English only movement

Different Languages in the US

The United States has many different languages, but the most common by far is English, although other languages such as Spanish and French are also quite common. According to the CIA World Factbook, on a census taken in 2000:
82.1% of Americans speak English
10.7% of Americans speak Spanish
3.8% of Americans speak another Indo-European language (www.cia.gov)
These results can be slightly surprising since the assumption by many Americans would be that there are a higher percentage of people who speak English in the United States. Enrollment percentages in languages classes have also been on the rise, and since 1970 Spanish has been the most popular language that has been taken, followed by French. According to the U.S. Institutions of Higher Education:
52.2% of students are enrolled in some sort of Spanish class
13.1% of students are enrolled in some sort of French class (vistawide.com)
The speakers of theses multiple languages can be found all over the United States, but languages like French and Spanish can be found in more concentrated in specific areas of the United States. English is by far the most commonly spoken language and can be found in high percentages in every populated area of the United States. According to the maps by the Modern Language Association or MLA, the Spanish language tends to be very highly concentrated in the American Southwest, Southern Texas, Southern Florida, and big diverse cities such as Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. French, on the other hand tends to mainly be found in big diverse cities like Chicago, New York, Miami, Los Angeles, parts of the Northern New England States, and Southern Louisiana.

States that Promote the English Only Movement

Many states have taken the initiative to make English their official since Nebraska was the first in 1920. Currently all official national documents are printed in English, but many can be found in other languages also. States that have declared English as an official language are only required to print their state documents is English, which often times saves the states lots of money. At the same time many states face criticism for their English only policies because “English Only laws are inconsistent with both the First Amendment right to communicate with or petition the government, and the right to equality because they bar government employees from providing non-English language assistance and services” (English-only movement). However, these states do not some to care about this because they believe that the English Only Movement promotes a movement of national unity. These states do not mean that people cannot speak other languages in daily life; they use it as a way to promote Non-English speakers to learn English. First Amendment to the United States ConstitutionThe First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law "respecting an establishment of religion", impeding the free exercise of religion, infringing on the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press,...