A Stitch in Haste

If you believe in bilingual education, if you believe that people have a fundamental right not to have learn English, then this is what you believe in:

For a 16-year-old, Iris Padilla's resume looks pretty good: Not only is she already a senior close to completing all the credits needed to graduate from Richmond High, she's president of a Latin American culture club and is active in political and religious clubs at school. Next year, Iris wants to go to college and study psychology.

But Richmond High might not let her graduate this spring.
...
Iris is one of 73,270 California high school seniors in the same pickle — unable to fulfill a new state law requiring students to pass a test of basic English, math and algebra to graduate. That's 1 in 5 members of the state's Class of 2006, says the state Department of Education.
...
"I need a diploma," said Iris [in Spanish]... "I want it. I deserve it. I've been going to school and studying. I want to have a profession."

Well, young Ms. Padilla, that's just too damn bad. If you were smart enough to accumulate all those créditos, then you were smart enough to figure out that learning English isn't too much to ask when conferring diplomas. Maybe, just maybe, you should have spent a little less time being president of the Latin American culture club and a little more time with an ESL tutor.

Stated differently, you are a whiny little brat, Ms. Padilla, and you are (not) getting exactly what you (didn't) earn and what you (don't) deserve.

Welcome to the real world.

(Via Joanne Jacobs.)