[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 3707]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           THE SIGN MUST STAY

  (Mr. POE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. POE. ``This Is America. When Ordering, Please Speak English.'' 
This sign is located in the window of Geno's Restaurant, tourist 
landmark for the famous Philly cheese steak.
  Philadelphia's Commission on Human Relations has been ordering its 
owner, Joe Vento, to take down the sign, however. They have even 
suggested that he hire Spanish-speaking employees to help communicate. 
But Joe is not giving in to the bureaucrats. Vento says that Geno's 
will serve and his staff will help out customers who don't speak 
English, but the sign is staying.
  Joe Vento is of Italian descent. His grandparents came from Italy. 
They were proud of their American citizenship and quickly learned 
English. But now the Commission on Human Relations is taking legal 
action against Vento, charging him with discrimination simply for 
asking his customers to speak English.
  No business owner should be forced to hire a whole gauntlet of 
foreign-speaking translators because of individuals who feel they won't 
learn our language. Individuals who come here need to understand that 
this country is not Mexico, France, Korea or the Middle East. This is 
America, and English is spoken here.
  And that's just the way it is.

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