Judge sentances men to learn English

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WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (AP) - A judge known for creative sentencing has ordered three Spanish-speaking men to learn English or go to jail.
The men, who faced prison for criminal conspiracy to commit robbery, can remain on parole if they learn to read and write English, earn their GEDs and get full-time jobs, Luzerne County Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. said.
The men, Luis Reyes, Ricardo Dominguez and Rafael Guzman-Mateo, plus a fourth defendant, Kelvin Reyes-Rosario, all needed translators when they pleaded guilty Tuesday.
"Do you think we are going to supply you with a translator all of your life?" the judge asked them.
The four, ranging in age from 17 to 22, were in a group that police said accosted two men on a street in May. The two said they were asked if they had marijuana, told to empty their pockets, struck on the head, threatened with a gun and told to stay off the block. More at link.
http://my.att.net/s/editorial.dll?p...rticle&render=y&ac=-2&ck=&ch=ne&rg=blsadstrgt

http://my.att.net/s/editorial.dll?p...rticle&render=y&ac=-2&ck=&ch=ne&rg=blsadstrgt
 
Honestly, discrimanatory or not. This ruling may change these mens life for the better. to learn English and finish school gives them a better chance of success here. maybe they can be an asset in the health care industry one day, being bilingual and all?
 
"The two said they were asked if they had marijuana, told to empty their pockets, struck on the head, threatened with a gun and told to stay off the block."

They know enough English to get by, already, apparently.
 
GlitchWizard said:
"The two said they were asked if they had marijuana, told to empty their pockets, struck on the head, threatened with a gun and told to stay off the block."

They know enough English to get by, already, apparently.
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Lol, maybe that was the english translator talking!
 
Good, cuz "déme todo su dinero" is hard to understand if you don't speak Spanish.
 
Good! It's about dang time! My husband comes from that area and he is hispanic. I can't even really have a relationship with my in-laws because none of them speak english. They don't even try. They been in the states since the early 80's and still can't speak a word. It irritates me but anytime I bring it up the whole family comes down on my like a bunch of vultures so I just don't even say anything anymore.
 
Mygirlsadie said:
Good! It's about dang time! My husband comes from that area and he is hispanic. I can't even really have a relationship with my in-laws because none of them speak english. They don't even try. They been in the states since the early 80's and still can't speak a word. It irritates me but anytime I bring it up the whole family comes down on my like a bunch of vultures so I just don't even say anything anymore.
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Have you tried bridging that gap by learning Spanish?
 
Paladin said:
Have you tried bridging that gap by learning Spanish?
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why? they have lived in the United States for over 20 years-she is not living in Mexico--they should be able to speak english -imo - I agree anyone should have to speak the language of the country they live in--- if I lived in France..I should be able to speak French- if I lived in Mexico- I should have to be able to speak spanish--etc-etc
 
I remember when I was living in Orange County older people commented that it used to be easy to tell illegals from legit immigrants because the latter always spoke English. Nowadays in SoCal there are US-born perfectly legal citizens who only speak Spanish. The state of California is very tolerant of this claiming that Spanish used to be the official language of California. Of course it used to be, California was a Mexican province but that's no reason not to enforce schooling laws. French used the be the official language in Louisiana but I have yet to meet anyone from there who doesn't speak English and they don't complain. For parents not to allow their children to learn the language of the land is condemning them to become second-class citizens.
 
Paladin said:
Have you tried bridging that gap by learning Spanish?
Click to expand...

:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

I'll start being irritated at people for not learning English when I master a language other than French (which doesn't help me a bit over here!)

I think that the next generations of children in the US will know Spanish and English, and I think that's great.

That said - I like creative Judges. Maybe his sentence will help these guys out - or maybe it will just help them accost folks in another language!
 
j2mirish said:
why? they have lived in the United States for over 20 years-she is not living in Mexico--they should be able to speak english -imo - I agree anyone should have to speak the language of the country they live in--- if I lived in France..I should be able to speak French- if I lived in Mexico- I should have to be able to speak spanish--etc-etc
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Fair enough - but many countries are predominantly bilingual (my Dutch uncle spoke 7 different languages fluently!). We shouldn't be scared of a bilingual America.
 
j2mirish said:
why? they have lived in the United States for over 20 years-she is not living in Mexico--they should be able to speak english -imo - I agree anyone should have to speak the language of the country they live in--- if I lived in France..I should be able to speak French- if I lived in Mexico- I should have to be able to speak spanish--etc-etc
Click to expand...

I was commenting specifically on Mygirlsadie's relationship with her in-laws, not her in-law's relationship to American society. If she really wanted a relationship with her in-laws she can stop being hypocritical for a moment and learn Spanish.

Even if she gives up learning Spanish, maybe she will have gained some perspective on how difficult it is for a grown adult to pick up a new language and not criticize her in-laws.
 
I am stunned at how threads turn so personal lately. :(
 
southcitymom said:
Fair enough - but many countries are predominantly bilingual (my Dutch uncle spoke 7 different languages fluently!). We shouldn't be scared of a bilingual America.
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but they are living here- why arent they too bilingual?
 
I just think there are ways to get your point across without calling someone else hypocritical. Maybe we should concentrate on learning THAT language first.
 
Taximom said:
I just think there are ways to get your point across without calling someone else hypocritical. Maybe we should concentrate on learning THAT language first.
Click to expand...

What else would you call it? Why must we walk on eggshells around here?

Edit: If I've offended anyone, let me apologize. This is just an issue that hits close to home with me. Again, I'm sorry. I'll be good.
 
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