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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 8, 2000
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Contact:
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Tim Schultz
800/787-8216
202/833-0100
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Utah Voters Pass Official English Law
Measures are Undefeated on Statewide Ballots
Utah voters overwhelmingly passed a ballot initiative making English the official language of their state government. With 99.9% of the precincts reporting, 67.13% of voters supported INITIATIVE A, with only 32.87% opposed. By passing the initiative, Utah became the
twenty-sixth state with English as its official language.
Mauro E. Mujica, Chairman/CEO of U.S.ENGLISH, said, "The people of Utah have weighed in on a great national question. They rejected the divisive rhetoric of the radical multi-culturalists and voted for unity. In a nation that is increasingly divided by language, this vote signifies that Utah will preserve the American tradition of the Melting Pot."
U.S.ENGLISH has been the driving force to pass state and federal English language laws since its formation in 1983. After a series of backroom deals stymied an official English bill in the Utah legislature, U.S.ENGLISH formed the state organization Utahns for Official English to collect more than 74,000 signatures and qualify the measure for the ballot. Most of the funding for the petition drive and campaign was donated by U.S.ENGLISH on behalf of its over 10,000 members in Utah.
While the measure in Utah was an unqualified success, a similar law failed to qualify for the ballot in Oklahoma, despite receiving far more than the required number of signatures. Governor Frank Keating and other state officials opposed the measure, and waged a behind-the-scenes effort to postpone ballot access until 2002.
"This vote sends a signal to the rest of the nation," Mujica continued. "Politicians may play games by trying to pander to ethnic votes. But when the people have their say, they always vote for Unity, rather than Balkanization. As America increasingly becomes a nation of immigrants, we will be confronted with the costs and benefits they bring. As an immigrant myself, I believe that immigrants are a resource, so long as they become Americans and learn our common language."
U.S.ENGLISH is the nation's oldest and largest organization 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 now has more than 1.4 million members nationwide.
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