Non-native Spanish speakers urged to use language in public to combat stigma

When I was young it was openly said that America was a melting pot, and that people were expected to assimilate. The ability to bring in immigrants and have them join the fold was what gave us strength. I grew up in a neighborhood full of people from all over the world. My friends were born on different continents. Every one of them spoke English, as did their parents.

Then, in my early adulthood, as illegal immigration from Latin America ramped up, people started pushing back on the expectation that immigrants should be expected to speak English. I remember the news articles portraying store owners in a negative light when they wouldn't accommodate customers that didn't speak our language. Then the idea of assimilation itself came under attack.

Now another step, encouraging people to speak a non-native language, as a show of solidarity and to combat stigma. I have to wonder, where does this end? Having no shared culture, no shared values, and no shared identity is already ripping the US apart. Now we shouldn't even have a shared language?