I’ve hears stories of some Americans telling other people who are speaking a non-English language “This is America, speak English!” even if the conversation has nothing to do with them. Why do they do this?

  • ImplyingImplications@lemmy.ca
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    5 months ago

    It’s called xenophobia, the fear and dislike of anything foreign. Some people believe that if your group isn’t dominant it will be dominated, and peaceful coexistence isn’t possible between different groups.

    These people are afraid that, if the English language isn’t forced onto other people, one day other people will force a foreign language onto them.

  • Eugenia@lemmy.ml
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    5 months ago

    Sorry, as a Greek-American (currently in Greece), I disagree with most of the people here. When you’re part of a new country, you need to be able to do your business with the authorities in the official language. For that, some level of understanding the native language is required. In fact, to get any passport from any country, you need to have a B1-level understanding of that country’s language. So yes, being in a country, you need to know the basics. And if you don’t, then make sure you learn the basics within 6 months, in order to be able to live there without issues. I don’t see that as xenophobia, I see it as common sense.

    I moved to Greece from the US this year with my French husband. He doesn’t speak Greek. I can tell you, it has been a nightmare for him doing paperwork, and I need to go with him EVERYWHERE in any government office in order to get setup. It wasn’t pretty in the first few months, he was full of anxiety and he wouldn’t leave the house without me.

    Also, I worked in Germany in my youth, for a few months. I couldn’t understand most of what was said (although I could pick up a few words, but certainly couldn’t speak back). It was a nightmare. There were no free programs back then to learn the language, and so I went there without any preparation. Today, I wouldn’t have done it that way. I would first learn the language in some basic form (today there are apps to do that), and then move there.

    • McBB@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      Do you expect a couple of foreigners visiting America together to speak English to each other while they are in the US?

      • 11111one11111@lemmy.world
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        5 months ago

        Homie, stop making shit up. Noone is giving grief to tourists for not speaking the native language of the country they are visiting.