Nashville English First (by first we mean only)
Way to go, Nashville, you showed your true colors!
DEFEATED:
Tanton, and his network of racist organizations
Crafton, and his dream of a train of racism running through America
Stupidity
Hate
Anti-immigrant, anti-minority atmosphere
The mythical 75% majority that has been bragged about incessantly by the English Only crowd
You may have heard a Nashville English First ad on the radio featuring America the Beautiful. Well, we can use melodramatic music and cliches too:
On Thursday, January 22, 2009, voters will have the chance to add this rambling, meaningless paragraph into the Nashville Metropolitan charter:
“English is the official language of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee. Official actions which bind or commit the government shall be taken only in the English language, and all official government communications and publications shall be in English. No person shall have a right to government services in any other language. All meetings of the Metro Council, Boards, and Commissions of the Metropolitan Government shall be conducted in English. The Metro Council may make specific exceptions to protect public health and safety. Nothing in this measure shall be interpreted to conflict with federal or state law.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What would the official English amendment do?
A:It would require that the Nashville Metro Council’s official actions and communications – those that have legal authority to bind or commit the city – be done in English and not in other languages. It is true that the only non-English that has been spoken at recent Metro Council meetings was done by one Eric Crafton. It seems he may be proposing this legislation in order to curtail his own bad habit of shooting off at the mouth–in any number of languages. Anyway, this law would assure that official meetings of the city council as well as of all city boards and commissions would have to be conducted in English (finally). No person could demand city services or communications in another language unless specifically required by federal or state law. Yes, those last sentences help our proposed charter amendment collapse into itself, squelching any real meaning. And yes, of course, it also renders our little idea completely void of any legality. But what the hell, it’ll only cost taxpayers a measly 300 grand (to start).
Q: Why does Nashville need an official language?
A: Some have noted that English has already been selected as the official language of the state of Tennessee. But we just want to make extra certain that EVERYONE knows just how we do things in this little town. In other words, if you’re not white-protestant, you should just keep your mouth shut and don’t look anyone in the eye. Do that and you’ll be just fine. Remember, we’re happy to have all of YOU in OUR country, but try not to forget whose country it is. You are just a tourist, here to experience our great democracy for a while (till we catch you being all non-legal). Translation (for which you WILL be charged): Without coming right out and saying it, we are trying our darndest to get all the minorities to just give up and move to Rutherford County–and this proposed amendment was our best idea to make that happen.
Q: What’s changed? Why do we have to do this now?
A:Geez, haven’t you noticed how brown this town has gotten? And it’s not just global warming (which, by the way, Al Gore is contributing to as we speak). It’s all these non-American Americans showing up and expecting to be treated like normal, every-day citizens. They need to know that not just anyone is eligible for normal rights–this IS America after all. And let’s be honest here–this proposed amendment is really just a dare to all those immigrants. We just don’t think they are capable of learning English and assimilating like previous immigrants did. These ones are just too darn stupid.
Q: Will an official language restrict the languages that private individuals and businesses use?
A: No. Official English will only apply to government actions and communications. Private individuals and businesses are not affected. Will non-English speaking individuals and businesses ever need to conduct business with the city? Well, we sure hope so, because then this law will allow us to just sit back and smile smugly at them whenever they show up!
Q: Does having an official language mean that Nashville city agencies or city officials could never use another language?
A:No, of course not. We can always make exceptions whenever we need to. Don’t worry. If you’re thinking that it sounds like providing for exceptions would pretty much make this proposed law meaningless, you are exactly right. But, you miss the point. We will have already been able to convey the message that if you don’t speak English, you are not welcome in Nashville. And that’s what we’re really after here, folks.
Q: Have other cities and jurisdictions made English their official language?
A:Oh, goodness, yes! Plenty of other American cities have already adopted English as their official language. So far, it has been a rousing success–there have been no incidents of any foreigners taking over those cities. However, Nashville would be the largest city to embarrass itself in this way. Take that Atlanta!
Q: Will an official language save taxpayers money?
