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"First bilingual presidential debate as three candidates and a moderator speak in Spanish by Zachary Halaschak | June 26, 2019 10:10 PM By the half-way point of the first Democratic presidential debate, three candidates and one moderator had spoken in Spanish, some attempts more fluent than others. The bilingual gambits began with former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke, who for his first question began by speaking his second language. O'Rourke, 46, was responding to a question about whether he would support a marginal individual 70% tax rate on highest earners. He responded in Spanish translated to: “We need to include everyone...

California isn’t even close to a swing state in the 2016 presidential election, but that doesn’t mean nothing is at stake for voters in the nation’s largest state. After Tuesday’s vote, hundreds of thousands of California schoolchildren may start attending classes primarily en español, thanks to a voter referendum that would repeal the requirement that schools teach primarily in English. California’s Proposition 58 would repeal Proposition 227, a measure that easily passed nearly two decades ago, in 1998. Proposition 227 required all public schools in the state teach “overwhelmingly” in English, with limited-English proficiency (LEP) students transitioning to fully English...

In yet another sign of Charlotte’s growing immigrant workforce a new kind of job fair is being held Friday to recruit ONLY people who speak more than one language. Organizers believe it may be the first of many to come. The Latin American Coalition has programs aimed at helping immigrants find work and it has lately enjoyed growing success. In the past six months, the number of immigrants finding work through its job preparedness programs jumped from 8 to 15 percent, agency officials said.

History has many examples of language and culture being used as a pretense for invasion. Of late, Putin’s reasoning for invading Crimea contained some type of ordained responsibility to protect Russian speaking people. This follows the model set by Germany as they invaded Czechoslovakia to protect the Germans in Sudetenland. Hitler merely followed a litany of historical examples based on the same manufactured excuse. When it is suggested that English become the official national language of the United States, it is in part presented to solidify the nation and promote assimilation not only of language but also of culture. The...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mp7NNjClQ2o It has English in last segment.

The Boston Fire Department’s new second in command was hailed as the city’s first Latino chief when he was hired last year, but the veteran firefighter doesn’t speak Spanish, the Herald has learned.

On a sweltering August morning, in a classroom overlooking New York's Hudson River, a group of 3-year-olds are rolling sticky rice balls in chocolate sprinkles, as a teacher guides them completely in Mandarin. This is just one toddler learning game at the total--immersion language summer camp run by the primary school Bilingual Buds, which offers a year-round curriculum in Mandarin as well as Spanish (at a New Jersey campus) for kids as young as 2. Bilingualism, of course, can be a leg up for college admission and a r�sum� burnisher. But a growing body of research now offers a further...

When Mayor Julián Castro visits Mexico next month, it will come as no surprise to see his chief of staff, Robbie Greenblum, close at hand. Greenblum has earned the mayor's trust, but there might be another reason to have him nearby: He speaks fluent Spanish; Castro does not. The mayor, who has taken informal Spanish lessons while in office and understands most of what he hears, represents a generation of Latino elected officials whose parents were discouraged from speaking Spanish in school. Many didn't master it themselves. In Mexican diplomatic circles, Castro's limitations shouldn't hinder him. Many of those he'll...

Why should Canada’s single-language masses accept rule by their bilingual betters? After two years, my campaign to rid the nation of its “human rights” commissions doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. So, in a spirit of rapprochement, let me try a new tack. Given that there seems to be insufficient actionable racism, sexism, homophobia and Islamophobia to justify the budgets of the “human rights” regime, how about a new ground for complaint? Unilinguaphobia. As we know, every job that matters in Canada is bilingual, from her viceregal eminence in Rideau Hall down to the village postmistress in Pakenham, Ont. The...

In 1998, Californians voted to pass Proposition 227, the “English for the Children Act,” and dismantle the state’s bilingual-education industry. The results, according to California’s education establishment, were not supposed to look like this: button-cute Hispanic pupils at a Santa Ana elementary school boasting about their English skills to a visitor. Those same pupils cheerfully calling out to their principal on their way to lunch: “Hi, Miss Champion!” A statewide increase in English proficiency among all Hispanic students. Instead, warned legions of educrats, eliminating bilingual education in California would demoralize Hispanic students and widen the achievement gap. Unless Hispanic children...

