My position is nothing new for anybody who's already seen my rant on the subject.
Like Neubob (and the rest of us BTW) I'm a proud son of an immigrant family (2nd gen Sicilian), and proud of my family history. However, I'm American, not Italian. Period.
My family members who immigrated here flatly refused to teach Italian to the kids and grandkids. "We're Americans", my grandfather used to say by way of explanation. Oh, yeah...they also asked permission. Go figure.
I applaud Geno's and everybody else who is attempting to make an important point. If a tourist approachs the counter at Geno's, and they are not masters of the English language, you can bet they'll be helped politely. The point is NOT about xenophobia, not even English...it's about respect.
The guy's trying to make a point, not to non-English speakers, but to the millions of criminals floating around who don't have a right to be here, and still demanding everything be made to accomodate them.
IMO, any claims that the signage is specifically targeted against Hispanics can simply show me where it says anything about Hispanics, or any language but English. Nope...nothing there. The request clearly applies across the board. Based onthe same unfounded logic, one could claim that they're discriminating against Swahili, but I don't expect much of an outcry over that.
Like I said, it really is about a socio-political point, and not about being unwilling to help someone out. Geno's is dependent on tourist money like many in Philadelphia, and isn't out to ruin their business. The owner himself has said as much in interviews.
ASTAC makes a good point...a guest visitor in another country with any manners at all will at least try to speak in the local tongue, and hope for some help. To try, is to show a little respect. For OUR culture and OUR laws.
Legal Immigration is Good. Illegal Immigration is a crime.
Try getting into a South American country without a visa, and see what happens. Illegal immigration is criminal there, too.