English Only Proposal in Bakersfield

July 20, 2007

From Genoveva Islas-Hooker:

Hi Everyone,

I am forwarding a letter against a resolution being proposed by Bakersfield city council member David Couch that would declare English the official language of Bakersfield, declare that the city is not a “sanctuary city” and ask staff to determine whether any city services can be withheld from illegal immigrants and an initial action being taken against it.

I am sending this to you knowing full well that many of you do not reside in Kern County or the City of Bakersfield. My intentions are to provide a
prime example as to why our group must and should be organized.

In solidarity,

-Veva

Dear Councilmember David Couch, (FAX: 661-323-3780)

Please do not to introduce your divisive resolution against non-English speakers and undocumented immigrants for the following reasons:

1. This type of resolution is aimed primarily at the Latino Community and would increase racial profiling and place the Bakersfield City Council in the same league as the Minute Men, the Aryan Nation and the Ku Klux Klan all of which have voiced and are acting on similar strategies.

Declaring Bakersfield as an English-only city would place non-English & limited English speakers in a vulnerable position prone to consumer fraud, misunderstandings of legal transactions, and numerous other misinterpretations.

The International Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) which was signed by the United States upon acquiring California from Mexico guaranteeing that Spanish would be a legitimate language.

Currently many Federal and State documents are posted in multiple languages to ensure unambiguous communication promoting Work Place Safety and other regulations. In this era of globalization, we should be promoting additional languages other than English.

2. Denying city services (public safety and fire protection) to anyone that might be undocumented would be a violation of Human Rights.

3. One of Kern County’s most important industries is agriculture and many of their workers are undocumented immigrants. This resolution would have a negative impact on any emergency services or communication with those workers.

4. If Bakersfield were to join other enlightened cities such as Los Angeles, San Jose, Watsonville, Oakland, San Francisco, New York, Denver, and Houston, they would declare Bakersfield a Sanctuary city preventing our police from becoming Immigration agents. Our police force is overworked on handling crime and other safety issues.

5. Kern County has progressed in the area of civil rights and human rights. We would not want to see a return to the days of cross burnings and book burnings that happened when the “Grapes of Wrath” book was published and prohibited in Kern County.

Sincerely,

cc: Mayor Harvey Hall
Bakersfield City Council Members