Today, reporter Rebecca Kimitch wrote a story about Rosemead considering a requirement that would require its recreation centers to teach in English.
This story was printed in 1985, yet the issues are very similar to what we may see happening in Rosemead.
MONTEREY PARK TO VOTE ON ENGLISH AS OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
San Jose Mercury News (CA) – Wednesday, November 13, 1985
Author/Byline: Associated Press
Edition: Stock Final
Section: California News
Page: 4B
A proposal to make English the official language in a city where people of Asian ancestry make up almost half the population has lost one round but is heading to a test of the voters.
” Monterey Park is turning into another Chinatown,” photographer Frank Arcuri, who spearheaded the English – only drive, said Tuesday.
Chinese-language signs throughout the city upset him, he said.
”What bothers Americans about this? The fact that they feel left out,” Arcuri said, adding that he plans to work to get his English – only proposal passed into law.
But the City Council didn’t go along with that plan Tuesday night as a standing-room- only crowd of about 200 people packed council chambers. The council accepted petitions bearing 3,500 signatures of voters who want an English – only measure approved. The petitions were given to the city clerk for verification, City Manager Lloyd DeLlamas said.
Instead of putting that measure on next April’s ballot, the council voted 4-1 to place another proposal before the voters at that election: one that directly opposes establishing English as the city’s official language.
That ballot measure was presented by the Coalition for Harmony in Monterey Park , which calls for a “multiethnic and multicultural heritage” for the city. If Arcuri succeeds in his bid to get the English – only measure on the ballot through the petitions, residents would cast votes on both measures next spring. Michael Eng, a spokesman for the Coalition for Harmony group, said the issue was dividing the city.
”If we want a civil war, the likes of which no one has ever seen, which pits neighbor against neighbor, citizen against immigrant and race against race . . . vote for English only ,” he told the council.
City officials estimate 40 percent of Monterey Park ‘s 60,000 residents are Asian, while 37 percent are Hispanic and 22 percent white.
In Los Altos, the city council on Tuesday night decided that it will consider making English the official language of the city.
Dinesh Desai, a naturalized citizen born in India, asked the council to pass a resolution making English the official language.
”Some of you may wonder why it’s even necessary to make a formal resolution . . . but the need to protect our language grows stronger every day,” said Desai, an investment adviser.
Councilman Roger Eng told Desai he is “favorably inclined to this but not without a public hearing.”
The council voted unanimously to put the issue on a future agenda, but didn’t say when.
