English-Only Was a Bane in My Immigrant Family

SAN FRANCISCO--Last week, the Senate adopted a measure that would make English the national language of the United States. The debate over English-only has divided a nation, and in some cases it can divide a family.

Shortly after my younger brother was born, my parents decided to adopt their own English-only policy. No sooner had we brought him home from the hospital, my father confronted my older sister and me and in his broken, heavily Thai-accented English: "From now on we speak only in English."

Supporters of an English-only law say such a law is necessary for the waves of immigrants who come to this country and refuse to learn English. My parents were just the opposite and, like many new immigrants, eager to fit in. They also did not want my brother to face the same obstacles that they had faced with their disjointed English.

My brother was born on an auspicious day, my father said: Election Day in America. And as a result, my father would name my brother after the new president, to insure his success in life. That was the year Ronald Reagan took office. Never mind that my parents could barely pronounce their "R's." When they said their newborn's name it sounded more like "Lonnie."

We all agreed to speak only English in the house, but we never guessed the sacrifices. Gone were the nights when I would fall asleep to the soft, melodic tones of Thai that soothed me as a child. Instead, my father made harder, guttural noises trying to speak English. The syllables stuck in his throat. His voice also raised quite a few decibels when he spoke English, as if the louder he spoke the greater chance he would have of being understood. Oftentimes I thought he was angry and yelling at me, when in fact he was asking me a simple question. The constant onslaught wore on my sensitivities and I found myself arguing frequently with him simply because his tone offended me.

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