Beltway Crowd Weighs In On Oakland School Board's Talk Of `Black English'
By Amy Branson LEGI-SLATE News Service WASHINGTON (Dec. 26) -- Shockwaves from the Oakland, Calif., school board's recent decision to recognize black English as a language are producing early signs of fallout on Capitol Hill, where supporters of making English the country's official language are poised to renew their campaign. At least one English-only supporter on Capitol Hill denounced the school board's decision to recognize black English -- or Ebonics, as some linguists call it -- as a separate language. "This Ebonics thing is just ridiculous. . . . It will just reinforce bad grammar," said Dan Michaelis, a spokesman for Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y. English-only is a term used to describe GOP-sponsored legislation in the 104th Congress whose primary purpose was to make English the official language of the federal government. Ebonics is a combination of the words "ebony" and "phonics." King sponsored an English-only bill [H.R. 1005] in the 104th Congress that would have discontinued federal support for bilingual education programs. States would have been allowed to continue those programs, but at their own expense. The bill also would have made English the official language of the federal government. But Oakland school board members argue that recognizing black English is part of a plan to improve the standard English skills of the school district's students, a board spokeswoman said. Standardized test scores in reading and language arts among African-Americans in the Oakland school district are below the state and national norms, according to information in the resolution adopted on Dec. 18. More than half of the district's students are African-American. While details of the school board's plan need finalizing, the spokeswoman explained that black English will not be taught, but neither will it be discounted as a language. Instead, it is likely teachers will provide intensive standard English instruction by building upon students' current language skills. The board might even seek bilingual education money from state and federal coffers to implement the plan, though officials say they did not pass the black English resolution to obtain such subsidies. But California Gov. Pete Wilson is opposed any state aid for the Ebonics program. And Education Secretary Richard Riley dashed any immediate prospects of securing federal Title VII funds when he declared Tuesday that the Clinton administration opposed using the money for students who speak the "nonstandard form of English." "Elevating black English to the status of a language is not the way to raise standards of achievement in our schools and for our students," Riley said in a brief statement. Oakland's representative in Congress -- Ronald Dellums, a Democrat -- has not yet "studied" the issue, a Dellums aide said, adding the academic community will have to determine whether Oakland's experiment is effective. "The goal, obviously, is to get kids of all language groups proficient in the language they need to become proficient in" the economy, the aide said. Other Californians are reluctant to leap into this fray. Rep. George Radanovich, R-Calif., a co-sponsor of King's bill, is hesitant to join the current discussion, a Radanovich aide said. The congressman tries to refrain from commenting on decisions made by other elected officials, the aide explained. Comment from the Congressional Black Caucus was not immediately available, but in the few days following the announcement several prominent black leaders condemned Oakland's decision. The Rev. Jesse Jackson, a national civil rights activist, and poet Maya Angelou both expressed dismay in the announcement's wake. "While we are fighting in California trying to extend affirmative action and fighting to teach our children so they become more qualified for jobs, in Oakland some madness has erupted over making slang talk a second language," Jackson said in a statement. In addition, NAACP President Kweisi Mfume recently called the board's decision "a cruel joke," and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown quipped to the San Francisco Chronicle this week: "I had dinner last night with the mayor of Oakland and had to bring a translator along." Among senior lawmakers likely to support the Clinton administration in barring Oakland from using bilingual education funds for its program is Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii. He has been critical for years of efforts to recognize forms of pidgin English as legitimate languages. Inouye was unavailable for comment on the Oakland decision, but has often told of being a victim of discrimination in his youth for using Hawaiian-style pidgin English. He has been adamant in his belief that members of racial and ethnic minorities in the United States must have a command of standard English to improve their social and economic standing.
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