Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

In challenging Cabrera's candidacy, San Ljuis' mayor cited a 1913 Arizona state law that says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office.

Both the Arizona Constitution and the 1910 federal law that created the state in 1912 require that state and local government officials be able to read, speak, write and understand English, the opinion noted.

The requirement "manifests a legitimate concern that those who hold elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter," Justice Robert Brutinel wrote for the court. "Such a requirement helps ensure that the public officer will in fact be able to understand and perform the functions of the office, including communication with English-speaking constituents and the public."

I'd have been ok with this if the judge hadn't added that last little bit. There are a lot of native spanish speakers here. Wouldn't it be a good idea to be able to communicate with them?

Justice Robert Brutinel wrote for the court. "Such a requirement helps ensure that the public officer will in fact be able to understand and perform the functions of the office, including communication with English-speaking constituents and the public."

in San Luis, a mostly Spanish-speaking border town in southwestern Arizona...

Makes perfect sense. No Jim Crow here.

What do they call someone that only speaks one language?

American.

/specifically the "undocumented" kind

//no me importa

RoyBatty: BarkingUnicorn: Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

Someone named BarkingUnicorn advocating for the rights of dear to hold office.

That goes against type.

I meant "deaf," of course. And I wasn't advocating anything; just said it's an "interesting" law and judicial opinion.

RoyBatty: BarkingUnicorn: I meant "deaf," of course. And I wasn't advocating anything; just said it's an "interesting" law and judicial opinion.

Oh I know, I was just being silly. BarkingUnicorn advocates for deer to become elected official.

Well, we have dogs and cats who are mayors, so I suppose deer would work.

But I can't find any deaf U. S. legislators at all. Interesting.

I suppose a mute lawmaker would be too much to hope for.

Nadie_AZ: In challenging Cabrera's candidacy, San Ljuis' mayor cited a 1913 Arizona state law that says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office.

Both the Arizona Constitution and the 1910 federal law that created the state in 1912 require that state and local government officials be able to read, speak, write and understand English, the opinion noted.

The requirement "manifests a legitimate concern that those who hold elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter," Justice Robert Brutinel wrote for the court. "Such a requirement helps ensure that the public officer will in fact be able to understand and perform the functions of the office, including communication with English-speaking constituents and the public."

I'd have been ok with this if the judge hadn't added that last little bit. There are a lot of native spanish speakers here. Wouldn't it be a good idea to be able to communicate with them?

It's fascinating to me that there are parts of my city where people can live in an enclave their entire lives, working there, shopping there, and never have to learn any more English for when they're out of that area than a tourist from another country.

TFA says this English requirement is part of the federal law that granted statehood to Arizona. I wonder if the same requirement applies to all States.

RoyBatty: BarkingUnicorn: Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

Someone named BarkingUnicorn advocating for the rights of dear to hold office.

That goes against type.

A six point wife? A nine point brother? or his doughy child?

BarkingUnicorn: TFA says this English requirement is part of the federal law that granted statehood to Arizona. I wonder if the same requirement applies to all States.

I wonder if federal discrimination laws re deaf et.al. might trump this ruling anyway.

sno man: BarkingUnicorn: TFA says this English requirement is part of the federal law that granted statehood to Arizona. I wonder if the same requirement applies to all States.

I wonder if federal discrimination laws re deaf et.al. might trump this ruling anyway.

I wonder about that, too. The Arizona law seems to apply to "public officials," which might include DMV clerks up to the governor. The ADA protects hired employees such as a clerk. IDK where elected officials fit in.

BarkingUnicorn: Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

you also left out blind
but clearly justice is not blind in AZ, just retarded.
Plus, cant they use this law to kick sheriff joe and his buddies out of office?
There is no way that those mouth breathers can prove that they can read AND write.

I have a feeling that the "comprehend and use" language is going to come back to haunt those in the Tea Party.

/oblig

BarkingUnicorn: IDK where elected officials fit in.

People protected because they have developmental disabilities?

namatad: So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

you also left out blind



?

