Language barriers limit ability of immigrants 
March 12, 2009 by Matthew Jarzen
Not learning English is detrimental to success of America
Bilingualism, diversity and multiculturalism undermine our national identity. Because of those things, we are no longer the nation of “E Pluribus Unum.” Unfortunately, because of people who whine about immigrants’ rights, particularly those Spanish-speaking illegal ones who don’t want to become citizens, pay taxes or learn the language of our nation, we are now the nation of “E Pluribus Pluribus.”
Like it or not, the U.S., despite its proud, vast and diverse immigrant history, is an English-speaking nation. All government business, starting from the founding documents of this country, have been in English.
The success of immigrants in this nation, from its founding to the waves of immigrants who came here around my great grandparents’ time in the early 1900s to today, has been the result of two things: the free-market capitalist economic system and the immigrants’ ability and willingness to learn the language and customs of this great nation.
This current crop of illegal immigrants who flow over our southern border in droves, refuse to come here legally, refuse to learn our language and then have the nerve to demand rights and for us to pay for them. They even demand that businesses cater to them in their language.
They demand that the government and its agencies print documents in their language. Shockingly, citizenship tests are done in Spanish now too. Voting ballots in many places are also in Spanish.
Excuse me, but if you can’t speak English, then you have no business voting in our elections and if I hear or read a response saying nay to that, I’m going over to Mexico and in the event I’m not kidnapped I will demand not only to vote in their election as an illegal immigrant to their nation and ask that they give me an official election ballot in my native language.
Yet we have people who, knowing full well that the language of business and even of science and pretty much everything else in this world is English, are crying at the top of their lungs that we need bilingualism. Some advocate that we need things in English and Spanish and at least 50 other different languages.
However, this is exactly that reason why these current crops of immigrants have failed at successfully becoming Americans.
Not forcing immigrants to learn English only hinders their ability to succeed and enslave them to those who can beat them to better jobs because they speak English. Notice that it is liberals who slobber over bilingualism even though they know English is the language of success in this country. Why? Because American liberalism is all about control and just like the liberals of old who kept blacks as slaves, they continually need people under control and now language is the way to do that.
Hispanic students are already receiving the short end of the stick on bilingual education. Robert O. Gibson Middle School here in Las Vegas has a Hispanic population of about 70 percent. Gibson Middle School is a “dual-language” school where I was teaching sixth, seventh and even eighth-graders how to read.
I was astonished by the phenomenon until I learned these kids were being taught primarily in Spanish. Spanish-speaking tutors were provided for them to tutor them in Spanish. These kids had the worst grades imaginable. Why? Because they couldn’t speak English.
I know of an immigrant from Thailand. She was a nurse in Thailand and living very well for herself. When she immigrated to this country not too long ago she sought a nursing position in a hospital here in Las Vegas. She was denied the job because she couldn’t speak English.
She currently works bussing tables at a restaurant. Liberals want people like this woman to remain poor so they can depend on them versus them depending on themselves. If she learned English (which she currently is) and got that job as a nurse she would be making $65,000 a year.
In France, the utopian wonderland that it is, you understand that if you do not know French, you will never succeed in that country. One of the reasons behind the riots of French Muslims several years ago was that they did not have jobs and were dependent on low-paying government handouts.
The main reason behind that was because many of them did not fully understand, comprehend or speak French properly to get by in society and business. They rioted because they were incorrectly led to believe that their language is just as valuable in the French society and that the French should cater to their needs.
The people who instilled these feelings among immigrants in France are similar to the ones who argue linguistic diversity here.
Immigrants must learn English to succeed and if English-only laws are the solution then let’s enact them. Though the results may take a little while (maybe a generation), the people who benefit from them will be better off than they or their parents were before.
That is what this country is all about – making oneself better than you were before and if not you, then your children.
with all your respect go back to history class!!!!
After reading this online blog – I was disappointed with the postsecondary educational system. The author neglected to include empirically based data to support his assertions about the effects of being monolingual and his reflection piece reflected borderline plagiarism, and notably, the author has not learned anything about diversity and inclusion in higher education.
