One of Philadelphia’s preeminent Cheesesteak destinations, Geno’s Steaks, adopted a new policy several months ago requiring patrons to place orders in English. A sign on the window reads: “This is America: When ordering speak English.”

According to Geno’s owner the policy hasn’t roused too many feathers and staff help non-English speakers to order in English. Not everyone is happy with the policy, which some decry as racist. Recently some immigrant “activist” groups have vowed to fight the policy. Juntos, an Hispanic activist group, has vowed to send Spanish peaking patrons to the restaurant to place orders in Spanish, according to Juntos, they may resort to legal action against Geno’s. The litigious curse strikes again.

Frequent Phalanx readers are aware that earlier posts decried national efforts to institute English as the country’s official language. Such an effort, much like the federal marriage amendment, were and are gross usurpations of federal authority and have no place in America, nonetheless, a restaurant owner is under no legal authority to staff his restaurant with a bilingual wait staff. These activists who are threatening legal action against Geno’s Steaks, have no justification to pursue such a course.

Most likely the Juntos will sue on the grounds that Geno’s is violating their civil rights or some other such nonsense. Regardless of the grounds, the suit will be frivolous, which means they will probably win, given today’s culture. Geno’s will have to provide every Hispanic within a 100 mile radius a free Cheesesteak, then they will have to hire multilingual wait staff and the price of a Philly Cheesesteak will skyrocket to $25 each, plus tax.

Who knew there was a right to a Cheesesteak.
today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2006-06-08T232416Z_01_N08392339_RTRIDST_0_OUKOE-UK-LIFE-ENGLISH.XML
www.ajc.com/today/content/epaper/editions/today/news_4498a14aa623516a1020.html