In a rally that often resembled a festive neighborhood block party, about 500 people Wednesday voiced support for bilingual programs and opposition to making English the country’s official language.

A broad coalition of community and education groups organized the rally in Prospect Park in which a series of speakers pointed out the advantages of multiculturalism.

“Laws that promote English-only deny our history and surrender to our fears,” said community activist Sarah Norat-Phillips. “It’s fear. I think that there are some politicians that have capitalized on economic stress.”

Ms. Norat-Phillips described a bill introduced in February by Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., which would make English the official language and eliminate bilingual education, as “ludicrous.”

The enthusiastic demonstrators, dozens of whom waved placards in English and their native languages, represented many of the 43 languages spoken in Buffalo’s public school system.

Before the rally, Latino music blared from a platform, and as a break from the speeches, a children’s dance group performed the merengue and salsa.

Spurred by the English-only legislation, rally attendees argued such efforts violate their First Amendment right to freedom of speech and may serve to erode their cultural backgrounds.

Puerto Rico native Rebecca Roman said she enrolled her three children in English as a Second Language programs offered by the city’s schools. But she still wants her children to remember their Puerto Rican heritage.

“You have to learn English to get around, but just don’t make it only English,” she said. “If it wasn’t for the bilingual program, I don’t know where (her children) would be.”

Abdulla Al-Jandari, an Arabic teacher at Grover Cleveland High School just around the corner from the rally site, said cuts in bilingual education programs would jeopardize his students’ futures.

“Without this program, my students would stay way, way behind,” he said. “There’s a desperate need for this program.”

Al-Jandari said many students would be frustrated and probably would drop out of high school without language assistance.

“They come here and speak very limited English,” he said. “When they come to Grover, they receive a lot of help.”

One student who said he benefited from bilingual education was Luxe Issac, who came to the United States in 1992 as a Haitian refugee.

Although he spoke French, Creole and some Spanish, he said he barely knew a word of English when he arrived in Buffalo.

After three years in Grover Cleveland’s English as a Second Language program, Issac achieved fluency in English and will attend Alfred University in the fall.

Like many at the rally, Issac said he realized from the start that learning English was a necessity to make it in America.

With Buffalo’s ever-increasing diversity, most at the rally called for increased funding of bilingual programs to meet the demand.

When Al-Jandari began teaching at the high school four years ago, he said he had responsibility for 10 students. Now, 43 students vie for the attention of the only Arabic teacher in the high school.

Such an example of existing resources being stretched to the limit frustrates David Baez, director of foreign languages and bilingual education for Buffalo’s public schools.

“We’re pushing for education to be put off the budget-cutting table,” he said in an interview.

Baez added that the House budget resolution would reduce funding for magnet schools and bilingual education. “If they keep cutting education, our kids keep suffering,” he said.

Baez said of the 47,000 students in Buffalo’s public school system, about 3,000 take part in bilingual programs.

Carmen LaFosse, who has three sons enrolled in bilingual programs, discussed the benefits of speaking more than one language.

“If you learn about different cultures, you learn to love the world,” she said.



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