"My father and mother entered an arranged marriage in 1923 in China. Both were Danish citizens. They’d been introduced to each other by two of mother’s brothers who in the 1920’s, like my father, did import-export business in Shanghai, China. After my brother and I were born there, the family of now four sailed to America in 1925 where father had been named Director of Northern Feather Works, a Danish Business with a branch in Newark, NJ. We were supposed to be in America for about eight years.
"Moving forward to the later 1930’s, father had been told by the U.S. government that because of the Depression, the rise of Adolph Hitler, and beginnings of WW II in Europe, the family could not travel to Denmark as planned.
"What does this news have to do with immigrants and speaking English?
"In the long run, quite a lot. We weren’t immigrants, but now it turned out we were becoming more or less permanent residents in the United States. My mother, with help from father, was raising our family of now four children, not only to be well brought up, but also to speak only Danish in the home. Since my brothers and I were all going to public schools, how did all of us communicate with the English speaking students and teachers?
"Unexpectedly, very well. My three brothers and I, who rarely heard English in the home, attended public school and did well. Where did the four of us learn it?
"Well, in the streets and neighborhoods. This sounds almost impossible to believe, and yet, there’s no other answer. It would seem that children pick up the language away from home quickly, especially if they have to learn it to understand what is going on in their surroundings.
"Meanwhile, still in America after WWII, my parents had learned to enjoy life in the United States, and had made American as well as Scandinavian friends. They became citizens, but still spoke Danish in their home and to us, their now grown children and grandchildren."
Our Member of the Month program was created so the 1.8 million members of U.S. English have the opportunity to share their personal stories—of why they support U.S. English and why they believe learning English is so important. If you would like to share your thoughts for supporting English as the official language of the United States, please email [email protected].
