Congress Affirms Importance of Native Languages
For immediate release - December 7, 2006
The Senate this week approved legislation that will help preserve a core part of the cultural heritage of the United States and ensure the survival of the languages spoken by the first Americans. On Wednesday, December 6, the Senate passed by unanimous consent the Esther Martinez Native American Language Preservation Act of 2006. That legislation will now be sent to President George Bush for his signature.
The Native American Languages Preservation Act brings funds to tribal communities highly motivated to keep their original language alive. Immersion programs for young people help foster an ongoing appreciation for their own history and cultural background. Tribes will be able to compete for funds to create immersion programs designed to help students learn and speak their ancestral languages by working with tribal elders.
American Indians view language programs as important for cultural survival. “The number of fluent speakers of Native languages has been going down every year. We at FCNL are heartened at the response to grassroots efforts to preserve native heritage,” says Pat Powers, the Legislative Secretary on Native American Affairs for the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL). “We hope it is a sign of intent by Congress to listen more to the concerns of Indian Country.”
The House approved the Language Preservation Act in late September, but several senators blocked Senate action until early December. FCNL joined the National Indian Education Association and many other native rights and faith-based advocacy groups in advocating for the bill’s passage in both houses of Congress.
More information on FCNL's Native American Advocacy Program is available online.
****
The Friends Committee on National Legislation, the oldest registered religious lobby in Washington, is a non-partisan Quaker lobby in the public interest. FCNL works with a nationwide network of tens of thousands of people from every state in the U.S. to advocate for social and economic justice, peace, and good government. For more information: http://www.fcnl.org
More Press Releases
|
