It’s one of those feel-good stories everyone loves reading. An eighth grader at the Riverside School in Lyndonville, Vermont, interested in the history of her state, wrote to her senator requesting that the state consider adopting a new official state motto — Stella quarta decima fulgeat. The phrase, which means “May the fourteenth star shine bright,” references a motto that was printed on old Vermont coins, as well as the pride Vermont has as the 14th state admitted into the union.

Unfortunately, when local television station WCAX covered the story, using the headline “Should Vermont Have an Official Latin Motto?” their Facebook commenters lashed out, seemingly interpreting “Latin Motto” to mean “Latino Motto,” and decrying the proposal as another step in the immigrant takeover of our great nation. (See the original Facebook post here.)

Charles Topher at If Only You News captured some of the reactions, which pretty much speak for themselves.

“We are AMERICANS, not Latins!”



It should also be noted that Vermont has an English motto, “Freedom and Unity,” and that the bill proposing the Latin motto would be separate. But that subtlety is probably lost on someone who says “I thought Vermont was American not Latin?”

“Go back to your Latin country.”



Big shout out to the lady complaining about having to press 1 for English instead of considering the 37 million Americans who speak Spanish for which a second automated language menu might be helpful.

“What next Arab motto??”



“I thought this was USA why are they trying to maker Americans aliens” sounds suspiciously like the plot of a Steven Spielberg movie.

It’s like the old saying goes: when in Rome, do as the Italians do. When in America, speak English. And when in Vermont, just hang out on Facebook all day.

[h/t WCAX; imgs via If You Only News]