Washington, D.C. - Today, a bipartisan amendment proposed by U.S. Reps. Rick Larsen (D-WA) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) promoting the need for Chinese and Arabic language education and cultural exchange in the United States passed by a unanimous voice vote.

Congressman Larsen released the following statement on the amendment:

“Today’s global landscape is increasingly interconnected.  China and the Middle East play critical roles towards international peace and security.  Our ability to effectively engage China and the Arab world rests on shared economic and political interests, and mutual understanding.

“From 1998 to 2002, foreign language enrollment in US colleges and universities increased by 20 percent for Chinese and 92.3 percent for Arabic.  By comparison, the learning of more traditional languages, such as French and German, grew by under 3 percent.

“Our schools and universities are already leading the movement toward Chinese and Arabic.  Congress must build on this infrastructure and support the education of future diplomats, business professionals, and teachers that are proficient in Arabic and Chinese.

“We must answer the call for increased American competitiveness and national security, and in today’s world, we cannot just answer that call in English.

Congressman Larsen represents Washington State’s 2nd Congressional District.  Larsen is co-chair of the U.S.-China Working Group in the House of Representatives.

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