Political Quotes

“Do opponents of the English language instruction want a Nation divided by our inability to speak a common language? I think not. I know not. But as the gentleman from Pennsylvania has already stated, this bill simply lets communities and parents decide what form of English language instruction is best for the community and best for the child; not some Federal mandate that may not fit their needs. Let us take a quick look at my hometown as an example. During the farm crisis in the mid-eighties, our major employer closed down because of the farm economy. A few years later another major employer, a meat packing company, came in and brought in thousands of new workers, many of whom were immigrants from dozens of different countries. Almost overnight our school system became overloaded, both in terms of numbers of students, but also in terms of new challenges, particularly English language instruction. There is no possible way my small town can hire scores of bilingual teachers to teach a variety of subjects. We have to use English language immersion.”