Can You Be English if You Don\'t Speak English?

LONDON - Should immigrants be obliged to learn the language of their adopted country?

It is a perennial question in Europe, the United States and elsewhere and was raised again on Friday by Ed Miliband, the leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party.

Mr. Miliband, the son of Polish-born Jewish refugees from the Holocaust, said all newcomers to Britain should be expected to learn English and those in taxpayer-funded employment should be required to do so.

Immigration is a political minefield in Britain as it is in other European countries where a growing number of unemployed citizens is chasing a diminishing number of jobs.

Census data published this week showed that 13 percent of the population of England and Wal es was born outside Britain, while only 45 percent of Londoners now describe themselves as “white British.” More than two million immigrants arrived in Britain in the past decade.

For many, Mr. Miliband included, the emergence of a multiethnic Britain is something to be celebrated. “I am the son of immigrants. I love Britain,” he said in a closely watched speech. “But I am not going to shy away from the difficult issues.”

His “One Nation” speech, which put the emphasis on the need for integration, was nevertheless seen as a nod in the direction of those who claim that Labour's policies when in power led to uncontrolled immigration and ethnic segregation in parts of Britain.

David Aaronovitch, a broadcaster and columnist for The Times of London, messaged the Labour leader on Twitter to tell him that his English language stipulation was “a bit of a stunt,” and to suggest his speech was an attempt to neutralize the immigration issue for Labour.

Others suggested ahead of the speech that Labour was attempting to “reposition” itself on immigration to prevent losing some of its its traditional white, working-class supporters to other parties.

Among practical measures, Mr. Miliband would reduce funding for translation services for immigrants in order to pay for their language classes.

Mr. Miliband's speech came after Theresa May, the Conservative minister in charge of internal affairs, this week referred to the strains brought on by a decade of “uncontrolled mass immigration.”

“You only have to look at London, where almost half of all primary school children speak English as a second language, to see the challenges we now face as a country to build an integrated, co hesive society,” she told a center-right think tank. “How can people build relationships with their neighbors if they can't even speak the same language?”

Jonathan Portes in The Guardian suggested the language issue was something of a myth.

“It is true that almost half of all primary school children in London speak English as a second language,” he wrote. “But this doesn't mean that they, or their parents, can't speak English with their friends and neighbors.”

He added, “Census data shows that only one in eight households in London (and one in 25 in the country) don't include someone for whom English is a ‘main' language; and even some of those will have people who can communicate perfectly well in English.”

Anecdotal evidence is that young immigrants, or those born in Britain to immigrant parents, usually take responsibility for helpin g older relatives negotiate the challenges of living in an English-speaking society.

The latest data suggest around one million new Londoners do not speak English. It might make practical sense for them to start learning it. But does it matter if they don't?

A visiting friend last week recalled the experience of his grandmother, a multilingual Holocaust survivor who eventually made her home in multicultural New York.

Her six languages did not include English and she decided she did not need to learn it. Yiddish and Spanish turned out to be more than adequate to meet her daily needs.

What do you think? Can newcomers truly be British or American if they don't speak English, or French if they don't speak French? Or are other attributes more essential to integrate in today's multiethnic societies? Let us know your views.

Damien Hirst Leaves Gagosian

Less than a year after the Gagosian Gallery gave Damien Hirst all 11 of its spaces around the world to show his spot paintings, word comes that the bad-boy British artist will no longer be represented by Gagosian, where he has shown on and off for 17 years.

“We wish him continued success for the future,'' a statement issued by the gallery, confirming his sudden departure, said.

On Thursday, Science Ltd., Mr. Hirst's company, told the Financial Times that the gallery owner  “Larry Gagosian and Damien have reached an amicable decision to part company,” adding that the artist would continue his relationship with the White Cube Gallery in London.  But the question remains whether Mr. Hirst will look for another gallery to show his work in New York, where he has a large number of big collectors.