"ENGLISH MOTHERF*CKER! DO YOU SPEAK IT?"

gameshowhost: I have a feeling that the "comprehend and use" language is going to come back to haunt those in the Tea Party.

Glad you're not the only one that thought that

I'm okay with this on the following condition:

If Arizona gains a Spanish or Arabic or Esperanto majority, it will be constitutional to bar any non-speakers of the prescribed language from public office...regardless of whether or not the office's candidate speaks the majority local language fluently. 

My argument does not apply if the prospective office holder speaks Dutch.

BarkingUnicorn: But I can't find any deaf U. S. legislators at all. Interesting.

I didn't see that coming.

/hopes the laws will now be written in English.

pippi longstocking: Seriously, what's wrong with Arizona?

Are the majority uneducated racist morons?

We've imported a lot from other parts of the United States. They simply don't know the history of the state and region. This has been going on for a few decades.

BarkingUnicorn: Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

Deaf does not equal dumb. Law says all three must be satisfied in order to be removed. A deaf person can still read and write

Does this mean Jan Brewer is going to get impeached?

impaler: gameshowhost: I have a feeling that the "comprehend and use" language is going to come back to haunt those in the Tea Party.

Glad you're not the only one that thought that

To be honest, I figured it spoke for itself... was just trying to get someone to reply to me.

/so lonely

impaler: Justice Robert Brutinel wrote for the court. "Such a requirement helps ensure that the public officer will in fact be able to understand and perform the functions of the office, including communication with English-speaking constituents and the public."

in San Luis, a mostly Spanish-speaking border town in southwestern Arizona...

Makes perfect sense. No Jim Crow here.

Yes, because any law in the south is always assumed to be racist no matter what

pippi longstocking: Seriously, what's wrong with Arizona?

Are the majority uneducated racist morons?

FTA: Both the Arizona Constitution and the 1910 federal law that created the state in 1912 require that state and local government officials be able to read, speak, write and understand English, the opinion noted.

It seems the feds didn't want a Spanish-speaking State, either.

A nation does need a common language. No one says you can't use other languages as appropriate. Yes, she wants only to be a local city council member, in a predominantly Spanish-speaking area. But she'll still have to communicate with other government agencies outside of her little town in order to effectively represent her constituents.

cman: BarkingUnicorn: Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

Deaf does not equal dumb. Law says all three must be satisfied in order to be removed. A deaf person can still read and write

Good point! But mute people would still be barred; pity.

BarkingUnicorn: cman: BarkingUnicorn: Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

Deaf does not equal dumb. Law says all three must be satisfied in order to be removed. A deaf person can still read and write

Good point! But mute people would still be barred; pity.

Actually on second thought there is an "and" in the law not an "or", so I am pretty much sure that what I told you was wrong.

cman: BarkingUnicorn: cman: BarkingUnicorn: Law says anyone "who is unable to speak, write and read the English language is not eligible" to hold public office. Court says elective office be minimally proficient in English in order to conduct the duties of their office, without the aid of an interpreter."

So dear or mute people can't hold office. Interesting.

Deaf does not equal dumb. Law says all three must be satisfied in order to be removed. A deaf person can still read and write

Good point! But mute people would still be barred; pity.

Actually on second thought there is an "and" in the law not an "or", so I am pretty much sure that what I told you was wrong.

No, you're perfectly correct. "Speak, read, and write..." one needn't be able to hear English.

Britney Spear's Speculum: I guess, at most, this could be left up to the states? Definitely not federal office. Is there any precedent where English is the required language to hold office? I would assume not.

RTFA. The federal law that granted statehood to Arizona requires public officials to speak, read, and write English.

I don't know of any such requirement for federal office holders.

cman: Yes, because any law in the south is always assumed to be racist no matter what

If it were something dealing with murder, or drunk driving, blue laws, speed limits, or grand theft auto, then probably not.

But if it's a law in a southern state that deals with race, ethnicity, religion, language, civil rights, education, congressional district border, or the ability to vote or hold office, then yeah - you can with a fair degree of certainty assume it to be racist. FFS, most of the drug laws in the south were passed because the Klan scared people into think some coked-up black man suffering from reefer madness was going to rape the precious lilies of white womanhood.

