Has anyone missed out on a job opportunity because the job required Spanish?

We, who are natural born citizens, being skilled workers who seek employment, are being placed at a disadvantage as a result of the English as a Second Language (ESL) program. ESL classes are available free of charge at all City of Chicago colleges for any Illinois resident. 

Time and again, skilled workers who hold college degrees, specialized certifications and licenses are being denied jobs because we do not speak Spanish. There are over 2,000 jobs listed on Indeed.com for the City of Chicago which require Spanish. Ziprecruiter.com lists over 3,400 which require Spanish for Chicago jobs. In Chicago, the lists of job websites that require Spanish for employment continues to grow exponentially.

We respectfully request that the ESL program promote economic justice by including all its current constituents in the ESL program. We too demand the right to become bi-lingual by being included in this exclusive City service.

If the City of Chicago feels that we, your constituents, are expected to learn Spanish on our own, then please require all of the new residents of Illinois to learn English on their own.