I had heard about this on NPR a little bit ago and just caught this post down at RaceWire talking about how the initiative was shot down - and that's some great news to hear:
An initiative to establish English as the official language in Nashville was defeated yesterday, bucking a nationwide conservative push for “official English” in response to perceptions about immigrant populations. The city’s “English first” initiative would have basically mandated that all government business be conducted in English—in sharp contrast to immigrant-rich cities like New York, where government agencies are supposed to offer multi-lingual documents and access to translation services.It still amazes me that people keep on trying to get these laws passed.
Nashville Mayor Karl Dean hailed the vote as proof of “Nashville’s identity as a welcoming and friendly city, and our ability to come together as a community.” Of course, proponents of the referendum, led by City Councilman Eric Crafton, used similar rhetoric, arguing that “a community is more united, more efficient under one common language.” Crafton even pointed to Latinos who supported the initiative as a means toward assimilation.
But then again...
Read the article in full down here.
