Asian Americans Criticize Gingrich

Washington, D.C. – The Asian American Justice Center (AAJC) and its affiliates — the Asian Law Caucus, the Asian American Institute and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California — strongly condemn former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s crude remarks disparaging bilingual education and language assistance in voting during a recent speech before the National Federation of Republican Women.

“We should replace bilingual education with immersion in English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto,” Gingrich said Saturday, adding that the government should also not have to create ballots “in any language except English.”

“Mr. Gingrich’s remarks are deeply offensive to Asian Americans who speak a language other than English, and who take the time to fulfill their responsibilities to participate in our democracy,” said Karen K. Narasaki, AAJC’s president and executive director.

Stewart Kwoh, executive director of the Asian Pacific American Law Center, noted that Gingrich’s speech reflects a view that is out of touch with the times and with the Republican party. “Last year, Congress overwhelmingly, with bipartisan support, reauthorized the Voting Rights Act and Section 203 language assistance provisions, which mandate bilingual ballots.”

Kwoh also pointed out that, “Section 203 is working. In fact, a Vietnamese American Republican candidate recently was elected to the Board of Supervisors in Orange County due to the fact that limited English proficient communities had a voice in this election. This law is extremely important to the political engagement of our communities. ”

Gen Fujioka, director of programs of the Asian Law Caucus, noted Gingrich’s offensive choice of words. “His use of the word ‘ghetto’ in regards to languages other than English signals a deep and abiding contempt for Asian Americans and other immigrant communities,” said Fujioka.

“Asian Americans well understand that becoming fluent in English is the key to their family’s future,” said Tuyet Le, executive director of Asian American Institute of Chicago. “If Mr. Gingrich is sincerely concerned about immigrants, he should instead be talking about the need to increase funding for ESL for children and for adults.”

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The Asian American Justice Center, formerly known as NAPALC, is a national organization dedicated to defending and advancing the civil and human rights of Asian Americans. It works closely with three affiliates – the Asian American Institute of Chicago, the Asian Law Caucus in San Francisco, and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center in Los Angeles – and over 100 community partners in 47 cities and 24 states in the country.

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