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[nomad soul]

Immigrant's refusal to learn English focuses glare on UK policy
by Tahira Yaqoob for The National | Jul 30, 2011
(Source: http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/lifestyle-comment/immigrants-refusal-to-learn-english-focuses-glare-on-uk-policy)

Back in the 1970s there was a popular British sitcom called Mind Your Language. The premise of the show, set in an English-as-a-foreign-language class, was essentially racist, with all the predictable stereotypes you can imagine such a show engenders. It reduced immigrants to comical characters, from the head-waggling Indian and the illiterate Pakistani to the camera-snapping Japanese electronics executive and the unwielding German.

But parents, still adjusting to life in Britain thousands of miles from their homeland and themselves trying to learn English, loved that programme. It was probably the first time since they'd arrived in the UK 15 years earlier that they saw Asian actors playing out recognisable scenarios - albeit on an exaggerated scale. In 1979, Mind Your Language was eventually deemed offensive and scrapped, although versions of the show went on to be hits in India, Pakistan and some African countries.

My parents persisted with their language lessons. For my father, it was imperative for work. For my mother, as a housewife looking after a brood of five, the need was less obvious. She managed to string unfamiliar sentences together, partly from a sense of wanting to participate in the society she now called home and partly so she was not left behind by her children, educated in a British school system.

This week, Rashida Chapti from India went to the High Court in Britain to fight for the right of her husband, Vali, not to learn English. The pair have been married 37 years and although she attained British citizenship six years ago, he has been told he must learn to read, write and speak basic English before being allowed to remain in the UK under new immigration laws. Their lawyer claims the requirement is a breach of their human rights. Mrs Chapti says her husband is too old to learn the language.

If we draw parallels with the situation here in the UAE, few people actually bother to learn Arabic. Partly that is because of the transient nature of the population; perhaps it's sheer laziness as well because English suffices in most situations.

The question is: Does learning the native language make you a better citizen? Can you ever be anything but a guest in the country you live in if you do not speak the language?

In parts of Bradford in the north of England - nicknamed Bradistan - there are second- and third-generation residents, born and bred in the UK, who are still barely able to speak English. It is impossible to see how this is not disempowering. Can you ever make a valid contribution to society, to make friends, to be a part of the national debate, if you cannot articulate your opinions in the language of the land?

The refusal to integrate has created enclaves - ghettos even - where communities operate in isolation, regarded with suspicion by those outside and completely insular to those within.

It is far from the ideal of multiculturalism. These pockets, the creation of successive waves of flawed government policy, are divided by race and religion, with misunderstanding on both sides. What is worrying is the sense of entitlement the UK's multiculturalism policy has bred. The Chaptis want to live in Britain, but don't feel the need to integrate. In the Leicester community where Mrs Chapti lives, she probably does not hear English spoken much, nor feels it would benefit her husband.

It may not be right to punish Mr Chapti for the government's inability to challenge these enclaves' insularity and failure to make their residents feel included, but the case should sound an alarm bell that it is time to bring all sectors of society to the table, in whatever language the discussion takes.

[spiral78]

[artemisia]

[Insubordination]

Going to court is far harder than attempting to learn English.

I see programs and visited places with all those Brits in Spain, who have basically set up their own English-speaking communities, businesses and housing markets and the majority don't seem to give the language a second thought or even produce bilingual marketing for said businesses. I sort of understand why people do it.

Citizenship is another kettle of fish. I think it's fair enough that citizenship is withheld because it shows a lack of commitment to the country. Stay a permanent resident instead. It's pretty hard to vote and serve on a jury when you don't know what the people are saying. A citizen has certain rights and responsibilities.

However, I can see the hypocrisy of that in Australia. No one ever bothered to learn Aboriginal languages when emigrating there. Some countries have several official languages, so if you argue that you should use the one which is most dominant in your geographical area, then maybe that's what the Indian man is doing.

I don't want a country to be too politically correct, so that you can't even ask a citizen to attempt to communicate with the local language.

[While I was out]

[quote]If we draw parallels with the situation here in the UAE, few people actually bother to learn Arabic. Partly that is because of the transient nature of the population; perhaps it's sheer laziness as well because English suffices in most situations.

Got to agree with the bolded statements, I assume the majority of people are in the UAE/ME for a number of years at most. Mr. Chapti wants to become a citizen, though, which implies he wants to become British with a British passport. Surely trying to get A1 on the CEFR is not too onerous for such an honour.

I live in the Middle East and haven't learnt more than a few words of Arabic, to my embarrassment. In my rather poor defence anytime I go shopping the cashiers tell me the price in English & serve me in English. I�m sure the experience would be much better if I did speak more than some broken sentences.

I try to learn a few words a day from my Arabic colleagues but they enjoy showing off their English language skills. I�m also very busy with MA studies and a new baby, but it is something in the back of my mind, learn the language of the country you are in and I intend to do so when I have more free time. My point is, I will not be expecting to settle down here and get citizenship with all the benefits that equates to, medical care & pension, high salary equivalent to the natives, for example. I am a transient here.

Artemisia said

[eurobound]

[quote="nomad soul"] Can you ever make a valid contribution to society, to make friends, to be a part of the national debate, if you cannot articulate your opinions in the language of the land?quote]

No, you can't. But that's not really the point. The point is that the people who choose not to learn the language choose not to because they have no desire to make a valid contribution to society, nor to make friends outside of their tight knit group, nor to be a part of any sort of national debate.

Therefore, we have this policy that allows us to identify what category each person falls into. It should be applied, and applied vigorously.

The couple in question have a choice; either he learns English and joins her in England, or he doesn't and she leaves the country to return to live with him.

Learning the native language makes one a better citizen. I don't see how this could ever be disputed.

[artemisia]

I agree with Insubordination:

[nomad soul]

(Clarification: I'm not the author of the article and therefore, can't lay claim to the questions presented.)

Although those (legal) immigrants who, for whatever reason, don't learn or attempt to learn the language aren't deemed as full participants in society, they do make vital economic contributions, especially by paying taxes and as purchasers of goods. Additionally, we can assume it's laziness or lack of time, resources, or confidence that keeps some immigrants from taking language lessons, but it may also be a fear of losing one's own cultural identity, particularly for older transplants. It may be a matter of hanging onto the familiar.

[eurobound]