Is That English? Flushing Pols Will Find Out

With its myriad Asian restaurants and its equally diverse vendors and merchants, the bustling business section of Flushing along Northern Boulevard can be a shoppers paradise: fresh fruit, bakeries, cellphones and even Hello Kitty.
But, some native-English-speaking residents and would-be customers say the exterior store signs, often dizzyingly arrayed on top and adjacent to one another, colorfully written in Chinese or Korean, exclude those who do not speak the immigrant merchants language, because there are no accompanying translations.
For those who only speak English, searching the signs characters for meaning may not elicit the old saying "Its all Greek to me," but a similar phrase like "Its all Korean (Chinese or some other Southeast Asian language) to me," may accompany a quizzical shrug.
Councilman John Liu with State Senator Toby Stavisky, Assemblyman Barry Grodenchik and Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin, whose districts all encompass some part of this area, want to know if this perception of Flushing is true. And to do this, they are having their staff members hit the streets with surveys in hand.
Largely spurred by complaints over a mammoth-sized billboard on Northern Boulevard and 162nd Street that stood a few months ago and which advertised a Korean livery service without any English, Liu, his fellow pols and civic leaders have joined forces to create a Signage Language Taskforce.
The group, said Liu, will study and address whether the perception that many Flushing merchant signs are written solely in non-English languages is true or exaggerated.
"If you ask different people, they will tell you a lot of different answers on how they perceive the problem to be," said Liu at a new conference on Monday. "Some people think there is enough English. There is a disparity of opinions."
The politicians gathered at the conference said the Signage Language Taskforce will take a scientific approach to the problem.
"We are trying to tackle this in a very calm, sober and forthright manner," said Grodenchik.
Over the next four weeks, staff members of the Flushing politicos will ply Northern Boulevard, from Main Street to 162nd Street, documenting each business, its address, and whether its signs contain enough descriptive English for all customers. After a month, the taskforce will reconvene and discuss their findings.
"Whether at a large or small extent, our hope is to help businesses here get English on their signs," said Liu.
Aside from Flushing politicians, the taskforce includes native-English speakers members of the East Flushing Civic Association and the Broadway Flushing Homeowners Association as well as Asian groups, like the Korean American Association of Flushing.
Though a state law created in 1905 requires all merchant signs to provide an English description, it is never enforced, partly because politicians are unsure what agency is in charge of handling the matter.
The Flushing politicians all stressed that they are taking a community approach to the perceived problem rather than drafting legislation with stricter fines and more enforcement, as Councilman Tony Avella suggested after the Korean billboard incident.
Members of the taskforce agreed that a community-style approach, rather than penalties, will yield more compliance. They agreed it was a matter of creating a dialogue and educating merchants about the law.
"We can capture most people with a carrot," said Grodenchik, assured that merchants lacking English translations will voluntarily comply. "I dont think we need a stick."
Asian members of the taskforce said that most store owners are unaware of the rules.
"They have no intention of isolating people," said Chang Y. Han, head of the Korean American Association of Flushing, adding that most would comply once they were notified. Liu followed this up by saying past findings show that the longer merchants have been in the country, the more likely they are to have English.
This is not the first language study in Flushing. Three years ago, a similar study was conducted on Flushing streets running near Northern Boulevard. The findings showed that 90% of businesses had signs with descriptive English. The 10% that did not, Liu said, conformed and added English.
The councilman also said the perception of language exclusion is not solely confined to Flushing. He cited other areas, like Coney Island, where Russian businesses signage is largely written in the immigrant language. However, this study will only address the perceived problems in Flushing.
"Legislation creates enmity and antagonism," said Marjorie Ferrigno, president of the Broadway Flushing Homeowners Association and a 49-year resident of Flushing, lauding the taskforce approach. "We are trying to create a community. We say we welcome you, but we want you to welcome us."