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Nashville votes to have English as first language. |
While other cities have voted similar laws into being, Nashville is the largest city to do so thus far and the first state capital to do so. While some members of the population aren't giving the new law much thought, saying it probably won't affect business within Nashville very much, others are worried about the bill and what it will say to the country about Nashville.
"From our perspective, the job just got a little tougher to prove to the world that Nashville is the inclusive city it is," Ralph Schulz, President of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, said in an interview with the Associated Press.
According to an Associated Press article, "Nashville is home to America's largest Kurdish community and has been a resettlement site for refugees from Africa and Southeast Asia. The Hispanic immigrant population also has boomed, and researchers say Nashville's foreign-born population has grown 350 percent since 1990."
Currently, the law is waiting on a signature from Mayor Bill Purcell in order to go into effect. It's up in the air as to whether Purcell will sign it or not.
Faced with giant influxes in the number of immigrants living in U.S. cities, many people are trying to decide the best way to approach the language barrier problem. So far, 28 states have adopted a law stating that English is the official language of their state. Supporters of these laws see them as laws that will ensure that immigrants learn English, which will, in turn, ease communication problems within the states.
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