Can a city truly be bilingual? That was the question Emporia Spanish Speakers attempted to answer at its luncheon event with the Kansas Leadership Center Wednesday afternoon. ESS members, community leaders and Emporia residents gathered in The Next Level bar above Casa Ramos Wednesday for a luncheon discussion about the future of a bilingual Emporia. The conversation was sparked by Emporia Spanish Speakers’ recent feature in a state publication… Can one city have two languages? For ESS Founder and Director Lelan Dains, the answer is simple: Sí. Yes.. “When we think about bilingualism we tend to think about native Spanish speakers who learn English,” Dains said. “That is the predominant form of bilingualism that we find in Kansas, it’s absolutely the predominant form here in Emporia and if I can be so frank it has been the expectation of us native English speakers that the obligation is upon them to learn English.”
Source: Emporia Gazette
