Word: referenda
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...problem with the referenda lies less in their content than in their xenophobic underpinnings...
Last week, voters in Arizona, Colorado and Florida overwhelmingly passed referenda making English their official state language. While the measures may save the states and businesses some money on translations and extra paperwork, the symbolic effect of those referenda--especially considering the large margins of victory they enjoyed--is detrimental to civil liberties and basic tolerance...
Considered in the abstract, at least, the idea of making English the official language of American states seems reasonable enough. As supporters of the referenda often argued, it doesn't seem like a great imposition to ask United States citizens to learn the nation's native language. After all, learning a new language hardly seems too much to ask in exchange for the benefits of living in a free society. And having pockets of foreign-speaking people might have a divisive effect on the unity of the nation, the referenda supporters claimed...
Last week, voters in Arizona, Colorado and Florida overwhelmingly passed referenda making English their official state language. While the measures may save the states and businesses some money on translations and extra paperwork, the symbolic effect of those referenda--especially considering the large margins of victory they enjoyed--is detrimental to civil liberties and basic tolerance...
Considered in the abstract, at least, the idea of making English the official language of American states seems reasonable enough. As supporters of the referenda often argued, it doesn't seem like a great imposition to ask United States citizens to learn the nation's native language. After all, learning a new language hardly seems too much to ask in exchange for the benefits of living in a free society. And having pockets of foreign-speaking people might have a divisive effect on the unity of the nation, the referenda supporters claimed...