Mr. Hirst has never be en known for being monogamous, at least not when it comes to gallery representation. White Cube in London has also handled his work for years. In 2008 he snubbed both galleries, when Sotheby's in London sold 223 of his new artworks. The sale, which was held just as the financial markets were heading for disaster, included dead animals â€" sharks, zebras, piglets and even a calf â€" floating in giant glass tanks of formaldehyde; cabinets filled with diamonds; and cigarette butts.  And paintings â€" spin paintings, dot paintings, paintings with butterflies pinned under glass. More than 21,000 visitors flocked to Sotheby's on New Bond Street to see the work before the sale, which brought $200.7 million.

Ever the showman, he caused a sensation in 2007 at White Cube's gallery in Mayfair when he showed a human skull cast in platinum and covered with 8,601 diamonds.  At the time the gallery said the art work cost $23.5 million to make. During the five weeks that summer when it was on display in a small, blackened room at White Cube's Mason's Yard Space, crowds lined up with free timed tickets in hand to ogle the piece.  A nearby shop was doing a brisk business selling skull T-shirts and other Hirstian memorabilia. The skull was reportedly bought by a consortium of investors that included the artist himself. (It isn't the first time he has invested in his own work.  Mr. Hirst and Jay Jopling, the owner of White Cube, bought about 12 works from Charles Saatchi, former advertising magnate, in 2003 for around $15 million.)

Over the years Mr. Hirst has amassed a large fortune.  The Sunday Times of London has called him the world's richest artist, with a fortune estimated at about $346 million.

He is not the only artist to stray from Gagosian.  Last week while the contemporary art world converged on Miami Beach for the giant art fair there, David Zwirner, the Chel sea dealer, confirmed that in May he is planning to do a show of new paintings and sculptures by Jeff Koons, another superstar artist represented by Mr. Gagosian. Like Mr. Hirst, Mr. Koons has never shown any gallery loyalty. For decades he has also exhibited his work at the Sonnabend Gallery in Chelsea. Last week Rebecca Sternthal, a director of Gagosian who works with Mr. Koons said that Gagosian “still represents Jeff Koons.  He works closely with us and with Sonnabend.  In the past he has had shows in different galleries but we are still actively working with him and with his studio.''

 

IHT Quick Read: Dec. 14

NEWS European leaders gathering on Thursday for their year-end summit meeting hailed an agreement to place euro zone banks under a single supervisor, calling it a concrete measure to maintain the viability of the currency as well as a step in laying the groundwork for a broader economic union. James Kanter reports from Brussels.

Susan E. Rice, who faced fierce opposition from Republicans in her bid to be the next U.S. secretary of state, said she is pulling out of the running because the confirmation process would have been “lengthy, disruptive and costly.” Mark Landler reports from Washington.

Talks on a proposed treaty governing international telecommunications collapsed in acrimony on Thursday when the United States rejected the agreement on the eve of its scheduled signing, citing an inability to resolve an impasse over the Internet. Eric Pfanner reports from Dubai.

Even though North Korea ignored China's appeal not to test its new longer-range missile, the new leadership in China appears intent on remaining a steadfast supporter of its wayward neighbor because it considers the North a necessary buffer against the United States and its allies. Jane Perlez reports from Beijing.

The European Commission settled its antitr ust case against Apple and four book publishing groups over e-book price fixing on Thursday, in what was described as a victory for the leading online seller, Amazon, and a setback for publishers fighting for the ability to set prices for electronic literature in the digital marketplace. Kevin J. O'Brien reports from Berlin.

New testimony that emerged Thursday deepened the intrigue surrounding the death of the former K.G.B. officer Alexander V. Litvinenko, offering “prima facie” evidence of Russian state involvement and indicating that he had been a paid agent of the British Secret Intelligence Service, MI6, lawyers at a preliminary inquest hearing said. Alan Cowell reports from London.

The British government gave the go-ahead Thursday for exploratory hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to extract natural gas from shale-rock deposits. Stanley Reed reports from London.

SPORTS A game that was once considered merely a bar pastime is now a major industry in Europe. Over the holiday season, Premier League soccer is the only sport that will attract more television viewers in Britain than the Professional Darts Corporation's championship, the higher-quality and better-attended of darts' two world title events. Steven Cotton reports.

ARTS Baroness Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza, having played a part in transforming Madrid's museum landscape two decades ago, now wants to make an impact on her native Barcelona, by moving about 300 of her paintings by Catalan artists to a museum there. Raphael Minder reports from Madrid.