1988. Geraldo Rivera on his namesake talk show hosts a panel as part of his episode ‘English Only’. Should government institutions communicate exclusively in English? In this first segment of the show we hear the basic arguments from prominent figures on each side of the issue.
On the panel; actor Cheech Marin, NYC congressman Herman Badillo, Linda Chavez president of ‘U.S. English’, Martha Jimenez of the Mexican-American defense fund, Larry Pratt president of ‘English First’, as well as audience questions from a New York City cab driver and Juan Cartagena of the Puerto Rico legal defense and education fund.
In 2023 then senator and current U.S. Vice President JD Vance introduced a bill that would have established English as the official language of the country.