Democratic Party Ninth District Beth Hand

A bill proposing a constitutional amendment to make English the official language of the State of Georgia failed to pass by a 2/3rd majority in the state legislature on February 26, 2008. HB 413, introduced by Rep. Timothy Bearden ( R ) from Villa Rica, was introduced to solidify once and for all the official language of Georgia governmental business is English. The vote fell short by 17 votes. Not to worry, Rep. Bearden made a motion for the bill to be reconsidered in committee where they will once again review this all important matter.

Life must be good in Georgia if the Republican majority must consider this all important constitutional amendment a second time! There must be no more poverty, no children or adults without healthcare, no home foreclosures, no job loss, no economic downturn and we just didn't hear about it!

In an article on www.georgialegislativewatch. com, Rep. Bearden was quoted as saying that "85% of Americans and 77% of Hispanics believe English should be the official language of this government." It never occurred to me that nationwide polls guide policy decisions in Atlanta. According to other nationwide polls, 70% of Americans believe we should get out of the war in Iraq. Is there a solution for that in the Georgia Legislature?

If the Republicans want English to be the official language of government in Georgia, does that mean all of our elected and government officials will have to pass an English proficiency exam before conducting official governmental business?

From Rep. Bearden's quote, we can conclude this bill is directed at those among us who speak Spanish. How is it we should expect a person to work towards citizenship and English proficiency if they are not able to access our state government UNTIL they are proficient in English?

The United States is a nation of immigrants. Unless you are a Native American, you or someone you are related to by blood was/is an immigrant. It seems as though our country is suffering from an intense case of xenophobia. Xenophobia is an intense fear of strangers or foreign peoples. How ironic since we are a nation of foreign peoples.

The world over it is understood that English is the primary language of the United States. Sadly, those outside of the U.S. know most Americans speak only one language and some of us (present company included) don't do that very well. Though I have taken French, Russian and Norwegian, I am not proficient in a second language. I think it is pretty darn hard to learn a foreign language. In fact, it is impressive to me the number of native Spanish speakers that pick up on English so quickly.

When the topics of immigration and official language come up, I am reminded of the "Golden Rule" and that Sunday school lesson about "that which you do unto the least of these you do unto me also." The Republicans need to focus on true problems facing ordinary citizens. Nailing down once and for all our official language is a waste of time.

By the way, my husband said, "you better get your momma' to read over that article to make sure it is grammatically correct or they will rip you up!" Sorry, mom.

Beth Hand is a native of Georgia. She grew up in Blairsville, GA and currently resides with her husband and two children in Cumming, GA. Hand has a MSW degree from UGA, runs her own mediation business and is a Committee Member of the Forsyth County Democratic Party.