By FERNANDA FIGUEROA, Associated Press

As President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order designating English as the official language of the United States, activists and advocacy groups are alarmed by what that will mean for non-English speakers when it comes to immigration, voter access and other issues.

The order, which was announced Friday, will allow government agencies and organizations that receive federal funding to choose whether to continue to offer documents and services in languages other than English, according to a fact sheet. The move rescinds a mandate from former President Bill Clinton that required the government and organizations that received federal funding to provide language assistance to non-English speakers.

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Designating English as the national language “promotes unity, establishes efficiency in government operations, and creates a pathway for civic engagement,” according to the White House. But some activists and organizations think the move is just another way for the president to stoke division and fear.

“This isn’t just an offensive gesture that sticks a thumb in the eye of millions of U.S. citizens who speak other languages, but also will directly harm those who have previously relied on language assistance for vital information,” Vanessa Cárdenas, executive director of America’s Voice, an advocacy group for immigration reform, said in an email.

What does it mean to have an official language?

According to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, an official language is what is used by the government to conduct official, day-to-day business. Having one or more official languages can help define a nation’s character and the cultural identity of those who live in it.

Prioritizing one language may place certain people in position of power and exclude others whose language is not recognized, according to the institute.

U.S. English, a group that advocates for making English the official language in the United States, believes having an official language provides a common means of communication, encourages immigrants to learn English to use government services and “defines a much-needed common sense language policy.”

Currently there are more than 350 languages spoken in the United States, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The most widely spoken languages other than English are Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese and Arabic.

People in the U.S. also speak Native North American languages such as Navajo, Yupik, Dakota, Apache, Keres and Cherokee, among others.

Potential impact on citizenship and voting

Anabel Mendoza, the communications director for United We Dream, a nonprofit immigrant advocacy organization, said limiting the language of federal communication will make it harder for people to become citizens if they are denied the ability to speak their native tongue throughout the process. Currently, people of certain age and residency requirements can qualify for a waiver to do the citizenship test and interview in their native language.

“Trump is trying to send the message that if you’re not white, rich and speak English you don’t belong here,” Mendoza said. “Let me be clear: Immigrants are here to stay. No matter how hard Trump tries, he can’t erase us.”

Signs in Chinese and English are displayed in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Friday, Feb. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus announced Friday that New York Rep. Adriano Espaillat, caucus chair, will deliver, on behalf of Democrats, the official Spanish-language response to Trump’s upcoming joint address to Congress.

George Carrillo, co-founder & CEO of the Hispanic Construction Council, said it seems like a step backwards in a country that has championed its diversity. He is also concerned how limiting governmental communication might affect U.S. territories such as Puerto Rico where the predominant language is Spanish.

“This executive order, while framed as promoting unity, risks dismantling critical supports like ESL programs and multilingual resources that help immigrants adapt and contribute,” Carrillo said. “Imagine families navigating healthcare or legal systems without materials in a language they understand, it’s a barrier, not a bridge.”

APIAVote, a nonpartisan nonprofit focused on registering Asian American and Pacific Islander voters, also expressed worry this could mean barriers for millions of voters such as naturalized citizens or elderly residents who aren’t English-proficient.

“It will make it harder for them to participate civically and vote, as well as access critical healthcare, economic and education resources,” the group said in a statement.

Furthermore, the organization says this action could make anyone who speaks another language a target.

“The exclusionary nature of this policy will only fuel xenophobia and discrimination at a time when anti-Asian hate and hate against other minority and immigrant groups are rising.”

States that have English as the official language

More than 30 states, from California to New Hampshire, as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands have already passed laws designating English as their official language, according to U.S. English. Hawaii is the only state to declare two official languages, English and Hawaiian.

Signs in Spanish and English are displayed in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Friday, Feb. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

For decades, lawmakers in Congress have introduced legislation to designate English as the official language, but those efforts failed. The most recent effort was in 2023, when Sens. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., and JD Vance, R-Ohio, introduced the English Language Unity Act. Vance is now vice president.

How many countries have official languages?

It is estimated that over 170 countries have an official language, with some having more than one language.

Mexico does not have an official language. In Canada the official languages are English and French. According to Canada’s Official Languages Act of 1969, the purpose of designating two languages ensures “the equality of status” and protecting linguistic minorities “while taking into account the fact that they have different needs.”

