[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 2 (Thursday, January 5, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E35]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       THE LANGUAGE OF GOVERNMENT

                                 ______


                           HON. BILL EMERSON

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, January 4, 1995
  Mr. EMERSON. Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to introduce once again 
the ``Language of Government Act.'' America is a nation of immigrants. 
As President Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said, ``All of our people 
all over this country--except the pure-blooded Indians--are immigrants 
or descendants of immigrants, including those who came over here on the 
Mayflower.''
  Indeed, we are a diverse lot. We are a country of many peoples, each 
with an individual cultural heritage and tradition. It is not often 
that people of so many varying cultures and backgrounds can live 
together in harmony, for human nature often leads us to resist and fear 
those who are different from us. Yet despite our differences, we do 
have a common bond. We have a common tongue, the English language, that 
connects us to one another and creates our national identity. It is 
this unity in diversity that defines us as uniquely American.
  The time is right for passage of this important, unifying 
legislation. H.R. 123 offers a balanced, sensible approach to the 
common language issue. This legislation states that the government has 
an affirmative obligation to promote the English language, elevating 
that goal to official capacity. At the same time, the bill seeks to set 
some common sense parameters on the number and type of government 
services that will be offered in a language other than English. We do 
not need nor should we want a full scale multilingual government. But, 
if we do not address this issue in a forward-thinking, proactive 
manner, that is just what we would allow to develop.
  I want to stress that the ``Language of Government Act'' is not 
``English only.'' It simply states that English is the language in 
which all official United States Government business will be conducted. 
We have an obligation to ensure that non-English speaking citizens get 
the chance to learn English so they can prosper--and fully partake of 
all the economic, social, and political opportunities that exist in 
this great country of ours.
  The late Senator Hayakawa, founder of this movement, was a prolific 
writer and I offer you one of my favorite quotes of his:

       America is an open society--more open that any other in the 
     world. People of every race, of every color, of every culture 
     are welcomed here to create a new life for themselves and 
     their families. And what do these people who enter into the 
     American mainstream have in common? English, our shared, 
     common language.

  As Americans, we should not remain strangers to each other, but must 
use our common language to develop a fundamental and open means of 
communication and to break down artificial language barriers. By 
preserving the bond of a unifying language in government, this nation 
of immigrants can become a stronger and more unified country.


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