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By: Esther Almaraz Simmons
Bilingual education is the political ploy of Hispanic bureaucrats. It ensures their power and the powerlessness of those they represent. Their constituents, crippled by their lack of English, have no choice but to lean on their leaders. They trust the Hispanic representatives who have learned that power comes with knowledge, a fact that they want to keep to themselves. My father, a Mexican immigrant, and my mother are fluent in English and Spanish. Neither is a product of bilingual education; nor for that matter am I. When I started school at 6, the only English I knew was, "Can I go to the bathroom?" My mother had already anticipated what might have been my first embarrassing moment. In school, we were required to speak English, broken or not. At home we spoke only Spanish. I do not recall having difficulty becoming fluent in English. Nor do I remember my years of elementary school as a nightmare. A child will step up to the challenge of learning a new language if he is not humiliated in the process. A truly educated man understands this and will work toward the empowerment of his people. The best thing that Hispanic politicians can do for the Hispanic community is to get behind the "English for the Children" initiative. Give them the power of knowledge---English. Esther Almaraz Simmons,
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