Sometimes, you don’t want to be right. For me, this is one of those cases.
A while back, I wrote a post on this blog about teaching English and learning Turkish at the same time. You can read it here. In it, I praise Turkish people for being overwhelmingly patient with me as I struggle to learn their language. They inherently understand that Turkish is not an easy language for foreigners to learn and that it cannot happen over night, or in my case, over eight months. But, slow and steady progress is acceptable. Not once have I ever had someone become angry with me as I struggle to voice my thoughts. Instead, the more I struggle, the more helpful people seem to become.
Also in that post, I asked the question: Would it be the same if I sent my beginning English students to America? Would people treat them with the same patience, respect and understanding that I receive here? I asserted then, and still assert now, that no, they would not. Americans do not understand the daunting challenge that our language presents to foreigners. People don’t allow for a grace period of learning English and most seem to expect that the second you step on our soil, you should have our language. This misunderstanding leads to hostility in many places. This hostility, if anything, leads foreigners to be even more reluctant in learning and speaking English and can isolate them into their own community.
I argued this point with a family member recently who disagreed with me. But today, the evidence is in my favor. A republican gubernatorial candidate in Alabama, Tim James, recently released this advertisement. In it, he begins, “I’m Tim James. Why do our politicians make us give drivers’ license exams in 12 languages? This is Alabama, we speak English. If you want to live here, learn it.”
He continues to say that “We are only giving that test in English if I’m governor.”
Finally, he concludes “Maybe it’s the businessman in me, but we’ll save money. And it makes sense. Does it to you?”
Well, no Tim, it doesn’t make sense to me. Maybe it’s the non-racist ESL teacher in me, but I think you should have a little more consideration for the time and effort it takes to learn English. The more supportive and understanding a community is about language learning, the more it encourages people to learn. The more divisive and hostile the environment, the more reluctant people will be. People like you, Tim, are counterproductive, not conducive, to this process.
That being said, I can attest to the intelligence and commitment it takes to learn English. So, if you are a foreigner, do not move to Alabama. Pick a different state, maybe even a different country. And not because after November you may not be able to get a driver’s license. Move elsewhere because if you are smart enough to learn English as a foreign language, you are too smart to have a guy like Tim James as your governor. Or, even as your neighbor.
