ProEnglish
 | |
| Motto | The Nation's Leading Official English Advocates |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1994 |
| Type | Public Policy |
| Headquarters | 20 F Street NW, 7th Floor |
| Location | |
Executive Director | Sam Pimm |
| Website |
www |
ProEnglish is an American nonprofit lobbying organization that supports making English the only official language of the United States.
Background
Founded in 1994 by immigration activist John Tanton and others, under the name English Language Advocates and later renamed ProEnglish, ProEnglish's first project was defending an official English initiative passed by the voters of Arizona, after the State of Arizona declined to appeal a decision overturning the initiative in federal court. Its first Chairman was Robert D. Park and its Executive Director was K.C. McAlpin.[1][2]
In addition to conducting research on a wide variety of public education activities to advance its goals, ProEnglish has helped provide pro bono legal assistance to public and private agencies facing litigation or regulatory actions over language policies. ProEnglish also offers a free advocacy service from its website allowing its supporters to email, call, write, and fax their members of Congress.[3]
Leadership and structure
ProEnglish is a self-governing project of U.S. Inc., a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, with a two-star rating for organizational efficiency from Charity Navigator. Its leadership structure consists of a six-member board, chaired by Dr. Rosalie Pedalino Porter. Sam Pimm is the organization's current Executive Director.[4]
Projects
According to their website, ProEnglish is currently engaged in several long-term projects that promote the use of English as the sole unifying language of the United States. First among these is repealing Executive Order 13166, which states that any entity which receives federal funds must provide whatever services it offers in any foreign language spoken by anyone likely to receive those services.
ProEnglish Defends Arizona Nursing Student
As of December 2013, ProEnglish is defending a nursing student in a lawsuit against her former school, Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona. The lawsuit alleges [5] that the student, Terri Bennett, was suspended from the college for nine months and verbally defamed because she asked that students in one of her classes be required to speak English. Arizona has a law declaring English the official language of the state. Bennett lost the case and was ordered to pay $110,000 in legal fees to Pima Community College.[6]
See also
References
- ↑ Epstein, Aaron (November 29, 1996). "ARIZONA LAW THAT REQUIRES ENGLISH IS FACING A TEST IN COURT THE CHALLENGE TO THE ENGLISH-ONLY MEASURE INVOLVES FREE SPEECH. THE OUTCOME COULD HAVE A BROAD EFFECT.". Philadelphia Inquirer. p. A.3.
- ↑ Carpenter, Amanda (August 20, 2009). "HOT BUTTON". Washington Times. p. A.18.
- ↑ http://proenglish.org/about-us/mission
- ↑ http://proenglish.org/about-us/the-board
- ↑ "AZComplaintOfficial" (PDF). proenglish.org. Retrieved 2013-12-05.
- ↑ http://tucson.com/news/local/education/ex-student-who-sued-pima-college-must-pay-k/article_5f157fed-024d-59da-9731-6e0476dcffe1.html