Style Weekly Responds to Calls to Make English the Official Language of Chesterfield County

RICHMOND — For the first time in its 25-year history, Style Weekly is honoring Chesterfield County with an issue printed almost entirely in English. The issue, which publishes tomorrow, will be distributed locally and available online at www.styleweekly.com.

The gesture celebrates an idea recently offered by Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors Chairman Kelly E. Miller, who suggests that the county make English its official language.

“Unfortunately, we were unable to make the issue 100 percent in English,” Style Weekly editor Jason Roop said. “But if Mr. Miller can bear with us, we are evolving. We are trying our best.”

The difficulty, Roop said, was a restaurant review by Joseph W. Cates, which critiques some of the new eateries in the Virginia Commonwealth University area. “It was unavoidable to write about Nate’s Taco Truck, a vendor near the Cabell Library, without using the word ‘taco,'” Roop said.

“But the issue is probably 99 percent English,” he continued, “which should please Mr. Miller and his innovative ideas for real county solutions.”

On his website, Miller explains his philosophy on government, which is, in part:

“I believe that government exists for no other reason than to serve the people. It should always be the servant and never the master of our citizens. Our forefathers were committed to this truth and so am I.

“Our leaders must always be accountable and responsible in their actions. We must be constantly aware that government action always impacts our citizens for good or bad.”

Style Weekly, founded in 1982, has been covering Chesterfield County and regional issues for 25 years. According to Scarborough Research (Release 1, 2007), Style Weekly’s average issue readership by Chesterfield County residents is 11,089. Earlier this year Virginia’s General Assembly passed a resolution commending Style Weekly for its 25 years of journalism, business presence and community service.