WASHINGTON, D.C. -U.S. Representative Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma), the lead Democrat on the House Education subcommittee, today questioned Republican led efforts to evaluate making English the official national language.  In a hearing this morning on Capitol Hill, Woolsey called such efforts “a solution in search of a problem,” and warned against the dangers of such a policy.

The following are U.S. Representative Lynn Woolsey’s words, as delivered, during today’s hearing:

 

 

“Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

“I have to say on record, that I believe we are here today because the Republican Leadership of the House wants to put off discussing comprehensive immigration reform, as far as it can.

“But, having said that, I want to thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your efforts to make this hearing balanced.

“I think that the testimony of the two witnesses opposed to ‘English Only’ or ‘English as the Official Language’ policies will persuasively make the case against such policies.

“Ironically, I also think that the testimony of two witnesses in favor of such policies make a case against those policies.

“In his written testimony, Mr. Mujica states that ‘no serious person is suggesting that we become an ‘English Only’ nation.’

“And, State Senator McKinley, a supporter of the Iowa “official language” bill, admits that ‘the reality is that in Iowa, we already had an official language in practice - English.’

“Today will show a lot of support for what we already know, that English is not under attack, that it is overwhelmingly the language of government, that immigrants want to learn English, and that instead of promoting unnecessary, divisive policies, we ought to simply help immigrants to learn English.

“As we will hear in a few minutes, according to the most recent Census, 92 percent of our population speaks English.

“And, another recent survey found that 92 percent of Latinos believe that it is important for immigrants’ children to learn English.  In fact, Latinos were even more likely than others to say that.

“Unfortunately, and not surprisingly, the President and this Congress have been going in the opposite direction.

“Last month, the House Appropriations Committee approved a bill that provides less funding for 2007 to help students learn English than the year 2003, this is backwards.

“The same bill provides less funding for 2007 to help adults learn English than for 2002.

“And, the Government Accountability Office will release a report today that concludes that the U.S. Department of Education needs to do more to help states help students learn English.

“But, not only are ‘English Only’ or ‘English as the Official Language’ policies unnecessary and divisive - they, truly, can be harmful.

“First, they do nothing to help immigrants learn English.

“They also jeopardize public safety.  Actually, in the case of a natural disaster, terrorist attack, or health crisis, it is critical that government be able to communicate quickly and effectively with the entire public.

“For example, if there is a pandemic flu and non-English speakers cannot understand the government’s instructions, everyone will be at risk.

“So, I look forward to hearing our witnesses, but again Mr. Chairman, I believe that the policies we are discussing today are a solution in search of a problem.

“Thank you, Mr. Chairman.”