Gingrich: Bilingual Education Must End

(AP)  Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich equated bilingual education Saturday with "the language of living in a ghetto" and mocked requirements that ballots be printed in multiple languages.

"The government should quit mandating that various documents be printed in any one of 700 languages depending on who randomly shows up" to vote, said Gingrich, who is considering seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2008. He made the comments in a speech to the National Federation of Republican Women.

"The American people believe English should be the official language of the government. ... We should replace bilingual education with immersion in English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto," Gingrich said to cheers from the crowd of more than 100.

"Citizenship requires passing a test on American history in English. If that's true, then we do not have to create ballots in any language except English," he said.

Peter Zamora, co-chair of the Washington-based Hispanic Education Coalition, which supports bilingual education, said, "The tone of his comments were very hateful. Spanish is spoken by many individuals who do not live in the ghetto."

He said research has shown "that bilingual education is the best method of teaching English to non-English speakers." Spanish-speakers, he said, know they need to learn English. "There's no resistance to learning English, really, among immigrants, among native-born citizens. Everyone wants to learn English because it's what you need to thrive in this country."

In the past, Gingrich has supported making English the nation's official language. He has also said all American children should learn English and that other languages should be secondary in schools.

In 1995, for example, he said bilingualism poses "long term dangers to the fabric of our nation" and that "allowing bilingualism to continue to grow is very dangerous."

Bilingual programs teach students reading, arithmetic and other basic skills in their native language so they do not fall behind while mastering English.

On voting, federal law requires districts with large populations of non-English speakers to print ballots in multiple languages.

[taddles-2009]

Why does anyone listen to this windbag, he made himself irrelevant 10 years ago when his own party booted him out of office.

Politicions are like diapers, they both need to be changed regularily and for the same reason. Unfortunatly Newt is like the floater in the bowl that just won't flush.

[homespunlady]

Hmm...Will anti foreign language be the new rallying cry of the "Nascar demographic"? Let's try it out using Newt and see what happens...

Ever get the idea this may be a diversionary ruse?
While we were debating Terry Schaivo's rights and Gay Marriage the US Treasury was being emptied and shipped overseas our rights were disappearing and OSAMA BIN LADIN wa laughing his backside off with his (maybe corporate?) buddies!!

[sy2502]

I am sick of paying thousands of dollars in taxes just to print documents in 700 languages. Too many of the people that need those documents in a language different from English don't even pay taxes to begin with! If you want documents in another language you should have to pay for them through the nose.
And this comes from me, a LEGAL immigrant whose native language is not English.

[realpatriot1]

What does Gingrich know about bilingual education...he's only had a bi-sexual education himself!

[randalds]

What's good for Mexico is GOOD FOR U.S. Mexico says won't accept new citizen UNLESS THEY SPEAK SPANISH
Posted by joanpz at 03:26 PM : Apr 01, 2007

Unless of course you slip the guy who signs the forms a couple of hundred US dollars. Works wonders.

[coffeehead-2009]

Everyone wants to learn English because it's what you need to thrive in this country.%u201D



Obviously he hasn't been down to miami lately.

If individuals want to be American -
if they WANT to speak English -
there are plenty of courses available for a small fee. --- Pay it and learn.
I am so tired of this accountability being so anti- white middle class.
From our penal system *jail if we steal a 100.00 item, slap on the hand for ceo's who swindle millions."
We condemn and demean AMERICANS for being on "welfare" but somehow those immigrants who fill the needs for profit are above that - WE OWE THEM?
Speak English -
Boycott in the streets (no less than striking) and have your organizers arrested and fined millions - just like the unions. Jail the protesters and make them reimburse the citizens for the cost of security and loss of business.
It's about time that those who REALLY make this county stand up for themselves. - stop the economic gap from widening and return middle class america to where we belong.

[tbweb]

The influx of Spanish speaking citizens into our country has created a dilemma... Let the research drive the decisions rather than the emotions.
Posted by ed_doc at 03:10 PM : Apr 01, 2007

--ed_doc

With all due respect, the emotions you speak of come from the fact that this influx of millions of foreigners are here in the United States illegally and are stressing out every service system including our schools. Many Americans don't subscribe to your 'get used to it' advice and want them out, back where they came from. If I were an illegal, I would take what I get and keep my mouth shut, but no, they want rights, services and benefits and our schools disrupted! The really sad part is these 10, 15 or 20 million illegals have jumped the long waiting line of those who applied for U.S. entry the right way and have been in some cases waiting for 10 years, what about those who tried to do it right? Why are the criminals who entered illegally being rewarded and allowed to jump ahead in the weaiting line? My advice is you get used it, because the emotions are not going away!

[klingon69]

With the influx of so many people whose primary language is not english, is that the problem created for the public as a whole.
The research of Stephen Kraschen does not hold water. It has been proven when you try to learn a language by using your native tongue as a transport system, you wind up trying to translate as fits your native tongue. Unfortunately since rules of grammar differ so much between english and many other languages, the person winds up speaking english, but in a way that can be incomprehensible to many ears.
The best way to learn a language is by complete emersion. That has been the way that most people originally learned a foreign tongue.

[actornaught]

joan, hang in there, if newt and his anti-rights flaks get their way, we WILL have a government as oppressive as Mexico's.

[joanpz]

What's good for Mexico is GOOD FOR U.S. Mexico says won't accept new citizen UNLESS THEY SPEAK SPANISH