Free to Speak

James Joyce had said -history is the nightmare that modern man is trying to wake up from. On the flip side of that thought I wonder if the willful ignorance of history is just as bad or even worse. It's incredibly creepy when somebody sends you a very slick and well produced video that claims all of the economic problems in United States are caused by the Federal Reserve and the Rothschild Bank.

It would have been laughable if it wasn't it wasn't so fervently believed as gospel. The video was an excellent example of the power of propaganda. Take a few historical facts and distort the context; add in fear and a sense of urgency with the need to heroically struggle against the "secret" conspiracy that will engulf us all.

In times of uncertainty people gravitate towards fundamentalism. Instead of accepting life is messy and answers come in good, better and best for now; the temptation is judge things as either right or wrong and find an agreeable quote in the Bible and claim that settles everything. There is fundamentalism in other faiths and over the last 35 years a "Constitutional"  fundamentalism.  Is it me? -Or is it ridiculous to constantly try to solve of 21st century problems with 18th century logic? At what point do we give our forefathers a rest and think for ourselves?

 Last week in an online conversation with a really belligerent internet troll I was reminded how so many people have no idea about their national history but are ready to start a fight over it. The troll was expressing an opinion that if a person spoke Spanish in the United States then that person wasn't a real American. What is or isn't a real American is open to great deal of interpretation especially in a country that values free expression and civil liberties.

When somebody else reminded the troll there is no official language in the United States, the troll signed off with the boneheaded comment -I speak English, I speak the Constitution.

The kind of drek the troll was espousing wasn't only mean spirited but it also runs against the fact that the United States has always been a multi-lingual nation.

I live only a short distance from Valley Forge. George Washington picked this spot because it was close enough to watch the British in Philadelphia but far way enough where the British could not launch a surprise attack.  Also Valley Forge was surrounded by German farmers, the Pennsylvanian Dutch.

The Pennsylvanian Dutch overwhelmingly supported the Revolutionary Army as the English speaking population had mixed feelings over the war. Two fifths of the English speaking colonists wanted no part of the war, about two fifths were for independence and the remaining one fifth were loyal to the king, where many fought against their neighbors to stay a colony.  After the war about half a million loyalists left the new United States.

At least 10% of the European population of the colonies spoke German. At Valley Forge George Washington had about a dozen Aide De Camps. These officers organized the army and handled the paperwork of  war. Most of Washington's general orders as well as battle orders were written in English, German and sometimes in Gaelic or French. Many of the Irish and Highland Scots did not speak English as a first language -and France actually sent troops. The five regiments of French troops and the French fleet were decisive in the Battle of Yorktown. Victory at Yorktown ended the fighting.

 

The new United States ran for operated for seven years under the Articles of Confederation -they didn't work so well.  Confederation is relatively weak compared to a strong central government. The Constitution was drawn up so that a Federal Government can have overarching authority in governing the states.

 In 1787 - 1788 there was a lot bad feelings towards England. There were proposals to make either French or German the official language of the United States. There is a folklore tale that the original U S Constitution was written in German. That the Continental Congress wanted to thumb their noses at Great Britain by choosing a language other than English.

Historians haven't yet found that copy of the Constitution. It may only be a legend but most the print shops in and around Philadelphia were owned by German families and they saw themselves as the true Americans of that day.

In 1989 an extremely rare print copy of the Declaration of Independence was discovered behind a picture bought at a local flea market in Adamstown Pennsylvania. So one can never tell what might turn up. A German copy of the Constitution would just show how complex real history can be.

Fredrick Muhlenberg, First Speaker of the House of Representatives had written that English only narrowly defeated German as a choice of language. Some historians claim it was only for a proposal that all government documents be written in both English and German. To this day the United States has no statutory official language and English has been used on a de facto basis.

As one bit of trivia, if you had ask any citizen of the United States between the War of 1812 and the Civil War if they spoke English -many would say no, they spoke "American". During that time there was a nationalistic movement to separate us from England as much as possible. This is when you see the first American Dictionaries and we start writing gray instead of grey or plow instead of plough.

Even today the dialect of German known as Pennsylvania Dutch is still popular in the Southeastern quarter of the state. The Amish and Traditional Mennonites speak it as a first language and only learn enough English to get by with when they are off the farm. There are a few senior citizens outside of those communities that speak it as a first language and many of the young people learn at least a little of it as part of their heritage -but then again why not? -this is America and you're free to speak any language you like.