Learning English Might Help in Reading Ballots
Re “Vietnamese Voters Fault Sample Ballot,” March 21:
May I offer a simple solution to Chuyen V. Nguyen and his organization’s complaints about the translation problems with ballots? Learn English. That is the primary language of this country.
It is really appalling that California prints ballots in at least six languages. When the European wave of immigrants flooded our shores in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, immigrants learned the language of their new home. Recent immigrants seem to think that we are to learn their language and accommodate them. As I understand it, in order to become a citizen, one must have a basic understanding of our Constitution and take the oath of citizenship in English.
I am unaware of any other country that bends over so far backward as the U.S. in dealing with new citizens. It should be incumbent upon newly arrived immigrants to learn English.
Skip Houston
Laguna Beach
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