Yet they are perpetmigrants need not abandon their ties to the uated by a requirement that 75 percent of country of their birth. But if they truly wish to Federal bilingual education grant money be become part of the country of their choice. the used for instruction in a childs native lanlinguistic bonds to their new country soon guage rather than finding the most effective strengthen. means to assist the transition to English. InBecause Canadians have been unable to stead of helping immigrants and their children overcome the linguistic differences that sepa- achieve the American dream. these policies rate them Into distinct Anglophone and are condemning generations to isolation--cut Francophone communities. they may not long off from the boundless opportunity our country remain as members of a single nation-.de- offers to those who share the common bond spite the essential homogeneity of their popu- of speaking and writing the same language. lation. By stressing a single. unifying lan- and being understood by their fellow citizens. guage. Israel has built a strong. cohesive sod- A 1995 study by Ohio University economists ety--despite the amazingly diverse composi- Richard Vedder and Lowell Galloway finds tion of its people. that a lack of English skills has trapped almost The lesson for America should be clear. 1.5 million immigrants in poverty. And the DeFortunately. the United States already has a partment of Labor has found that while 98 percommon language. We do not need to over- cent of Asian males who are fluent in English come centuries of linguistic separation. or to participate in the labor force. fully onequarter find a national tongue to bring our diverse of Asian males who lack English fluency are population together.
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immigrants