Two-in-three Hispanics Favor English as the Official Language of the United States

Nearly two-thirds of Hispanic adults living in the United States favor making English the official language of the United States, according to a new poll from Zogby International. The survey found that the majority of Hispanics want the federal government to conduct business overwhelmingly in English, including majorities of those not born on U.S. soil. The survey of 903 Hispanic adults was conducted Nov. 17-20, 2006 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percent.

“As an immigrant to the United States, I am not surprised by the strong support for official English among Hispanics,” said Mauro E. Mujica, Chairman of the Board for U.S. English. “The majority of immigrants understand that coming to a new country means learning the language of that country. While individuals are free to speak the language of their choice, they cannot expect the government to provide information in every foreign language.”

The Zogby poll found widespread support for making English the official language among all subgroups, including Democrats, Republicans and Independents. More than three-in-four immigrants to the United States favored the legislation, as did nearly 60 percent of first-generation and 70 percent of second-generation Americans. Majority support was also noted across all income groups, age levels and education levels. Hispanics of Mexican descent, who made up more than half of those surveyed, approved of official English legislation at a near 70 percent rate.

More than 160 members of Congress supported H.R. 997, a bill to make English the official language of the United States, in the most recent session. Though this bill has yet to be considered by the full House of Representatives, a Senate Amendment that would have made English the national language of the United States passed 62-35 last May. Efforts to enact official English laws have also gained momentum on the state and local level. In November, Arizona became the 28th state to make English its official language when voters passed Prop. 103 by a three-to-one margin.

“Making English our official language celebrates the unifying factor in our diverse nation,” continued Mujica, who immigrated to the United States from Chile in 1965. “This poll should demonstrate to legislators that their efforts to make English the official language are supported, not derided, by the Hispanic community. I look forward to working with elected officials at all levels of government to enact this widely favored legislation.

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 2 million members.