Should everyone in America speak English?

[melofan15]

Originally Posted by TroyMcClure

Nope. This country was built largely by immigrants. They don't need to learn @#$@. The Native Americans even spoke a bunch of different languages. 

With that said, learning English can only help someone living in the U.S.

QFT /thread

 

[jordanscrub]

Uhhh..no

 

[jaymosenvied]

HELL YES!

 

[trelvis tha thrilla]

Yes.

It annoys the hell out of me when I see these immigrant families that have been here for years but have yet to learn any English.

 

[mister916]

It shouldn't be a requirement but it would be nice if everyone could.

 

[rex ryan]

i see it like this, you should at least attempt to assimilate if a language is spoken by the majority of the people within the country.

if your english speaking is minimal, your doing yourself a disservice because less opportunities are out there for you and to an extent your kinda limited to your area if you live in an area where the majority of people are from the same nationality as you so you have less problems interacting with them.

you shouldn't be forced to speak english and you shouldn't forget about where you came from but at the same time don't complain about lack of opportunities and chances when you can't speak the language the majority of people speak.

 

[bamazing]

i would say yes since english is whats mostly spoken...i mean at least learn the basics

i wouldnt go to another country w/o studying basic phrases in their language

 

[biggie62]

I think anyone that decides to move and live in any foreign country should assimilate to the culture and language there no questions asked.

 

[mojodmonky1]

i have no problem with people not learning to speak english.

thats why the US is the best country in the world (my opinion). It is such a melting pot of people from all different cultures, and no one should be forced to assimilate if they dont want to.

 

[runningfishy]

Silly is what silly does.

Obviously if you were to reside in a location where English is the dominating language, you would have to speak it to communicate.  If you don't speak it, how else are you going to communicate?  This is common sense as common sense is common sense.

To take it to the next level though, I don't feel like everyone should ONLY SPEAK ENGLISH.  I endorse diverse cultures and different languages/dialects.  It helps to preserve cultures and customs in America.  More so, lingustics carries different shades from one language to another.  There are some things that can be said in one language that cannot fully be translated into another.

Thank about it.

 

[iYen]

Originally Posted by Yes its That Dude

if you live in America do you feel you should speak English? even if it is not your first language do you think it should be required? i was in a heated discussion about this. i think you should speak English. my friend got a car accident with a person that only spoke Spanish she freaked out and the guy managed to get away. 

 

Yes and no it should not be required.
Lots of people get by just by being able to speak Spanish.
That statement only applies to Cali.

 

[ninongjhey]

I think you should. But required? that's too much to ask for...

 

[haddix]

Originally Posted by Trelvis Tha Thrilla

Yes.

It annoys the hell out of me when I see these immigrant families that have been here for years but have yet to learn any English.

This. Why wouldn't they want to learn? If I were to even visit a country for a couple months I'd learn the basics. Moving there? I better be fluent.

 

[ninjahood]

Originally Posted by SFC415

Originally Posted by JohnnyRedStorm

Yes but Americans should also be taught foreign languages at a much younger age.

True. I hate people who say "Who cares about different languages? English is the only one that matters" 

 The world is a small place now; with that kind of mindset, you're only holding yourself back from experiencing it

Umm im totally against mandating people in america to speak strictly english..Its pretty egotistical thinking english is da only language that matters.....

 

[blakep267]

I would like for everyone to speak it, but you cant force them. I mean, it would make life so much easier. I mean, in my university we have alot of asian students who seem to basically come over to the US just for school. Now I wouldnt care its just that, when ever we have group assignments, and they end up with you its a disaster.

 

[kdawg]

Yes, and they should also be white and protestant.

 

[lyonbc1]

If you are an immigrant in a new country you need to make an attempt to learn the language its that simple. We don't need to embarrass people or harass them but you should learn basic fundamental language of any country you are in longterm, an here its English (although learning spanish is becoming even more important w/ changing demographics). Most people don't know that there is no official language in the US, that being said you should be making an attempt to speak the predominant language of the country.

 

[troymcclure]

^^

@kdawg

 

[mojodmonky1]

Originally Posted by RunningFishy

Silly is what silly does.

Obviously if you were to reside in a location where English is the dominating language, you would have to speak it to communicate.  If you don't speak it, how else are you going to communicate?  This is common sense as common sense is common sense.

To take it to the next level though, I don't feel like everyone should ONLY SPEAK ENGLISH.  I endorse diverse cultures and different languages/dialects.  It helps to preserve cultures and customs in America.  More so, lingustics carries different shades from one language to another.  There are some things that can be said in one language that cannot fully be translated into another.

Thank about it.

but thats the whole point.

there are a ton of ethnic communities in the US where people can get by without speaking English.

for example, where i live (LA / Orange County) there are large populations of many different ethnic groups.  A Mexican immigrant living in Santa Ana or Boyle Heights could get by without speaking a lick of English because there are shops, banks, markets, restaurants, professional service providers, etc... etc... that cater towards the Spanish speaking population.  Same could be said about a Vietnamese immigrant in Westminster.  Same about a Korean immigrant in Garden Grove.  Within their community in which they reside (in the US) they have no problem communicating in their native tongue.

  

 

[hongcouver604]

Hell no.  I know a bunch of folks who can't speak a lick of English and they're doing fine. 

Take a look at the white folks/expats working overseas in Asia or anywhere else... barely any of them know are able to communicate fluently in another native tongue.  America was built by immigrants.

 

[voidemperor]

Originally Posted by Yes its That Dude

if you live in America do you feel you should speak English? even if it is not your first language do you think it should be required? i was in a heated discussion about this. i think you should speak English. my friend got a car accident with a person that only spoke Spanish she freaked out and the guy managed to get away. 

 

Then tell yo friend to learn spanish son. 
Guy probably was like,"esta pendeja solo habla ingles, le dije que ya me iba ir y solo estaba gritando. hay nos vemos" proceeds to dip.

The Americas

 

[ins]

Yes. I only say that because i have heard of a lot of people complaining about not getting jobs and im like but you cant speak any english.

 

[villansfinest]

ninjahood wrote:
Umm im totally against mandating people in america to speak strictly english..Its pretty egotistical thinking english is da only language that matters.....

I'm sure you'll learn how to communicate using proper English one day.



On another note... this question reminds me that federal, state, county, city and other government levels go to a CONSIDERABLE expense to provide required documents/services in multiple languages. Having English as an official language would do away with the requirement of providing services in multiple languages. From an economic standpoint it makes more sense to me, but we're already to far gone to get back to one official language. 

 

[picknroll24]

Learning a new language is extremely difficult especially as an adult and it requires a lot of motivation, effort and practice. The main concern for hispanic immigrants is to feed their families so they have very little motivation or time to master a new language. That being said if you live in a mostly white community it would make sense to speak English but if you in an area populated by a large ethnic community it is not necessary. 

 

[mplsdunk]

We don't have an offial language, so no. I'd laugh if it became Spanish though just to piss the rednecks off.