With
the world keeping tabs, Nashville voters adamantly struck down on
Thursday a proposed Metro charter amendment proposal that would have
made English the government’s official language.
Nashville speaks up: English Only soundly defeated [1]
Posted: Friday, January 23, 2009 12:00 am
The English
Only charter amendment proposal failed by what several said was a
surprisingly wide margin — 56 percent voted against the proposal and 44
percent voted in favor. There were 73,896 voters who weighed in on the
special election.
A second proposed amendment, which would have
made petition-driven charter amendments simpler and easier to achieve,
also was defeated by a margin of 62 percent against and 38 percent in
favor.
The English Only proposal also stated that no individual had a right to services in any other language.
Other
cities have passed similar English Only measures, but Nashville would
have become the largest municipality to do so. In the weeks leading up
to the election, various national and even international media outlets
covered the English Only special election.
Mayor Karl Dean, an
outspoken opponent of English Only from the beginning, said the defeat
of the proposed amendment showed Nashville to be a progressive,
welcoming city.
“This is a great night for Nashville,” Dean
said. “The results of this special election reaffirm Nashville's
identity as a welcoming and friendly city, and our ability to come
together as a community — from all walks of life and perspectives — to
work together for a common cause for the good of our city.
“That
diversity and that shared desire to see our city succeed and progress
is part of what makes Nashville so great and the exact reason why this
amendment does not represent the city that we are. I can tell you it a
true honor and privilege to serve as mayor of this city.”
On the
losing side was Eric Crafton, a Metro Councilman from Bellevue. Crafton
had pushed a measure to make English the official language of Metro
government for two years. After a failed attempt to pass a Council
bill, Crafton gathered signatures of Davidson County voters.
His
first attempt, which would have put the proposal on the November
presidential election ballot, was disallowed by the Davidson County
Election Commission. Crafton went back to the drawing board and
gathered more signatures to force the special election.
In
defeat, Crafton promised to abide by the “wisdom of the voters,” adding
that he was glad the issue was finally decided at the ballot.
“I
think it’s been a net-positive for Nashville,” Crafton said. “We’ve had
a discussion, the people have decided. I always said I would support
the collective wisdom of the citizens and they gave a clear statement
tonight.”
English Only brought together a surprise coalition of
opponents, led by Dean. It also included the Nashville Area Chamber of
Commerce, the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau, immigrants
rights advocacy groups and faith-based organizations from across the
mid-state area.
The coalition raised in the neighborhood of
$300,000, according its campaign finance disclosures. Crafton’s
Nashville English First committee raised about $60,000, he said. As of
Thursday, the committee had still not filed a financial disclosure, but
Crafton said one would be coming soon.
The second amendment,
which would have simplified the petition-driven charter amendment
process, failed by an even wider margin. Opponents said the proposal
was unnecessary and would have led to an assault on the Metro charter.
A pre-election estimate from Metro said the special election would cost around $300,000.