A:Yes, providing city services and documents in multiple languages wastes ink and paper and costs far more than providing them in English alone. Nashville spends around $100,000 per year on interpreters alone. Yes, it’s true it will take $300,000 just to have this election–not even counting the law suits which are already beginning to be filed even before this proposed amendment passes. But we are committed to wasting as many tax payer dollars as it takes to save those same tax payer dollars, while giving these people the figurative middle finger. At Nashville English First, we believe that those dang foreigners already have too many rights. Honestly, how can you give these people the same rights that we have? I thought this was America! We speaka English! It’s about time we started taking some of these people’s rights away. Also, passing this legislation, would stop insane liberal politicians, like New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who recently ordered all city agencies to start providing services in six foreign languages in addition to English at enormous cost to that city. And you know how much Nashville has in common with New York. They are practically the same city.
Q: Is it divisive, mean-spirited, or anti-immigrant to have an official language?
A:Ha Ha Ha. No, it’s the opposite. It’s not as if the authors of this bill are being threatened because of their actions. In case you haven’t noticed our city has really come together since our group began this mission from God. In fact, this proposed charter amendment has managed to unite an amazingly diverse (diverse–haha) group in opposition to English First. Just look at some of the groups who have come together to stand against us:
Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau, Nashville Business Coalition, Tennessee Business Coalition, Greater Nashville Hotel and Lodging Association, Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Tennessee Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, The Jones Law Group, P & L Translations, Coalition for Education about Immigration (CEI), Faith Leaders for All of Us, Nashville’s Moment Is Now, Catholic Charities, Clergy for Tolerance, The Community Relations Committee of Nashville Jewish Federation, Islamic Center of Nashville, The Jewish Federation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, Middle Tennessee Justice For Our Neighbors, Somali Community Center, Sudanese Community and Women’s Service Center, Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC), Hispanic Nashville Notebook, Liberadio(!) with Mary Mancini & Freddie O’Connell, Solo Nashville-Telefutura, Davidson County Democratic Executive Committee, Democracy for Tennessee, League of Women Voters of Nashville, Middle Tennessee Hispanic Democrats, Nashville Women’s Political Caucus, ACLU of Tennessee, Community Nashville, Nashville Peace and Justice Center, The Welcoming Tennessee Initiative (WTI), Green Room Projects/Naked Stages, Nashville Metros.
Now that’s unity. Is it divisive–what a silly question.
Q: Then why do the Mayor and many interest groups and community leaders oppose official English?
A:That’s a good question. They probably don’t realize just how intelligent and powerful Mr. Eric Crafton is. He may let self-important people like mayors have their way for a while, but eventually Crafton will stop being so nice and he will exert his all-encompassing power. Why? Because he is a god. Maybe not the God, but certainly a god. Also, some groups are threatening to label us as bigots or racists. What they don’t realize is that if you have family members that are from other countries who have learned English, then it automatically means that any legislation you propose cannot be deemed racist. No matter how much it functions as racism, intended or not.
Q: Would official English deter foreign companies from locating in Nashville?
A:Actually, no. Let’s take a look at a real world example. One reason why the U.S. is an attractive place to do business is that it is a huge market in which workers, customers, and government officials all speak the same language: English. Remember New York City, with their translating any number of languages instead of just communicating only in English? Well, that is why New York is such a failure at business and trade. Honestly, who goes there to conduct any sort of business? If only they would adopt English as their official language like Nashville wants to–maybe then they could become the successful city that Nashville is.
Q: Would adoption of an official English charter amendment in Nashville result in costly lawsuits?
A:While it’s true that English First has already been plagued and slowed by a number of lawsuits even before it has been voted into law, we are betting that after we adopt English as our official language, there will be a miracle from God preventing any more lawsuits from being filed. But even if there are more, don’t worry. Because our Nashville English First group is funded, almost exclusively, by a group from Virginia named ProEnglish. They have experience in defending racist ideas like this one in court. In fact, they have connections to such blatantly racist groups that they have been categorized as a hate group, themselves. They have experience in putting second class citizens back into their place. So we’ve got that going for us too.
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