This xenophobic rhetoric is similar to the ranting from Dr. Samuel Huntington and fortunately not original. I wish the author would develop his own independent thoughts about immigration and language acquisition, instead of plagiarizing the works of Dr. Huntington. I would strongly encourage the author to attend diversity sessions or enroll in a course focused on class, ethnicity, and gender at UNLV and challenge himself to think about his privilege, white identity, and systems of oppression. Should the author follow his own advice, he will attempt to make himself better for his own children.
Being bilingual (English & Spanish speaker), dual identify (Mexican-American), privilege to be educated at UNLV and The Ohio State University (completing my Masters degree). I can see the author’s “concern” about the welfare of immigrants and migrants in this country; however, Mr. Jarzen, what actions are you taking to make UNLV, Las Vegas, and Clark County a better place for students and families? Are you volunteering at a local community center to teach others English? Studying education to become a teacher?
Lastly, I have witnessed the contributions of (im)migrants to this country, the same immigrants who hundreds of years ago (your ancestors – illegally) brick by brick built the infrastructure for this country, picked the fruits and vegetables that we consume daily, and humbly worked hard for their share of the American dream.
We are all working for it!
How is this bigoted sort of writing allowed to be published by a university paper? Where are the editors? Where is the faculty adviser? Where is the university?
There are many things that are wrong in the article about the Hispanic community and it is also wrong notion of language as a tool to unify culture.
Research about Spanish in the USA reflects that second generation Hispanics shift to English. It can be also pointed out that third generation Hispanics understand, but do not speak Spanish. While this is a general tendency, the Hispanic population is very diverse. I recommend the book of John Lispki about Spanish in the USA for a complete review of Spanish in the USA.
I don’t know where you get the notion that Hispanics don’t pay taxes. I certainly do. Even in the case of illegals taxes are retained from the pay check.
In any case, the idea that there is one language per nation (e.g. Spain = Spanish) is not true (see Romaine’s work on bilingualism). The majority of the nations are multilingual as it is the case of the USA with population from many different nations where different languages are spoken as a consequence of the economic tides of the USA with the world.
Thank God! Finally, somebody who writes at this paper who makes any sense.
Great article and its good to know that principled people like Mr. Jarzen aren’t afraid to say the truth.
Illegal immigration is killing this country, just as its killing our educational systems and our healthcare systems.
For Adrian, obviously you didn’t read the whole article, Mr. Jarzen clearly states that he tutored in a school. I checked R.O. Gibson middle school and that is a title 1 school, which means its poor and its quality is severely lacking. So, he was giving back to the community, but in doing so he makes a good point.
He was teaching 6th, 7th and 8th grade students how to read!! Spanish-speaking tutors for the hispanic students as well! And these kids go on to fail critical subjects in school, all in the name of “diversity” and “inclusion” and “multiculturalism”, all code words for slavery. So what becomes of these kids who’ve spent their entire primary education not learning English? They get shoved onto High School, where they can’t cut it because they fail their classes for not knowing English, and they drop out. Go figure.
If only everybody whose commented on this article had a brain to do a little deductive reasoning, perhaps, UNLV would rank higher in education.
What an ignorant. Please open up your eyes, specially when you are reading, or thinking that you are doing it. Your comments are so lame.
Just to let all of you big-wigs know. I attend school with hispanics (illegals) and I know what he’s talking about maybe you should go back to school and find out for yourself before YOU to explain it.
This is to Sandra before you go bashing someone elses comment maybe you yourself should go back to English class
Just to let all of you big-wigs know. I go to school with hispanics (illegals) and I know what Jarzen is talking about. So before you try telling everyone else what is right maybe you should learn for yourself.
This is to Sandra. Before you try to criticize what someone else is saying maybe you should go back to English class first
“I go to school with hispanics (illegals) and I know what Jarzen is talking about.”
So every hispanic in your school is an illegal alien? Are you really that prejudiced?
Mike-
First, it is the obligation of a newspaper to publish ALL opinions…whether the newspaper staff (including editors and the adviser) agrees or disagrees with the opinion that is being expressed.
Second, I would just like to point out, as someone else has in another article, that Mr. Jarzen’s article mentions the supremacy of English BUT he starts off his article with LATIN phrases…Haha
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