Bilingual Education Was Wrong, Lee Kuan Yew Says Former Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew on Tuesday admitted that Singapore's insistence on bilingual education has been wrong. The father of current Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Lee now holds the honorary title of minister mentor and was prime minister from 1959 to 1990, and senior minister from 1990 to 2004. When Singapore separated from Malaysia in 1965, Lee made the country strictly English-speaking for the subsequent 19 years. But with the rise of China as a powerhouse in the global community, Lee hoped to make the country bilingual, having...

CBS News is reporting that McAllen is the most multilingual city in the United States, according to the latest census data. The Census Bureau Tuesday released its American Community Survey results, which charts a range of social, economic and housing data in U.S. metropolitan areas. CBS reported that the running survey, which is different from the traditional once-a-decade census, tracks three years worth of data. The latest figures cover 2006 to 2008. Among the findings: • McAllen, Texas has the highest percentage of people age 5 and older who speak a language other than English at home - 84.2 percent...

Pinnacle Bank is closing this week what was known as its Latino branch at 13th and E, because it failed to attract the numbers the bank was hoping for. “It was an experiment,” said Pinnacle President Mark Hesser. “It was a new concept at the time it was opened. (June 2006) As far as I know it was the first branch to have 100 percent bilingual employees in Nebraska.” All employees will be retained and will work at other Pinnacle locations, he said. “We found out with the downtown location and others, we could serve that community easily,” Hesser said....

Exclusive: Has Illegal Immigration’s Effect on Education Become the ‘Third Rail’ of Politics? Vincent Gioia Traditionally, Social Security has been the “third rail” of politics but we now have another third rail – illegal immigration and education. Politicians step all over themselves asking for more and more money to be spent on education; ignoring the fact that money alone does not make for a good public education. Another thing we are not allowed to mention in a discussion about public education quality and costs is the impact of illegal immigration; otherwise we are labeled “racists.” The United States has the...

13 Million Illegal Immigrants Living in the United States March 8, 2009 FAIRUS.org How Many Illegal Immigrants? Illegal Immigrant Problems & Statistics FAIR estimates that in 2007 the illegal immigrant population is above 13 million persons. Government and academic estimates indicate that as of 2006 there were 11 to 12 million illegal immigrants living in the United States. The Center for Immigration Studies estimated the illegal immigrant population at 10 million as of November 2004. It is difficult to have an exact figure because the illegal nature of their presence prevents any enumeration, but the U.S. Census Bureau estimated 8.7...

I have a cousin in 8th grade who's taking a "sampler" class in which she's taught the minimum basics of Spanish, French, and German. The point is to give her a better grasp of languages so that she can choose which class to take for her mandatory language requirements in Highschool. I believe that the highschool she'll go to also has Russian and Latin in addition. Do folks here feel that Spanish would be a bad idea, politically/culturally? Her parents consider it somewhat gauche, and there's also a concern that encouraging kids to learn Spanish would delay assimilation of US...

Ingrid Ocampo said her autistic son waited a year for services from the Philadelphia School District because she does not speak English and couldn't understand the district's forms and policies. Irma Zamora, another public school parent, expressed concern about signing permission slips printed in a language she can't read. ---snip--- "We want to know how our kids are doing in math, how they're doing in social sciences. We want to know how the school is organized," said Zamora, addressing district officials through a translator. "We want you to know that we are the same quality whether we speak English or...

"...Getting to the bottom of evolution...Genetic study investigates the origin of the anus...research is opening a lively debate on the origin of the anus...Today, two evolutionary biologists have published genetic evidence in Nature1 that they claim refutes the leading theory of anal evolution..."

After years of pleading with the Elgin Area U-46 school board for middle school dual-language opportunities, a group of Channing Elementary parents are in panic mode. “We’re nervous for our sixth-graders,” said Kristen Webb. “After seven years of dual language study, there are no programs in place for them when they head to middle school.” Channing’s dual language program, unique among U-46 schools, was established seven years ago, splitting a select group of students’ school days and subjects, between Spanish and English. Currently, officials said, there are two dual language kindergarten classes, two each in first and second grades, one...

Minority students have become the minority in the Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District.