If someone sees the need for a national language, especially nowadays, it is only because he/she is looking for an issue on which to focus their hostility.
Actually, I have always seen such a need. I'm not in the least bit hostile about it.
My parents grew up in Austria. They spoke Viennese, an old dialect indigenous to Vienna. But in school, they learned High German, the official language of Austria. With many people in central Europe speaking local dialects derived from old Germanic languages, a standardized form was necessary to conduct both government and private business.
Now, they live in the US. They've been citizens for years. And English is what allows them to communicate with an incredibly diverse group of friends and associates. Some were born here, some grew up in different parts of Europe, some come from Korea, Japan, Cambodia, China, Mexico, Thailand, Brazil, Afghanistan, Persia and I don't know where else. My parents have been to many of these places; they're in the gem and jewelry business, as a post-retirement venture. They're neither racists, nor xenophobes.
English has enabled them to get to know an incredibly diverse group of people throughout their lives. And they support the idea of a standard language, to help bring people together, not divide them.
I agree with them. I didn't just start thinking about this a few months ago, and neither did a lot of other people.
Rule of thumb: whenever someone tries to avoid an actual, reasonable discussion by throwing around the words "racist" or "xenophobe", or using "guilt by association", there are big holes in their argument.
