No Escuche Santorum, Puerto Rico; No Habla Ingles, No Es Problema

In speaking with Puerto Ricans Thursday, Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum made a major gaffe. He told Puerto Ricans statehood would require them to comply with federal law mandating English as the island's primary language, Vocero reported. Santorum also said knowledge of the English language isn't sufficient, proficiency is required.

He's wrong.

Official English Is Not U.S. Law

Advocacy groups have tried to make English the law of the land and failed. They're still trying. There's a bill in Congress, H.R. 997, which, if enacted, would establish English as the official language of the country and a prerequisite for naturalization. This bill is not law and if history is a guide stands little chance of becoming law.

University of Illinois linguistics professor Dennis Baron explored the history of official English proposals with PBS, noting that the country has never had an official English law. Writing in 2005, Baron noted that a proposed English language amendment to the constitution, making English the official language of the land, has been proposed since 1981. He also described several other historic efforts that failed to establish English as the nation's language.

English Language Not Prerequisite for Statehood

Contrary to what Santorum told Puerto Ricans, the English language is not a prerequisite for statehood. Hawaii attained statehood in 1959. This former kingdom has its own language, Hawaiian. A mandate requiring children to be taught in English effectively diminished the Hawaiian-speaking population. At the time Hawaii became a state, most Hawaiians did speak English.

However, in recent decades, Hawaii has promoted its native language. Its efforts included commissioning a new Hawaiian dictionary and sponsoring school immersion programs. In 1978, Hawaii adopted two official languages, English and Hawaiian. Even while giving English status as one official language, however, Hawaii mandates Hawaiian as the language for official acts and transactions.

While the number of people who speak Hawaiian is minimal on six of Hawaii's islands, on Ni'ihau Hawaiian is the predominant language.

Welcome to America Where 25.3 Million Don't Speak English

Census data for 2006 to 2008 shows there are 25.3 million U.S. residents over age 5 who cannot speak English at least at the level described as "very well."

This is nothing new; the U.S. has always been marked by language diversity, according to linguist James Crawford. He said throughout most of history, the U.S. stance toward foreign language speakers has been one of tolerance and accommodation and was reflected in multi-lingual education options through the World War I era.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/no-escuche-santorum-puerto-rico-no-habla-ingles-233400727.html

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