The blank stare of the foreign...don't pretend you haven't seen it.

Before you jump ugly with me about the rights of all to be in this country, and how awful I am about to be capping on the foreign people living here, allow me to remind you that my great-grandparents took that long-assed boat ride across the pond from Italy in search of a better life. Not only that, but they made a serious effort to learn the language and customs of the land from where they chose to earn their money and raise their family. Perhaps they settled in an area that was saturated with others of their ethnicity in order to feel at home and comfortable so they could begin the process of assimilation, but who wouldn't? What they didn't do is pretend that they brought the whole fucking country over with them and ignore the fact that they were strangers in a strange land and in order to get along, they had some changes to make.
They didn't ask for street signs to be made in English AND Italian so they could figure out where they were going. Nor did they expect that the DMV would hand them a written test in their language so they didn't have to bother to grasp even the tiniest amount of English to drive here. My Grandma Rose struggled the hardest with English, yet managed to be gainfully employed by the ILGWU for years, shop at local grocery stores using the circulars to find sales, and raise her only son while supporting her husband's dream of opening a hotel. No, she didn't finish school, but she wasn't stupid, nor did she ever once pretend to be in order to get her way or get out of trouble. Not once did I ever witness her pull the blank stare on someone to try to get over on them.  She owned her mistakes and stood up for herself, expressing it in the best English she could.
Fast forward to 2013 and look around you on the streets, in the grocery store, at the bank, or dropping your kids off at school. Take a gander at the foreign folks in your visual range. How many of them are associating with people of cultures other than their own? That's right, hardly any. They choose to keep to their own, speaking their native tongue loudly, making the rest of us feel like they are whispering mean shit about us.  Chances are they are talking shit, but we'll never know. This is the lesson they teach their children, at least part of the lesson.  If we don't fit the profile, we aren't good enough to befriend.  The second part of the lesson would be the part that allows them to act like they don't understand English should they be called out on their fuck ups.  This is true of adults as well as children.

Have you ever been on the bus and gotten cut off for a seat by one of THEM? Try saying something to them. Let them know that it isn't done that way in America and get the fuck out if it doesn't suit you. Wait for the empty stare they bestow upon you. This would be right on the heels of them speaking perfect English to a friend only moments before cutting you off and throwing their ass in the seat you were directly in front of and about to sit in...that's right, ENGLISH.  Don't be fooled by the stare. They all speak it now.  It's not like when Grandma Rose came here from Italy. They speak English in schools back home, when they come here, it's no stretch at all. But when the occasion calls for it, watch the Academy Award-winning acting they are capable of when they pretend that they have absolutely no fucking clue what you are saying.
Children are amazing at this charade. Trust me, it starts so early, you'd piss your pants if you had the chance to witness it in person. I am lucky enough to be able to see that blank look on a daily basis. As teachers, we are supposed to help those for whom English is not their first language. When it is a genuine issue, we have no trouble at all guiding them onto the path of using the correct words. So many have come through, right off the boat, desperate to be able to communicate in their new home. My heart goes out to them, I can't imagine what it would be like to be listening to what amounted to babble in my ears and try to attend school and actually learn something. These are the children whose parents actually want to learn English, as well, or who do know it but are retaining the native language at home.
Now picture the child that you KNOW speaks better English than you do deciding to do something horrific. You speak to them about it and direct them as to how to correct the problem, and all you get back is a face like a fucking brick wall. Now, I'd egg you on and tell you to remind them that you know for certain that they understand you and should probably respond. The look actually becomes even more VACUOUS! You can't kill them, what the hell are you supposed to do? Parents of these children encourage this shit, who do you think they learned it from in the first place? Telling them would be an exercise in futility. But it doesn't stop at one, nosiree. They are coming over by the boat load, many of whom have no intention of planting roots here in the US. Most will freely tell you that they are only here to make money and take advantage of American schools before heading back to the motherland to live like royalty. On my goddamn dime.
While I don't advocate moving to a country to drain it dry and go back home, I have no issue with people coming here from other countries to make a better life for themselves and their families. But whichever category you fit into, know this, you must show respect for the place in which you now live.  Not only the place, but its natives as well. We were here first and would gladly welcome you with open arms if you didn't act like such an entitled douchebag. The USA doesn't owe you anything, certainly not a translation of everything written in English. That happens to be the language of the country you chose to infiltrate, use, and abuse...consider learning it. While you're at it, if you do know the language, use it.  Use it daily and with great gusto.  I don't want to walk into a place and feel like I'm surrounded by a clique of mean girls. Remember, if I've heard you speaking English, I expect you to do it in my presence and when spoken to by me. Wonder why you feel like we are prejudiced against you? Maybe it's the fucking blank stare. Are you friggin kidding me right now???