And while Arizona technically isn't part of the South, it's putting forth a damn fine application for membership.

Suprisingly enough, it was easier to come up with a list of laws that would have a racial component that it was to come up with some that wouldn't.

A "city council seat" doesn't seem important enough for English to be required, but this is symbolism more than anything.

I'm always fascinated by the "Little [Nation]" and "[Nation]town" expat communities that spring up in destination countries. 
I think it's natural for people to feel threatened by them, they're not joining our tribe after all.

cman: impaler: Justice Robert Brutinel wrote for the court. "Such a requirement helps ensure that the public officer will in fact be able to understand and perform the functions of the office, including communication with English-speaking constituents and the public."

in San Luis, a mostly Spanish-speaking border town in southwestern Arizona...

Makes perfect sense. No Jim Crow here.

Yes, because any law in the south is always assumed to be racist no matter what

Jesus Christ. You can see how Republicans are bigots against homosexuals, but the fact that they're bigots against everyone else is somehow a stretch?

2 years from now, you will be a liberal blowhard. It's the natural progression of things. The most die-hard anti-smoker are new ex-smokers. The most die hard Christians are newly converted "born again" Christians. The most die-hard asshole anti-christians are new athiests.

It will happen. You have the traits of a thinking man, and when you realize how blatant and bullshat the republican platform is, your understandable outlash against them will be beautiful.

You probably won't become a Democrat (like I haven't), you will become an anti-Republican (like I have).

I hate the Republican party and everything they stand for. That is a position I identify with. They are forever wrong, and their authoritarian BS will be forever wrong.

Basically, the official language of the United States is and should be English. If it should evolve into something else, I'd expect English to stick around as the language of official operations for at least a century or more. Look at how many lawyers still like to pretend using Latin makes them smart.
2000 years on and still kicking around.

The only real argument you could have for NOT having English as the official language would be if someone managed to popularize the Iroquois language again. A lot of the United States' charter was cribbed off the Five Nations and seniority is undeniable along with a neat little system of naturalizing outsiders into the fold to replace losses in war. We could conceivably adopt the native culture at some point and become truly North American all the way back to the end of the birch scrolls' histories. English would stick around, but it would be nice to get all the way down to the bones of our native land.

But the chances of anything like that happening are slim to none. So we're left with the Constitution. The document penned by English speaking colonists in English for their English speaking children to read and obey. Sure, you can speak ANY language in a free country. No problem there. But the onus is on YOU to learn the language of the place you live. Look at Pennsylvania. You've got Dutch, German, Scottish, and Italian families all over the place. Every single one of them speaks the same English as all the descendents of the Englishmen who came over to colonize Virginia and Massachusetts. That's why we're a melting pot. Sure,

Spanish is big in some places, but if you can't speak English it's highly inappropriate for you to be holding political office as it's contrary to the very motto of the United States which is E Plurbus Unum(Latin again) From Many: One. Everyone in America should speak or be striving to speak English. If you can't or don't, you should be studying. It shouldn't delay anyone worth electing.

SquiggelyGrounders: I dont think it should be law but a common language is beneficial.

An official language doubly so. We're not made of infinite resources. Printing official government papers up rapes Mother Nature up the butt hole pretty hard. The more we can cut the red tape and limit the number of documents and repetitive things the more resources we can save for other uses.

Nothing makes me cringe more than the 44 page long instruction booklet that only has 3 pages of instructions, but in many different languages. Somewhere out there cute widdle animals are dying for want of homes because some asshole cut down all their trees to make enough white glossy so MBA Joe could save $10 an hour by not having to hire a college kid to sort gadgets by country at the end of the assembly line. We should discourage similar waste in government.

I don't really have a problem with this. Her candidacy was challenged by another Mexican-American, this isn't based on race. And she failed the test to see if she could even remotely comprehend English. This is a really touchy issue, and a very slippery slope, but I'm ok with the decision. All the translation issues and costs of that would not be a fair burden to place on her community.

