THE UNION LEADER, MANCHESTER, N.H. — Saturday, January 31, 1987

She labeled those complain-
ing as "agitators, too lazy to
learn the English language."

Ingram said she was ap-
issue because immigrants com-
palled the resolution is even an
ing to this country for the last
250 years have been glad to
citizenship requirements.
learn English as part of their

"Many have been coming to
this country and enjoying our
they are too lazy to learn Eng-
welfare system to the hilt. If
tish then let them stay where
they are," Ingram said.

ENGLISH

(Continued from Page One)

their culture and I hope they re-
tain it," Stewart said.

But Stewart said that if such
people are to enjoy the benefits
also know English.
of U.S. citizenship, they should

He stressed the need for a
uniform language in such areas
umentation.
as the military and in legal doc-

"I can't imagine anything
worse than being in a foxhole
lish and another who doesn't,"
with someone who speaks Eng-
he said.

Among those on the other
side of the issue yesterday was
Arnold Alpert of the New
Hampshire American Friends

The resolution is sponsored
by Rep. Roger Stewart, R-Lin-
was built on varied cultures,Service Committee.
coln. He said that our country
but one of our strengths has
been our common language.

He said Maine established a
school many years ago to teach
American citizens.
English to French-speaking

"In no way are we saying
that we don't want these people
to continue speaking the
French language. It's part of

Alpert called the New Hamp-
shire resolution a "civilized
side of modern racism" and a
"return to the xenophobia and
century.
nativism" of the turn of the

Alpert said the answer to lan-
guage deficiency problems is to
make it easier for foreigners to
learn English.

"Why, after more than 200
years without any law desig-
nating English as the official
language, do we need one
now?" asked Gilbert of the Ac-
tion for Franco-Americans of
the Northeast.

He and other speakers said
the U.S. Constitution is silent
on language.

Gilbert said this was not an
oversight by the founding fa-
thers, but "planned political
strategy that reflected the
times and vision of the found-
ing fathers."

Gilbert said a well-financed
lobby called U.S. English is
proposing a series of "protec-
tionist and regressive" laws
both in Congress and, in state
Legislatures.

Rep. George Baker Sr., D-
Hudson, a supporter of the res-
olution, said that no fundamen-
tal freedoms are threatened by

the proposal.

7

"If the resolution said Eng-
lish is the only language that
can be spoken, I would be
against it myself," he said.

He told the committee that
the American Legion, both
state and national organiza-
tions, support the resolution.

Questions over the unclear
impact of the resolution were
lightly addressed in an ex-
change between Pare and Rep.
Ednapearl Parr, R-Hampton.
who chaired the hearing.

"You French-speaking peo-
ple are going to have to give us
a lesson in French pronuncia-
tion," Parr said after strug-
gling with several names.

"Well, if you pass this resolu-
tion, we may not be able to,"
Pare responded.

The committee is expected to
vote on the resolution in early
February.

The Keene Sentinel

Saturday, January 31, 1967 3

English-as-official-language bill called 'civilized... racism'

country and spoke a different lan- tive, approved last November,

guage.

Pointing to recent race-related
incidents in Georgia and New
York, activist Arnold Alpert said
the bill reflects a "rising tide of in-
tolerance" across the nation. "The
bill before you today... is the civt
lized side of American racism."

The resolution, which was heard
by a House committee, urges the
state's congressional delegation to
support legislation to designate
English as the official language of
the United States. The proposal
states an official language would
encourage "uniformity (and) pre-
serve national unity."

The proposal is similar to California's English language initia

which requires that state govern-
ment conduct its business in En-
glish.

Opponents far outnumbered sup-
porters of the N.H. proposal.

Rep. Roger Stewart, R-Lincoln,
sponsor of the non-binding propo
sal, said the resolution is not aimed
at outlawing the use of foreign lan-
guages or bilingual education.

"In no way are we saying we
don't want these people speaking
the French language," Stewart
said. "But I feel if they are going to
enjoy the benefits of being a citt
zen, they should know English as

well."

Stewart said it is in the country's national security interests to en

courage English. "I can't imagine
anything worse than being in a foxr-
hole with someone who speaks En-
glish and another who doesn't."

Rep. Mildred Ingram, R-Ac-
worth, said she had no quarrel with
new citizens who learn the lan-
guage, but complained about "a
bunch of agitators who are too lazy
to learn our language."

Rep. George Baker, D-Hudson,
read a statement from the Ameri-
can Legion in support of efforts to
designate English the official lan-
guage. "Let's face it, it's to
everyone's benefit to learn the En-
glish language."

However, Paul Pare of Rochester said recognition of English as the official language would ignore his cultural heritage. "You're tell

ing me and my wife and my chil-
dren that we are second-class
citizens," he said.

Questions over the unclear im-
pact of the resolution were lightly
addressed in an exchange between
Pare and Rep. Ednapearl Parr, R-
Hampton, who chaired the hear
ing.

"You French-speaking people
are going to have to give us a les-
son in French pronunciation,"
Parr said after struggling with sev-
eral names.

"Well, if you pass this resolution,
we may not be able to," Pare re-
sponder

The committee is expected to vote on the resolution in early February.

Prejudice a subtle force in New Hampshire

The racist feeling expressed during re cent events in Forsyth County had a Southern voice and inflection, shaped in part by the history and culture o of that county. But racism is not a Southern or even a regional phenomenon Today's is the second of three articles, reported from Forsyth County. New Hampshire and Ohio, exploring the currents of white bias in America

By Mike Christensen

MANCHESTER, NH. By midafternoon, the temperature was sinking toward sero as a stiff breeze swept down the valley of the Merrimack River, where the city lay beneath its masonry of snow. Inside a pri vate club on treeless Maple Street, a halfdozen thick set men sat in wooden chairs and watched a televised boxing match be tween a black man and a white. Both boxers were arm weary. but the white man threw a combination, and the black went down heavily "He's out' He's out," the men in the chairs shouted, jabbing the air and pounding each other on the shoulders.

At the edge of the bar, two middle-aged men in sweaters bunched over glasses of beer Both were born and raised in New Hampshire The younger of the two had a

flat, good-natured Irish face, the other had a
Polish name bet said he was not Polish, and
be-talked in a low, confidential tone.

There's nothing wrong with black peo
ple, the latter relishing an old joke "I
ink everybody oughta own one.

The younger man remembered that
sometime in the 1940s, a group of black
ple had settled in Manchester. "They heard

there was going to be an aid program here
or something, but there wasn't

Then it got cold," he said, "and they

From the northern reaches of Maine through the Green Mountains of Vermont, the upcountry of New England is essentially all-white. Three states have fewer than 10,000 black residents.

In New Hampshire, according to the lat est census estimates, there are 4.665 black people. the majority living along the brief seacoast and in the counties bordering Massachusetts. In northernmost Coos County, a forested land the size of metro Atlanta. there are caly five blarks

New Hampshire has no black neighborhoods in its towns, and there is only one black lawmaker in its 426-member state Legislature. There was one black state trooper, but he recently quit Private clubs, long the backbone of the state's social life, remain white. Many schoolchildren have never seen a black person on the street

New Hampshire does not advertise self as a place attractive to minorities" said Lionel Johnson, the 64-year-old president of Manchester's small NAACP chapter and himself an emigrant two decades ago from Louisiana

Lying at the opposite end of the same mountain range, New Hampshire shares with North Georgia a common heritage and ph losophy a land settled by fiercely inde pendent, frugal, conservative people of Scotch-Irish stock working on hardscrabble farms or in textile mills

Ser BIAS, Page 4-C