LINGUISTIC MULTILINGUISM OR FEDERALISM: WHICH STRATEGY TO TAKE?
On the 25/05/2009, the Dante Alghieri Institute and Centopercentoitaliano.it closed the curtain on the "anti-prize," "Italian Doormat of the English Language 2009," promoted by the "Esperanto" Radical Association’s department, Centopercentoitaliano.it. Behind the scenes, a fertile enviroment continues to grow. Those who participated in the event invite you be aware that the multilinguism and identity problem that will take place as soon as globalization and modernization would like to obbligate us to speak only English and Europe grows to include 27 members.
For this very reason, the final request has been made by Paolo Conti, speaking on behalf of Alessando Masi, General Secretary of the Dante Alghieri society, a body which has been defending the Italian language for more than a century now, nationally and transnationally. Conti supported the Dante Alghieri Society’s position that it is currently using to battle, a battle which he has defined as a "crusade," to protect the Italian language from every form of discrimination; according to him, this goal could be reached via a multilinguism European policy, that would guarantee equality for every language when it comes to International communication.
Giorgio Pagano, Secretary of the "Esperanto" Radical Association, replied immediately, udnerlining the "multilinguism" idea, the "grave of other languages," is destined to fail and to promote a single language, "that is, English," because it is inevitable; given the choice, everyone will choose the "language of opportunity," as can be clearly seen by the presence of a number of institutes and degree courses being taught in the Queen’s language in Italy.
For a long-term success, the alternative strategy, which ERA promotes, would be to build the United States of Europe on the foundations of a federal linguistic policy, the only one that can guarantee real, democratic, international communication,a fair transfer of material and symbolic resources between nations and protecting the cultural-linguistic eco-system from the English-speaking colonization at the same time. All of this would be done without hurting our nation’s language. At this point, the Secretary of the ERA Onlus, Giorgio Pagano, declared himself ready to confront the Dante Alghieri Society on this matter.