Wednesday, June 9, 2010

English Only?

In recent international news, the United Kingdom has moved to implement an English language test for those who are either joining their spouse or getting married and then moving to Europe. People who are living in the UK for marriage purposes who need a Visa will be required to speak English as well as a seven year old. Officials are saying that this requirement will help promote integration and remove cultural barriers. It will be effective starting in the fall. Estimates have been made that the language test will cut visa applications by 10% at a time when European nations are tightening their immigration policies.
I believe that the language test is an intrusion of people's private lives and it discriminates against those who are from places where people do not speak English and/or are poorly educated. Specifically, the language test discriminates against poor people who do not have access to resources allowing them to learn English. It will mainly affect people from Asia, India and Africa because it only applies to those immigrating from outside of the European Union. Its an unfair policy and I feel like government officials do not have the right to implement language tests as a prerequisite for receiving a Visa. Speaking English will not be the determining factor of the occurrence of integration or the breaking down of cultural barriers. It's going to take more than a language requirement for that to happen; it's going to take time.
Sarah
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2 comments:

  1. AnonymousJune 11, 2010 at 7:22 AM

    I think this new law brings up some interesting points of irony as related to "The Problem: Discrimination" as written by the U.S. Commission of Civil Rights (article 1, part IV.)

    This article, written by government officials, breaks down the issues of discrimination for us here in the United States and then moves on to say how we can correct these issues. The solution, as stated in the article, starts with an understanding of these issues; it is suggested that with time, we will be able to make more active moves to end these factors of discrimination.

    I find it interesting that government officials are aware of discrimination problems and seem interested in making everyone aware that they exist so we can move forward. However, policies like this are still made, and to me, they simply scream discrimination. I'm sure European nations just want to limit the number of visas they give out, but couldn't there be a better way of doing that?

    This issue is just interesting to me. People around the world are more aware of discrimination as the days go by. Understanding is important; but, when "an understanding" doesn't limit the number of laws that carry discrimination factors, I wonder if the government is truly making any progress on these issues.

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  2. Jeff.IovannoneJune 12, 2010 at 9:42 AM

    Thank you for posting in response to this interesting example. I think a key question to consider would be: Are these language tests, in effect, racist?

    Also, in response to Lyndsey's post, could the UK find a way to limit/regulate the number of visas it allots without implementing racist/discriminatory policies?

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