All that said, I hope she learns English and eventually gets elected to serve her community.

Some of the least assimilated people I know are Dutch. They send their kids to predominantly Dutch colleges, all live in the same communities, even all come to Florida in the winter and end up in the same place. Seriously, the church I grew up in would double in the winter because this entire Dutch community from Michigan would all come to the same place, and while they all showed up together at my church every year, they didn't have much to do with the rest of us non-Dutch folk. It's pretty crazy, but nobody complains about them because they're all tall and blond so who cares that there's a ton of Dutch Calvinists up in Michigan who won't have anything to do with anybody who isn't a Dutch Calvinist?

Heck, my family has been in America for going on 300 years and yet I wouldn't really call my Pennsylvania Dutch relatives who still live in Pennsylvania particularly assimilated into broader American culture. I sometimes feel like I grew up as a 3rd culture kid just from navigating the differences between the culture where my family is from and the one where I grew up. Heck, I didn't even figure out until I was in high school that some of the words my parents would use in conversation at home weren't actually English (which really throws my brain for a loop when I'm around German speakers because I keep feeling as though if I just listen harder I'll understand). Nobody complains that the PA Dutch aren't assimilated though, nope, they're down-homey real Americans. Or at least, nobody has complained since Benjamin Franklin started worrying about too many Germans moving to Pennsylvania back in the 1700s.

Meanwhile though, everybody seems to pick a fit over Hispanic immigrants. Funny how the ones who get flack are the ones who don't look properly Northern European.

rynthetyn: Meanwhile though, everybody seems to pick a fit over Hispanic immigrants. Funny how the ones who get flack are the ones who don't look properly Northern European.




I'm sure that was his issue, she just wasn't Northern European enough for Mayor Juan Carlos Escamilla.

Smackledorfer:
I think it's stupid to feel threatened by other cultures without reason. I've yet to visit a blanktown area that had a problem with me. You complain about white christian males and how oppressed they are too, I bet.

Oh yes, I loooooooooove me some religion.

If you don't see how people can see a threat in another tribe setting up a village near their territory I don't know what to tell you. It's a group of "others", what do people fear more than that?

You can think that humans are enlightened beings no longer bound by instinct, but I would strongly disagree. For god's sake we're so tribalistic we kill people and loot towns over sports games.

violentsalvation:
I'm sure that was his issue, she just wasn't Northern European enough for Mayor Juan Carlos Escamilla.

He's a HINO

Captain_Ballbeard: The GOP in AZ wants to start down the road of competency testing for certain rights? Did they think this through?

hahahahahah
no

put please
let them continue

Oh wait, they will do the same thing that they did with jim crow laws. grandfather the white trash, so the test doesnt cover them, just them furners and brown folk

Captain_Ballbeard: The GOP in AZ wants to start down the road of competency testing for certain rights? Did they think this through?

wait
WHY are we talking about voters, or language usage in public office??
How about having requirements before people can run for these offices in the first place?
Constitution exams, requiring them to correctly explain the 3 branches and bill of rights.
Basic logic exams.
Basic math exams.
Human rights exams.
I would include geography and understanding of xian doctrine and teachings, but they have already failed out.

farkityfarker: Bigdogdaddy: DrewCurtisJr: The Larch: Learn some history. There were plenty of schools that taught only in German or Norwegian a hundred years ago, but the kids still learned English.

I know my history do you? Some second- and even third-generation German immigrants who were born in Wisconsin were still monolingual in German as adults.

But how many of them hold state wide office? I'd say none.

The article is not about someone wanting to hold state-wide office.

It's about someone running for council in a small town on the Mexican border where a majority of the people speak Spanish.

It's about a federal law and a State constitution that say all public officials have to be competent in English.

phaseolus: Sum Dum Gai: timujin: It's fascinating to me that there are parts of my city where people can live in an enclave their entire lives, working there, shopping there, and never have to learn any more English for when they're out of that area than a tourist from another country.

