Nashville News Blog

A new bunch of do-gooders has come out against the English Only amendment. Organizers hope this one will rev up black voters. Here's the latest list (take a deep breath): the Nashville branch of the NAACP; the Urban EpiCenter; the Urban League of Middle Tennessee; the Interdenominational Ministers Fellowship (IMF); the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC); the Nashville Movement; the Tennessee Alliance for Progress (TAP); Jobs with Justice (JwJ); and the National Organization for Women (NOW), plus some more public officials, including state Rep. Brenda Gilmore and Metro Council members Erica Gilmore and Jerry Maynard. From their press release:

The activists believe the "English-only" amendment will discourage visitors from making their homes in Nashville, and will create an unfavorable business climate for industries that seek a diverse workforce. The most damaging aspect of the charter amendment is its discriminatory harm on communities of color, especially bilingual and multilingual communities, who can be denied much needed social and educational services if the amendment were approved later this month. In addition to encouraging a culture of division and fear, it undermines Nashville's reputation as a tolerant and hospitable place for everyone. Its passage would also seem to conflict with the recent advancements the country has made in the last few months as exhibited by the 2008 presidential election. That the "English-only" amendment be brought to a vote now is ironic considering that the son of a multilingual immigrant was just elected President of the United States.

So let's see, the lines are pretty firmly drawn now on this English Only issue. Against it are the mayor, every liberal in the city, all the biz pigs and the entire media establishment (which has worked itself up into a constant state of tizzy by the way). On the other side? Eric Crafton, Jon Crisp and probably about 70 percent of the population.

Nathan Moore rails against English Only in today's City Paper.

Update: Rabbis, priests, pastors and imams--oh my!--come out against English Only.