Councilman Pushes English-Only Ordinance
Former Mayor Vetoed Same Bill Last Year
POSTED: 1:02 pm CDT June 6,
2008
UPDATED: 12:20 am CDT June 7,
2008
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A Metro Council member is pushing to make English the official language of Davidson County.
Video: Metro Councilman Reintroduces English-Only BillThe issue has been brought up before but failed.But Councilman Eric Crafton said he wants to let voters decide and is proposing that English be the official language of the Metro Nashville area."Any contract that binds the Metro government will be done in English, and this includes council meetings," he said.Crafton and a group of community members set up a Web site called NashvilleEnglishfirst.com. Registered voters of Davidson County can visit the site and download and sign a petition asking the amendment be added to the November ballot."Just decided to take it directly to the people, let their voices be heard; do a ballot initiative," Crafton said.Council members passed the ordinance last year, but former Mayor Bill Purcell didn't approve. He said he felt it would violate the state and U.S. Constitution.But Crafton said he has other concerns."We don't want people coming in and suing us because we missed a language or we favored one immigrant group over another," he said.Santos Gonzalez with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce believes the idea is a step in the wrong direction."It's not fair really to our non-English speaking communities. I think they are taxpayers, too," he said.Gonzalez points to the police department’s Web site. Metro is actively looking for Spanish-speaking officers. There is also an application in Spanish."I think English-only sends the wrong message as far as the growth and future of our city," Gonzalez said.Crafton said 10,103 registered Davidson County voters have to sign the petition to put the amendment on the November ballot. The deadline is Aug. 15.On Monday, Crafton will mail out 15,000 petitions to the most active voters in Davidson County.
Related Link:
Nashville English First
Video: Metro Councilman Reintroduces English-Only BillThe issue has been brought up before but failed.But Councilman Eric Crafton said he wants to let voters decide and is proposing that English be the official language of the Metro Nashville area."Any contract that binds the Metro government will be done in English, and this includes council meetings," he said.Crafton and a group of community members set up a Web site called NashvilleEnglishfirst.com. Registered voters of Davidson County can visit the site and download and sign a petition asking the amendment be added to the November ballot."Just decided to take it directly to the people, let their voices be heard; do a ballot initiative," Crafton said.Council members passed the ordinance last year, but former Mayor Bill Purcell didn't approve. He said he felt it would violate the state and U.S. Constitution.But Crafton said he has other concerns."We don't want people coming in and suing us because we missed a language or we favored one immigrant group over another," he said.Santos Gonzalez with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce believes the idea is a step in the wrong direction."It's not fair really to our non-English speaking communities. I think they are taxpayers, too," he said.Gonzalez points to the police department’s Web site. Metro is actively looking for Spanish-speaking officers. There is also an application in Spanish."I think English-only sends the wrong message as far as the growth and future of our city," Gonzalez said.Crafton said 10,103 registered Davidson County voters have to sign the petition to put the amendment on the November ballot. The deadline is Aug. 15.On Monday, Crafton will mail out 15,000 petitions to the most active voters in Davidson County.Related Link:
Nashville English First
Previous Stories:
- December 5, 2006: Council To Take Final Vote On English First Bill
- October 17, 2006: Council To Consider English-Only Bill
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