An official from Texas was faced with the negative reaction in social media after he criticized a judge of a neighboring County because she spoke in Spanish during a press conference about the fire.
Judge Lina Hidalgo of Harris County on Monday spoke English and Spanish about the fire, which broke out in the vaults of a chemical plant near Houston. The briefing was broadcast live on KHOU channel page in Facebook.
Under the video, mark theis, divisional Commissioner chambers, has published a comment which said: «we Have in English. This is not Mexico».
Later theis confirmed to the Houston Chronicle, that this was indeed his comment, saying: «it’s very simple. Is the United States. They speak English.»
During a press conference, where officials talked about the possible consequences of a chemical fire for the health of the inhabitants, Hidalgo spoke English and translated the comments in Spanish.
According to the last census, Harris County is home to more than 4.6 million people, of which 43% are Hispanic. More than 40% of residents speak at home a language other than English.
The next day mark theis apologized to Facebook for his «hasty reaction».
«I apologize to the judges, Hidalgo, citizens of my district and the entire Latino community for the hasty reaction in social networks. I’m not proud of my behavior and regret the sharp words,» wrote theis.
A survey by Pew Research Center in 2018 showed that 22% of Latinos living in the United States, faced with criticism due to the fact that they spoke Spanish in public. 20% said that they were advised to «return to their country.»