Figueroa reported from Austin, Texas. Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price in New York and Terry Tang in Phoenix contributed to this report.

The St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce and the Minneapolis Regional Chamber have made no secret of how difficult it is to keep a dues-based association afloat in an era where many employers have gone virtual and are more prone to sell their services online and around the world than within their local geography.

Is it time for them to merge? The question, which has been raised more than once across the St. Paul Chamber’s 157 years in operation, has resurfaced, this time with more organizational energy and public process.

Jeff DeYoung, a recently retired partner from the Baker Tilly accounting firm, told a crowd of more than 700 onlookers during the St. Paul Chamber’s annual dinner at the downtown RiverCentre on Thursday that the St. Paul and Minneapolis chambers formed a joint task force to debate the pros and cons of a possible merger. The task force, which met for the first time on Wednesday, also will consider whether the two chambers might remain independent of each other but share certain services, such as information technology.

“It could be that we stay separate and we decide that there’s some joint things that we’re going to work on together,” DeYoung said. “This has been a conversation that a lot of you have had … why do we have so many business chambers? Why do we have so many business associations?”

“Are we at a point where we now look at things from a Twin Cities and community perspective, versus one side of the river or the other? … Or do we want to stay in our separate areas?” he added. “We know that we have to keep a local presence, and we’ve heard that loud and clear. We’re not going to abandon that.”

Regional focus?

DeYoung said members of the task force brought a variety of views to the table, from those gung-ho for a merger to those opposed. The subject of a possible chamber merger has been broached before, with members in 2010 raising concern that west metro priorities would overshadow St. Paul issues. Bloomington and Minneapolis maintain a larger tax base than St. Paul and east metro suburbs like Maplewood, and a growing number of large employers have left downtown St. Paul to head westward.

Among them, the design and engineering firm TKDA left the capital city and moved to Old Shakopee Road in Bloomington, relocating some 300 employees from the UBS Tower at the Town Square complex on Cedar and Minnesota streets. Cray, Inc., the supercomputer company, left downtown St. Paul for Bloomington around 2016.

While St. Paul and Minneapolis mayors may advocate side-by-side for public transit, affordable housing and other regional interests, questions around the fate of particular sports teams and where their stadiums might land have sometimes set east metro and west metro political interests against each other.

Still, both chambers could benefit from fewer overhead costs or other economies of scale.

To stay afloat financially, the St. Paul Chamber has in recent years staffed and hosted smaller business advocacy organizations like the Minnesota Hmong Chamber of Commerce and the Minnesota Black Chamber of Commerce, while also offering its WorkStream consulting services to business retention programs in suburbs like Maplewood and Roseville.

The Minneapolis Chamber launched an investigation of its own finances last year after projecting a $500,000 deficit, leading to the abrupt resignation of longstanding president and chief executive officer Jonathan Weinhagen.

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By STEFANIE DAZIO and SUSIE BLANN

BERLIN (AP) — European leaders pledged late Friday to stand by Ukraine in the wake of the contentious Oval Office meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, with their statements in support of their neighbor on the continent ensuring a deepening transatlantic rift.

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European leaders already were shaken by Vance’s speech to the Munich Security Conference two weeks ago in which he lectured them about the state of their democracy. As prime ministers and presidents across the continent scrambled to respond, they have held a series of emergency summits to discuss security.

Another major summit is scheduled for Sunday in London, hosted by U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer. More than a dozen European and EU leaders, including Zelenskyy, will gather for a meeting meant to drive forward action on Ukraine and security.

The leaders’ comments Friday largely did not mention Trump or Vance, but rather sought to assure Ukraine of their support as the war with Russia enters its fourth year. Zelenskyy re-posted their comments on X, writing “thank you for your support” to each — likely a dig at the Trump administration.

During the extraordinary meeting Friday in Washington, Trump chided Zelenskyy after Vance, one of the administration’s most skeptical voices on Ukraine, said he was being disrespectful for debating Trump in the Oval Office in front of the American media.

“Have you said ‘thank you’ once?” Vance asked Zelenskyy.

The Ukrainian president said four times during the course of their exchange that he was thankful or had already expressed his thanks.

Trump then called off the signing of a minerals deal that he said would have moved Ukraine closer to ending its war with Russia. Zelenskyy left the White House shortly after Trump shouted at him, showing open disdain. The White House said the Ukrainian delegation was told to leave.

