Its Time to Declare English the Official Language Essay -- Argumentat

It's Time to Declare English the Official Language "In no way would having English as the official language intrude upon anyone's private life, business, or day-to-day living. Official English applies only to the conduct of government business." -S.I. Hayakawa America today is a melting pot of different societies. Everywhere, in every city and in every state, there are Germantowns, and Chinatowns, and Greektowns. America has certainly developed into one big multicultural society. With the many different cultures, come the many different languages as well. When a person imagines the language of the United States, naturally most believe that English is the national language. America, however, does not have an official language. According to the Center of Immigration Studies, more than 300 languages are currently spoken in the United States (U.S. Bureau of the Census). Immigration in the United States is a positive event that cannot be altered no matter what actions are taken against it. Immigration, in fact, has many positive influences upon this great nation. With the positive effects on this country also come the harmful effects. If America wants to continue to live harmoniously with the multitude of different cultures, the first step wo uld be to make English the official language of the United States of America. Today, 1.9 billion people speak the English language; more than one-third of humanity (U.S. Bureau of the Census). English is also the national language of many countries- countries with a multiple of different cultures- including India and several populous countries in Africa. People in those countries use English to conduct common and o... ...for our flag. It was not easy, but they did it; the beautiful thing was we were united. A World War I Veteran told me that when he came to this country from Poland, he did not speak a word of English, nor did his parents. He said he learned English and spoke it well enough to get by. â€Å"This is America,† he said, â€Å"and it is only right to honor its language.† When asked if he felt if his love and pride for his own country had faltered, he gave a stern â€Å"no.† English is the language of freedom, commerce and opportunity around the world. Declaring English the official language of the United States of America will honestly do no harm. In the end, only positive effects could come out of the measure because the day-to-day lives of a common citizen would rarely be altered. Declaring English the national language is the right and honorable thing to do. Now let's do it.