Oppose the Inhofe Amendment!

It's rare that I'm so deeply disappointed in BOTH of my Senators from Minnesota at the same time, but there's a first time for everything.

Shamefully, Amy Klobuchar and Norm Coleman voted “Yea” on the Inhofe Amendment to declare English the official language of the U.S.

This bill will deny people the right to have the US government and its representatives to “act, communicate, perform or provide services, or provide materials in any language other than English.”

We must understand that Inhofe’s amendment has significant implications for refugees in the US who fled war, torture and terror, from support for materials printed in other languages to cuts in programs to support bilingual and multilingual education.

Even access to emergency and civil services will potentially be affected by this bill.

Interpretations of S.A. 4064 can easily lead to a denial of funding to our public libraries, schools, public television and radio, as well as art, civic and cultural institutions who seek to reach out to communities where English is not their first language.

The US doesn't have an official language, and there are plenty of good reasons for that.

For over 200 years, the United States has risen from a bunch of pilgrims and convicts and ne'er-do-wells to become a global power armed with nuclear weapons. All, somehow, without an official language.

Making the English language more 'official' accomplishes NOTHING. Not even greater security for our nation.

From Benedict Arnold to Aldrich Ames and Robert Hanssen, to Timothy McVeigh and the Unabomber, history has proven time and again: A command of English is no greater guarantee of loyalty or dedication to this country.

Consider in contrast, the sacrifices of the Phillipine Scouts of World War II or the Hmong and Montagnards who fought on the side of the United States during the Vietnam War, most of whom spoke little to no English at the time.

Inhofe and his supporters claim that declaring English as the official language will have a unifying effect on our nation. But I don’t feel united with you because of the way you arrange your nouns, verbs and adjectives.

I feel united with my fellow Americans from our spirit of effort to create a nation based upon our Constitution and our Bill of Rights. Some speak English better than I, some speak English terribly. But I respect them all for putting our differences aside to build a far better country than the one the Inhofe Amendment will create.

UXO Removal In Laos: Ask For More Aid

It's that time of month again where I pay a nod to the Legacies of War project, which does tremendous work to increase awareness of the unexploded ordnance (bombs, rockets, mines, explosives) left behind in Laos.

UXO is still deadly and one of the biggest impediments to the post-war reconstruction of Laos.

It denies families and villages access to usable agricultural land as well as other community development projects like schools and hospitals.

Even digging a simple well for drinking water can end in tragedy.

During the war for Laos in the 1960s and 70s, the United States dropped over 3 million tons of bombs on Laos.

This is more than on all of Europe during World War II.

3 out of 10 of those bombs failed to explode and continue to kill women, men, children and the elderly, even more than 30 years after the war ended.

A few years ago, Representative Betty McCollum of MN pushed forward legislature to provide $3 million to assist UXO removal in Laos.

That was wonderful news, but at the same time, that comes out to just a little over $1 for every ton of bombs that was dropped on Laos. This year, politicians attempted to cut the US commitment by almost half.

I'm contacting my senators and representatives to not only restore, but increase funding for this cause, not only for this year but in the years ahead until all UXO is removed from Laos.

And I hope you'll consider doing the same.

While I hope most of my readers already know who their politicians are, here are two handy links to find them:

http://www.senate.gov/

http://www.house.gov/

Help Stop the Vang Deportation

This was brought to my attention by my colleague, Nira Ly in Washington, DC.

If you can sign the petition, and pass it on to some friends, it would be nice to get them some support. http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Vang_Family/index.html

The Hmong community in Michigan has made amazing strides there over the years in spite of a marked lack of support compared to that of many other states.

At the moment, the family of Guy, Genevieve, Caroline and Melanie Vang face deportation in 3 months due to a terrible mess of the present immigration policy in the U.S.

After 18 years in this country, the Vangs have been a positive, productive part of the Michigan community- they became economically self-sufficient, private business owners and encouraged education in their children, friends and family. A full summary of the case is available at the petition site, but they need your help. It takes all of two seconds to sign it to help them out.

And in the long-term? If you can write your legislators asking for more humane immigration reform policies, this will really help us all.

***

(Although I have to say, ipetitions.com is a little pushy about asking for donations, but that's par for the course these days.)

Remembering Foua Hang

My longtime friend and fellow activist Foua Hang passed away on May 26th, 2007.

There are others who can speak more extensively, more eloquently about the impact Foua made in the community and in the lives of her family and friends, but I will say that I'm left deeply saddened to lose a peer of her caliber.

She remained true to her convictions and was a positive figure in progressive causes who possessed a frank, lively honesty all too rare in our jaded times. Thank you so much for everything you taught me, my friend. There will never be another like you.

Incandescence

What passes from the earth? Everything living.
What remains? Ordinary days

Punctuated by the rising of the sun,
the waking of souls, the roots of nightfall.

Some, we'll witness together.
Some, separated by miles, the flux of atoms, the quirks of perspective.

All lives are brief among mountains, among constellations
Who hang a million light years away.

But even the briefest life of a Hmong woman
Born among our secret wars and uncertain futures

Can spark transformations
As meaningful as the first smile of a child,
The last story of an elder who never lost hope,
Or the bright thread between friends saying goodbye.