WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order that would establish English as the official language of the United States, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The timing of the executive order remains unclear, according to the source who confirmed the Wall Street Journal’s initial report.
Despite its linguistic diversity, the United States has operated without an official language at the federal level throughout its history. However, language policies have often sparked controversy at the state level.
The use of Spanish in public settings has been particularly contentious. In 2011, a Texas state senator demanded that an immigrant rights advocate speak English instead of Spanish during a legislative hearing, reigniting a long-standing debate.
This issue carries historical weight in Texas, which was formerly part of Mexico and the Spanish Empire. For many older Mexican-American Texans, language restrictions evoke painful memories of school punishments for speaking Spanish during the 1950s.
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