by the marketplace and does not require any legislation;
d) such a law would be patently offensive to any number of my friends and acquaintances,
including an Indian doctor, and Iranian florist, a Mexican attorney, a Belgian chef and a Danish
businessman. It offends me, and though I don't speak any Gaelic, I am one quarter Irish.
Additionally, my father's medical partners were Albanian, Persian and Korean. I find such laws are
typically the product of uninformed xenophobia."
~Councilman Mike Powers
AFLA says:
Once again the city fathers have told us, “No problem. We’re covered.” Why then do we have the
situation we live in? Do they even see a problem with the image of our town?
Let’s try to explain the impact of the current situation here. The citizens of Elgin are paying for
Spanish language interpreters at polling places. (OK. Settle down. I know the city has nothing to
do with the election process.)
We’ve had enough of the enclave. Stores have Spanish-only signage. Residents are staying clear
of certain stores because everyone is speaking Spanish. Billboards are in Spanish. A recent study
by the Pew Hispanic Center revealed that 65% of Hispanic immigrants speak little or no English
(and we can certainly relate to that here).
So when the city prints up materials in Spanish, they become part of the problem. They have
contributed to the mindset that immigrants (and illegals) do not need to learn English because it
isn’t necessary to get along.
In coddling them, we are actually hindering their assimilation and their earning potential! And by
sheltering the enclave we are hindering the progress of their children as well. English is how we
convey our culture and customs. It is how we communicate.
So how does the city of Elgin fit into this equation? By passing an English-only ordinance.
Hampshire has one. You would do well to look at how they did it.
One council member responded that English only laws are unconstitutional. He forgot the word
“some”, as in "SOME English only laws are unconstitutional." Not all. A little research will expose
the flaws and allow them to avoid those pitfalls.
And not one of them addressed the inequality of our current practice. What about the family living
here who came from Egypt? Do you have all the same materials in Arabic for their benefit? Or the
family from Brazil? Or France? Where are your materials for those who speak Urdu or Uzbek?
The answer is that the city is disenfranchising these people because they don’t have a vocal
advocacy group breathing down their necks. Let’s not pretend that you are playing favorites with
one group of squeaky wheels and ignoring all the rest.
And our lack of resolve in this matter has earned Illinois the unenviable position of being the
fourth most popular destination for illegal aliens, behind California, Texas, and Florida. Who can
blame them? We tell them to “Come as you are and don’t change a thing.”
Our only question to Elgin’s elected officials is this: “What do you suggest we do?”
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO THE SERIES INDEX PAGE