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English Only Please at Graduations

16:15 H | Topics: Language

Imagine your parents are immigrants to the United States (not a stretch for many of us). Through their sacrifices (and some of your own, no doubt), you graduate high school at the top of your class. At graduation during your valedictorian speech, you give a shout out, in your family's native language. Now the school district wants to make a policy so that all future speeches are English-only. This is what happened to two students in Louisiana.

Here's what one school board member told the Associated Press: '''I don't like them addressing in a foreign language. They should be in English.'''

According to the article, it sounds like Cindy, 18, said a sentence or so in Vietnamese--and then translated it for the wider audience. I know that if I were sitting in the audience, and say, it was my son, I would be damn proud--probably crying--to hear him say something in Vietnamese or Chinese.

Here's Cindy's point of view, according to the AP:

'Ms. Vo said her statement in Vietnamese was aimed at her parents, who do not speak fluent English. “Out of the whole speech, it’s one sentence dedicated to them to give thanks,” she said. “Mine was personal and general for the entire Vietnamese community and something I wanted to share with graduates.”'

She made it very clear--her parents do not speak fluent English, and this was in a way, a tribute to her parents.

What is the school board thinking, that the students were talking shit about everyone else? Weren't the non-English comments translated? Was that translation not trusted? Is this a case where a school district has no problem with immigrant students of color succeeding but only if they appear to have totally assimilated? And what of the families? Too bad for them that they don't understand English?

And here's a hypothetical: what if a student quotes a famous French philosopher in French or says a famous quote in Latin, is that going to be banned too? Or is it only the usage of certain languages from certain students that becomes problematic?

Via / Hyphen

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