Judge Orders Migrants to 'Learn English'
(from the Federal Observer)

Editor's Note:I place in nomination for Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States of America, Wilson County Tennessee Judge, Barry Tatum. Hot Damn! (J.B.)

Some consider it unorthodox and others say it is unconstitutional, but nevertheless a Tennessee judge has ordered some Hispanic mothers in child abuse and neglect cases to either learn English or risk losing their children.

Despite criticism from some legal corners, Wilson County Judge Barry Tatum, a first-term jurist and former attorney, has defended his decisions, saying he made his rulings because the women need to assimilate American language and culture for the betterment of their children.

He has made five such rulings already.

"Here we have an American citizen who runs the risk of losing out on all the opportunities if she's not assimilated into the culture," Tatum said in an interview with the Lebanon Democrat newspaper, though he admitted he's never removed a child from a home because a mother did not speak English.

In an October case, Tatum ordered a Mexican woman reported to the Department of Children's Services for child neglect to learn English to a fourth-grade level within six months, according to her attorney. If she didn't, he would begin parental termination proceedings.

"The court specially informs the mother that if she does not make the effort to learn English, she is running the risk of losing any connection â€â€