Nobody lives here "their entire lives" and doesn't learn English. It's the people who move here when they are older (beyond the critical period of language acquisition) that don't learn English. As children, even growing up in a relatively insular community, children are too good at acquiring languages to avoid learning it.

My great-grandparents were immigrants who spoke only Slovak, and they lived in a very Slovak community (even as recently as the 1990s, there were stores in Milwaukee that did business in Slovak). My grandparents were the first generation born in America, and were completely fluent in both English and Slovak. In my dad's generation, only his oldest brother could speak Slovak, so my father could never even directly hold a conversation with his own grandparents, except using someone else to translate.

I didn't know that. I've run across a few ethnic Bohemians in town, but not Slovaks. Just out of curiosity, where was the old Slovak neighborhood?

Reminds me of the tiny township in Wisconsin I lived in from the 3rd grade until I moved to Michigan, back in the day. The name of the township: Pilsen.

Sudo_Make_Me_A_Sandwich: Damn, posted before I was done.

I was going to say, but something like taking a driver's test is far, far beyond my abilities at the moment, and something like requiring me to take a driver's test in Mandarin would do nothing but ensure I drive illegally for years while I work up to that level.

These sorts of national language stuff are just ridiculous and unnecessary.

You've never called for tech support, have you? :-)

Criminal proceedings are the only case in which government is obliged to provide translators, IMHO. Get your own interpreter for other purposes. Or, you know, join the country.

Requiring public officials to be competent in English is just common sense.

jso2897: Dokushin: Hundreds of years of statutes, court opinions, and amendments are written in English. The federal laws that states are responsible for complying with or assisting with are in English. Law in this country is conducted in English, and it is inappropriate for an elected official to be unable to participate in it.

You people go batcrap about a state pushing back against Obamacare, but a state deciding it no longer wants to conduct governmental business in the language in which federal business is conducted is okay? Madness. I truly don't understand.

It's not "racist" to ask people to speak the language a country runs on if they want to participate in running the country.

Well, to me the interesting thing is this - there is nothing wrong with a language requirement for a regular old government job, thet you would apply for. Government jobs can even carry the requirement that you speak a foreign language. But traditionally, when it comes to elected positions, we have always left it to the voters - and I think the potential abuse of the law is what people are worried about. It seems like a reasonable idea, but such things can become political weapons.
In this particular case, i don't think the voters are missing out on much - this lady is clearly not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

Traditionally, as in "since the moment Arizona was created," competence in English has been a requirement for all public officials. Traditionally, as in "since the moment the United States was created," presidential candidates must be over the age of 35 and naturally-born citizens of the U. S.

Which of those traditions serves the most practical purpose? Which tradition is the least arbitrary, restrictive, and discriminatory?

DrewCurtisJr: lilplatinum: Raising kids with religion and letting them drink big gulps, or soda in general, or fast food is not in their best interest either, should we start legislating these things too?

Apart from you ignorant shot at religion, I'm sure you are aware that we do legislate kids diets. School and public provided meals and nutrition programs do attempt to make sure kids aren't just eating and drinking soda and fast food like junk. So just like nobody is telling this woman or anyone else that she can't ever speak spanish but she must have a minimum ability to communicate in English. You can let your kids eat what you want, but the government does try to enforce minimum nutritional standards.

LOL! So many posts run just a few words too long! :-)

Sum Dum Gai: BarkingUnicorn: A nation does need a common language.

Most of the world would beg to differ; the number of countries with official multilingualism (either at the national or regional levels) dwarfs the number of monolingual nations.

That's true. But it doesn't diminish the need for a common language. It just makes government less efficient and more expensive.

So, then, suppose the test of English proficiency should include such gems as "no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof"?

Or how about "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized"?

CoonAce: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-LWw0qFVfk

Somehow I don't think she is remotely competent to hang with any of the legally binding paperwork that a city council job revolves around. She would be responsible for maintaining legally binding lines of communication with the State of Arizona.

After reading your post, I don't think you're qualified to criticize anyone's English.