A senior Ukrainian official said Zelenskyy spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and President of the European Council Antonio Costa after he left the White House, describing all the conversations as “supportive” of the Ukrainian leader. The official, who is familiar with the matter, requested anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly.

Italy’s Premier Giorgia Meloni, however, proposed “an immediate summit” between the United States and European allies “to speak frankly about how we intend to face today’s great challenges, starting with Ukraine.” She urged the West to stay united.

“Every division of the West makes us all weaker and favors those who would like to see the decline of our civilization,” she said. “A division would not benefit anyone.”

Some posts on X were directed to Zelenskyy. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told him “your dignity honors the bravery of the Ukrainian people. Be strong, be brave, be fearless. You are never alone, dear President.”

And Friedrich Merz, Germany’s likely next chancellor, wrote: “Dear Volodymyr @zelenskyyua, we stand with #Ukraine in good and in testing times. We must never confuse aggressor and victim in this terrible war.”

The victory for Merz’s party Sunday in Germany’s national election ensured that Ukraine has an even stronger supporter in the European Union’s largest country. Merz during the campaign promised to unite Europe in the face of challenges from both Russia and the United States.

But Alice Weidel, co-leader of the far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany party and one of Merz’s challengers, wrote “Historic. Trump & Vance!” on X with a link to a video of the meeting. AfD’s platform calls for the immediate lifting of sanctions against Russia and opposes weapons deliveries to Ukraine. Weidel also met with Vance in Munich. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán praised Trump for his conduct in the Oval Office, casting Zelenskyy as working against peace in his own country.

“Strong men make peace, weak men make war,” Orbán wrote on X. “Today President Donald Trump stood bravely for peace. Even if it was difficult for many to digest. Thank you, Mr. President!”

Orbán is a consistent backer of the Kremlin and has been outspokenly antagonistic against neighboring Ukraine. After winning the last Hungarian elections in 2022, less than six weeks after Russia’s full-scale invasion, he cited Zelenskyy as one of the opponents he had defeated in the campaign.

Meanwhile in Estonia, which borders Russia, Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said the only obstacle to peace is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to continue the war.

“It is time for Europe to step up,” Tsahkna said in a statement. “We do not need to wait for something else to happen; Europe has enough resources, including Russia’s frozen assets, to enable Ukraine to continue fighting.”

And Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson’s reminded Ukraine of what’s at stake for the Nordic and Baltic countries, and others, if Russia’s aggression spreads.

“You are not only fighting for your freedom but also for all of Europe’s,” Kristersson wrote on X. European officials from Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Spain, among others, also offered their support to Ukraine.

Blann reported from Kyiv. Associated Press writer Justin Spike in Kyiv contributed reporting.

A St. Paul man was charged with second-degree murder on Friday after authorities say he stabbed his wife at their Summit-University residence.

Kedu Husen Buseri (Courtesy of the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office)

During questioning Kedu Husen Buseri, 34, reportedly told authorities he had killed his wife, who authorities identified Friday as Sefiya Churiso Datu, 29.

The criminal complaint alleges the following details:

At about 3:15 p.m. on Wednesday, authorities say, Buseri called 911 and said that “someone died” and that “someone killed his wife” before hanging up.

When police arrived at his home in the 400 block of Central Avenue  authorities report that Buseri answered the door with his hands covered in blood and blood spatter on the front of his shirt, shoes, jacket and face. He also reportedly had a small cut on one hand.

“She cut me …  I cut her,” authorities allege that Buseri said.

Officers searched the house and found Datu in the basement, lying on the floor and wrapped in a blanket. Her eyes were open and her breathing was shallow but she did not respond to officers speaking to her.

The couple’s infant child was on the bed nearby; although officers found blood on the baby, the child was not injured.

When officers rolled Datu over, they saw she was covered in blood and had a large cut to her throat, her face and her bicep.

Datu was taken to the hospital and pronounced dead shortly after at 3:33 p.m.

Busseri, who was arrested, was taken to the hospital and treated for the cut to his hand. It did not require stitches.

During questioning, Buseri said he and his wife argued after he accused her of being unfaithful. It was during this argument,he claims, that they cut each other with knives.

When asked if he had killed his wife, Buseri said, “Yes,” according to the criminal complaint.

The woman’s homicide was the first of the year in St. Paul. There had been four at this time last year.

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