Arecent state Assembly bill that proposes English be the official language of the state of Wisconsin is troubling.

The authors of this bill, who are members of both political parties, say this legislation would unite Wisconsinites and promote a unified culture within the state. There is a fine line in between nationalism and xenophobia, and this bill crosses it.

This legislation serves no purpose other than to identify immigrants as outside of the American community and culture. Whether the immigrants are legal does not matter in this situation—all immigrants could be forced into fitting into an idealistic American culture.

The bill is merely a declaration and does not provide any actions that could be taken to promote a unified Wisconsin community. Non-English-speaking residents may be told by state legislators their languages are not sufficient. Yet lawmakers provide no means of teaching them to speak English.

Having English as the state’s official language will not make our nation’s establishments more reputable as state Rep. Marlin Schneider, D-Wisconsin Rapids, may think.

If this legislation passes, who is to sat there will not be another bill introduced pushing the removal of Spanish from public messages, including safety and health messages.

The United States’ and Wisconsin’s cultures are not threatened by non-English speaking residents and citizens—they only add to it. Throughout history, the United States has welcomed “huddled masses yearning to breathe free,” and this legislation stands in the way of those very words inscribed on our nation’s most idyllic view of freedom—the Statue of Liberty.

Regardless of these lawmakers’ “good intentions,” nothing good can come from this legislation. At the first opportunity, the rest of the state Legislature, namely the Democratic-controlled Senate, should stop this bill from being passed. If this legislation does get passed, however, it would not fulfill the goals its authors intended it would.