<p>The article describes concerns raised by Colorado’s Rep. Tom Tancredo
regarding libraries converting to Spanish-language material at the expense of English material. “When you have a strong cultural identity and there aren’t set incentives to become American, it creates a lot of tension and divides the community,” said Mr. Tancredo’s spokesman, Will Adams. Similar concerns were expressed by radio talk show host Michael Corbin, who helped organize a protest outside Denver’s central library. </p>
<p>Librarians quoted in the article say they are simply trying to accommodate a city where 35 percent of residents are Hispanic. Janet Cox, adult services supervisor at the Pueblo Library District, said: “We provide material to meet the needs of the people in the area, whether that be in English or Spanish or another language. That’s important. That’s what libraries do.”</p>
<p>Public libraries should only be in English period. These people need to learn how to speak English, or they should get out of the country. I don’t go into France or China demanding everything be in English. I have no problem with them still conversating in their native tounges, just learn English if you come here. I should not have to press an extra button on the ATM because some people are too lazy to learn English. Futhermore, why does the DirecTV Spanish package come with free Playboy when I have to pay $10 a month if I want it? Its descrimination I tells ya.</p>
<p>well i guess it depends on who the given “public” is. since a fairly large chunk of the population (in this case 35%) are hispanic, i think they should have a few spanish books in there. or at the very least, spanish “learn how to read english” books. haha jk</p>
<p>seriously tho, here in my neighborhood, where the majority are hispanic, the library has spanish books, videos and english books translated into spanish. we also have a few arabic and chinese books/videos. and i’m sure in chinatown there’re many more chinese books/magazines/videos/etc. i know in libraries in queens, there’re more arabic books, greek books, many more. i’m sure the english-speaking population isn’t suffering profoundly because of it.</p>
<p>people who don’t speak english pay taxes just like the rest of us, you know.</p>
<p>Our local public library’s books are primarily in English as we are, afterall, an English speaking country. However, being in NYC, our neighborhood branch has a wide assortment of novels, magazines and some non-fiction in Spanish, Chinese, Russian, Arabic, Greek, Norwegian, Hebrew, Yiddish, and Italian–whew. Guess that just shows how diverse my particular neighborhood is.</p>
<p>Sorry, didn’t finish the last of my post. I agree with Crash, I guess it depends where you live. The bulk of any American library must contain books written in English as English is the language of communication i n this country. However, I can’t see anything wrong with also stocking books in other languages. Now, if it is a budget problem, then certainly the first books purchased must be in English.</p>
<p>I prefer an educated citizenry so I don’t mind what language they read or write in, although learning English is useful in the long run. Some people speak and read English just fine, but enjoy Hesse in German, Voltaire in French and watching foreign films. Would you restrict these people of their interests as well, Joev?</p>
<p>If a community is 25% Russian, why not allow them a reasonble selection in Russian.</p>
<p>Would you also ban library computers from going to non english sites?</p>
<p>it is invaluable for residents of this country to know more than one language.
Public libraries are open to all- and therefore should purchase books in as many different languages as there is interest.
I even have several books in Spanish- Allende- Garcia Marquez , Garcia Lorca and Esquivel, even though I can’t read them. ( my daughters do however)
Taxpayers speak English as well as Spanish, Mandarin, Farsi and Dari.
Libraries need to be responsive to their communities.</p>
<p>Of course public libraries should have books in languages other than English, if only for the fact that the taxes that pay for the libraries’ books are not solely paid by people who speak English. Yes, the majority of the books should still be in English, but can you really justify denying speakers of other languages access to reading material?</p>
<p>I got sidetracked on my not speaking English rant when I wrote that post. Access to foreign materials is fine, I just have a serious problem with people not learning English and Americans are supposed to be fine with it. Plus Playboy should be part of the basic satellite package not an extra charge.</p>
<p>The neighborhood in NYC where I grew up is now about 30 to 40% Spanish-speaking, 10-15% Korean or Chinese. The local public library is dominantly English but offers about 20% of space to foreign language books. Library also offers free evening courses in English for immigrants. That seems about right to me. Those who use libraries at all are more often the upwardly mobile types who know they will need good English–why not also let them read recreationally in their native languages?</p>
<p>Perhaps before people criticize foreign language materials in libraries, we should recognize that the US doesn’t have an <em>official</em> language. While English is usually considered official, there is no civil action officially proclaiming it. The US is truly an international community, and our libraries should reflect this.</p>
<p>Actually, unlike Canada and other countries, we have not formally proclaimed an official language-but, let’s face it, English is our language of written communication. Having said that, I, as a former foreign language major, am an advocate of libraries having any and all written materials in many languages. If push comes to shove, of course our libraries should and MUST be stocked with volumes written in English. Any overflow with the budget should and must be comprised of volumes written in foreign languages.</p>