President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order making English the official language of the United States, ending the nation’s 250-year record of respecting linguistic diversity.
The order, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, will rescind a Clinton-era mandate requiring agencies to provide language assistance and accommodation to non-English speakers.
According to 2020 Census Bureau data, nearly 68 million Americans speak a language other than English at home, representing roughly 20% of the nation’s population.
Since the nation’s founding, the U.S. has never had an official language. One linguistics expert told CNN in 2018 that the country’s founders had good reason to avoid mandating English and to prioritize the mult-iethnic values of the nation.
“The founding fathers didn’t see a need to declare one,” Purdue University language and literacy professor Dr. Wayne Wright told CNN. “They didn’t want to offend their fellow Americans who helped fight for independence.”
Still, the White House reportedly said in a memo that the proposal would “promote unity, establish efficiency in the government, and provide a pathway to civic engagement.” The Trump administration has yet to officially announce the order or its signing.
On the campaign trail, Trump called for reining in America’s linguistic freedom. In a February 2024 speech at CPAC, Trump complained that immigrants were bringing new languages with them.
“We have languages coming into our country,” Trump said last year. “These are languages — it’s the craziest thing — they have languages that nobody in this country has ever heard of. It’s a very horrible.”
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