Should the US have an official language?

An official language in the United States would unite citizens under a common language, helping to break down the cultural and socio-economical barriers that have developed through immigration and diversity.

Language Loyalties: A Source Book on the Official English Controversy. Ed. Crawford, James. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1992.

We have seen this book many times during class, in fact many of the readings assigned to us have come from this book. James Crawford has put together a very useful collection of papers and articles discussing the language controversy in America, and does a successful job at reporting both sides of the story while managing to remain unbiased. As a research source, I will be able to read more information on the subject, as well as gain valuable knowledge on the backgrounds and different viewpoints for the official language. This book will give me plenty of insight on how an official language would affect America, at both the national and individual level. Language Loyalties will give me the knowledge to appropriately display the need for an official language. I will use it as a resource for in-text citations, as well as data, giving me the facts and figures to make a proper argument.

ProEnglish. “Linguistic Unity Is Critical in an Increasingly Diverse Society.”

http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/linguistic-unity-is-critical-in-an-increasingly-diverse-society

Opposing views is a debate centered website used to give many different viewpoints on different potential debates. The argument over an official language in the United States can be found on this website, with many different views of both the pros and cons to an official language. After opening a selection titled “Linguistic Unity is Critical in an Increasingly Diverse Society”, I realized how well this matched up to my thesis statement. Though not exactly the point I’m trying to make, much of its views reflect what I’m aiming to prove. Once again, this source gives many facts and figures, which are pertinent in writing a thorough research paper with few flaws or major arguments against it. One very important topic I want to address in my paper is how a multilingual society leads to isolation of various cultures, thus leading to further diversity and disunity in America. I want to use this website to give me ideas for my paper and show the extent of my research on this topic. Though none of these posts are official and could very well be false, I will do further research to check the validity of the figures given. This website will help me to find opinions and way of explaining my opinions on the topic.