A ghetto is an area where people from a specific racial or ethnic background are united in a given culture or religion live as a group, voluntarily or involuntarily, in milder or stricter seclusion. Obviously Kasie Hunt is not aware of that, or she wouldn’t have written such a pathetic piece.
Former House speaker Newt Gingrich yesterday described bilingual education as teaching “the language of living in a ghetto,” and he mocked requirements that ballots be printed in multiple languages.
“The government should quit mandating that various documents be printed in any one of 700 languages depending on who randomly shows up” to vote, Gingrich said. The former Georgia congressman, who is considering seeking the GOP presidential nomination in 2008, made the comments in a speech to the National Federation of Republican Women.
“The American people believe English should be the official language of the government. . . . We should replace bilingual education with immersion in English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto,” Gingrich said, drawing cheers from the crowd of more than 100.
America, at the turn of the 20th century, was made up of French, German, Irish, Italian, Wasps etc., ghettos. I can go to St. Louis and still pass through Dago Hill, or Boys Town in Chicago. The different ethnic groups did not mix for the most part. People spoke English or their native language in the home, but in public, it was English only. This country recognized them as ghettos.
Most of us have discussed this topic, and we have all had ancestors that came to this country and learned English in order to work. Our ancestors were not given special treatment at the voting booths, banks, colleges or in elevators. You assimilated to this countries customs.
I’m not a big fan of Gingrich, but he isn’t wrong in his usage of the word. Sad that some don’t understand the actual meaning of words.
Originally Posted by: Peejz
Related Posts on this blog:
» Gingrich Lambastes President and Rove (New York Times)
» 'Democratic Party' is proper usage - Arizona Republic
» King County Executive D Primary 2009 - Sound Politics
» Hagel, Gingrich Consider US Presidential Bids - Voice of America
» John Stiglich: Evening in the Republican Party (Michigan Daily)
» Jim McDermott (D-Wash), Found Guilty Of Ethics Violations
» SPD splits over dealing with Left party (Deutsche Welle)
» Abbot & Costello: imagine what would it have been like if Costello wanted to buy his first computer…
» 2008 Republican Presidential Primary: Giuliani 33% McCain 15% Gingrich 10% (Rasmussen Reports via Yahoo! News)
» Left Right Debate
Subscribe To Full Site Feed