English as a requirement to vote

I know many of you (including a few in my top 8 - you know who you are) will be in disagreement with me over this but I'll share my views regardless.

The Glendale City Clerk recently issues the sample ballots for the upcoming elections. To the horror of many Glendale residents, the sample ballot was in 4 different languages!

I can only quantify this as a backlash against the immigrant population. I went through my days of, "damnit, if you live in the US, you must learn english!" - but, it was my own resentment of having to sit through spanish class. And now its a resentment of "minorities" "taking over" glendale. Even my Armenian friends who disagree with me on this mostly disagree because they hate walking around glendale and hearing everyone speaking armenian. So, before you attack my views, examine your disagreement - could it be founded on your own animosity towards a person? I've heard my armenian friends complain about some armo who didn't speak english but its often the rude assholes - not the really sweet lady (whether 35 or 65) who says, "I'm sorry dear. I don't speak english very well... can you please...." (its more like the "Ara, kuro, help me because i'm armenian and you have to" that draws criticism). Moreover, when we choose to deny a non-english speaker of their right to vote, we're doing so because we feel they do not deserve it... but, again, that is our own bias. that individual still pays taxes (unless they are a crook - which is a different story of course) and they are still affected by the same laws that govern us!

Anyway, back to the ballots. Whether you agree or disagree, california mandates that "elections materials" be provided in the language of the voters. So, wherever you stand on principle, its what we gotta do.

People have written statements such as:
"We our losing our identity as Americans. I want all people to have the right to be American citizens, but I want them to remember that they are citizens of the USA.

By allowing other languages to be represented on American voting ballots, we are telling people that you don't have to adhere to American policy. And that is not right.

Please, change the language to English to make sure we don't forget who we are."

WTF? Forgetting who we are? We are imposing McDonald's on every country in this world. I promise, no one is forgetting who we are. And btw, who are we?

"I do not think it is the responsibility of government to provide rudimentary instruction at the polls, on election day, for those who have failed to prepare themselves for this important civic responsibility."

Um, well then, next time i'm at a polling place and a 45 year old, fluent english speaking "American" asks, "wait, which box do i check? how does this work?" - i'll just respond with the above quote. (Actually, I almost agree with that - because if you can read the instructions in english and still don't get it, you have NO excuse!)

Anyway, below is my way too long response - don't worry - i'll be cutting it down eventually....


I have been a little dismayed with the recent slew of letters in the Glendale News Press denouncing Glendale's efforts to embrace its minority population and include them in the electoral process.

I, for one, commend Mr. Kassakhian for his efforts to include all U.S. citizens the opportunity to be an informed voter. But lest you think my opinion (as an Armenian – American) is biased, I'd like to point out a few facts.

We must all recognize the ideals on which this country was founded. You may recall, from grade school, the phrase, "No Taxation without Representation." I am not so naïve to believe that our founding fathers truly believed in a utopian democratic society, as these individuals were the same ones who maintained a cruel system of slavery for centuries and provided for the electoral collage. But regardless of their concept of equality, it is undeniable that this country was founded on the principle of representation.

Nearly a century after the founding of oldest democratic society, the concept of equality finally made its way into our constitution with the end of slavery and the addition of the 14th amendment which provided for the "equal protection" of the laws. And finally, nearly a century after that, the civil rights movement gained momentum as the Supreme Court of the United States brought an end to an era of Jim Crow laws, legal segregation and voter disenfranchisement.

I am not suggesting that the language barriers are necessarily equivalent to the Jim Crow laws of a century ago, but it does seem counterintuitive to retreat on the progress we have made as a democratic society. Those who do not speak English are governed by the same laws as those who are fluent. Are we advocating a return to taxation without representation?

Moreover, though the Constitution was written in English, the founders conspicuously omitted a language clause from the Constitution. This leads me to draw the conclusion that representation (for which they fought a war) was of greater concern than speaking English. Aside from facilitating communication, what other reason do we have to make a mandatory language requirement? If communication is the goal, then why are translations such a crime?

Regarding the U.S. citizenship test, it is important to note that the test does allow for translators based on certain criteria. Furthermore, the test asks questions such as, "What are the colors of our flag?" This quite different from, "The degree to which we can educate our children today will directly impact the future of our community…." I'm not sure how many native English speakers would be able to read a similar sentence in French, German or even Spanish (a language which many of us are familiar with). And, though we all have an opportunity to learn about candidates throughout their campaigns, many of us rely on the sample ballot to learn about more complicated ballot measures which we rarely hear about.

Of course, if this does not seem convincing enough, perhaps you'll be more convinced by California's own election standards. The California Voters Bill of Rights says, "You have the right to election materials in another language, if there are sufficient residents in your precinct to warrant production." The "Bill of Rights" goes on to state that any person who believes they have been denied one of these rights may call the "fraud or misconduct" hotline. Our City Clerk is doing his DUTY and saving our city from lawsuits. If you are in disagreement with the multilingual sample ballots, you should be complaining to the Secretary of State, Debra Bowen, rather than the Glendale News Press.

Lastly, there are countless individuals who not only speak English fluently but have also been voters their entire lives, yet they are still confused by the voting system. Unlike their non-English speaking neighbors, these individuals may turn around and ask a poll worker what to do. It is only fair to allow non-English speaking individuals, including those who have taken the time to educate themselves about the candidates, the right to ask questions at the polling place!

I am in agreement that learning English in today's world is essential because our world is increasingly becoming a global society with English as the common language. Those who do not learn English may find themselves at a loss. But, it is quite paternalistic for me to force someone to do what I believe is "best" for them. And, it is against our country's own ideals for us to advocate the denial of anyone's rights. Many of these voters did come from the former Soviet Union and Iran and are thus much more unaccustomed to and alienated by the election process. Shouldn't we welcome their desire to be a part of a democracy with open arms rather than slammed doors?