U.S. English Inc. Applauds Introduction of Official English Bill in Arizona

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. English, Inc. today saluted Rep. Russell Pearce and five of his colleagues in the Arizona legislature for introducing a measure that would make English the official language of Arizona.

"House Concurrent Resolution 2030 is a welcome step for a measure that has overwhelming support and is long overdue in Arizona," explained Mauro E. Mujica, Chairman of the Board of U.S. English, Inc. "Though Arizona has long welcomed immigrants, it has done so without setting clear goals for their integration into the melting pot. Establishing English as the official language will blaze a path of the next great generation of Americans."

A measure to make English the official language of Arizona passed by popular initiative in 1988, but was later struck down by the Supreme Court. The current bill calls for the legislature to maintain the unifying role of the English language in government and provide for English language learning opportunities, yet maintains the freedom for individuals to learn and speak whichever language they choose. If approved by the legislature, the measure would put to the voters in 2006, where passage would add Arizona to the list of 27 states that have made English their official language.

"Arizonans will be asked to weigh in on a great national question: ‘What is our proper response to immigrants?’," Mujica continued. "Some would say that immigrants should come here only for their economic self-interest. But as an immigrant myself, I believe that we have a responsibility to help immigrants become Americans, which includes learning our common language. It makes more sense for the government to teach immigrants English as quickly as possible, rather than to slow down the assimilation process by trying to function in dozens of languages."

Statistics from Census 2000 show that less than 64 percent of Arizona immigrants speak English at least "well," the third-lowest percentage in the nation. On a more positive note, results from Arizona’s recent implementation of "English immersion" for non-English speaking students have shown evidence of higher test scores and quicker English acquisition.

## U.S. English, Inc. is the nation's oldest and largest non-partisan citizens' action group dedicated to preserving the unifying role of the English language in the United States. Founded in 1983 by the late Sen. S.I. Hayakawa of California, U.S. English, Inc. (www.usenglish.org) now has more than 1.8 million members.