The effort to enforce the use of English in speech and writing recalls for me children harassing their schoolmates who are different. People sound as if they are insisting that they or their parents before them were compelled to lose their heritage, so others should be forced through the same shameful process. It is no better than a form of hazing, the last arrival bullying the next newcomer. As much as I believe that the English only movement is misguided, I am not persuaded by the standard arguments against the legislative proposals. Appropriately enough given the subject, the arguments for both sides seem to be repeated as if learned by rote.
People learn English anyway.
The government should not legislate language. We should be encouraging people to learn foreign languages, not discouraging them, in order to compete in the international economy. Instead, I am moved by a different argument that I think would appeal to many people who can speak English, whether as their first language or as a foreign language. Contrary to the stereotypes of taxi drivers and university instructors, the English-only movement has little to do with people who cannot speak English at all. I am convinced that we have overlooked the importance of accent whenever I hear people promoting English-only insist they care strictly about the official language and our public discourse.