The White House has eliminated Spanish from its official communications, website and social networks, a decision that has generated outrage in the Spanish-speaking community, especially in the United States, home to more than 60 million Spanish-speaking people.
The measure, pushed through during Donald Trump’s administration, has been interpreted by experts and politicians as a setback in the inclusion of one of the most widely spoken languages in the country and a show of contempt for the Latino community.
A drastic change in U.S. language policy.
For years, the official White House website has had a Spanish version to bring federal government information closer to a key part of the population. However, with the arrival of Trump to power, access in Spanish was eliminated without explanation, as well as the publications in this language in official social networks.
The Cervantes Institute has pointed out that this decision “humiliates the 60 million Spanish speakers in the U.S.”, and its director, Luis García Montero, has denounced that “to relate Spanish again with a language of the poor and migrants is unacceptable and derogatory”.
Reaction from Spain and the Instituto Cervantes
King Felipe VI has described as “striking” the elimination of Spanish in the White House, but has expressed his confidence that the measure is “temporary”, since “the United States will reach 100 million Spanish speakers in 2050”.
The Cervantes Institute has responded with concrete measures, announcing the opening of a new center in Miami and the intention to hold the International Congress of the Spanish Language in the U.S., with the support of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE).
“It is not only about defending the prestige of Spanish, but also about refusing to humiliate a community for being a migrant or poor,” García Montero said.
Spanish in the U.S.: a language on the rise
Despite political decisions, demographic data reflect an unstoppable expansion of Spanish in the U.S.:
The Hispanic community is key to the U.S. economy and politics, and although the Trump administration has attempted to reduce its official visibility, trends indicate that Spanish will continue to consolidate as a language of influence in the country.
In addition to the elimination of Spanish in official White House communications, Donald Trump’s administration has taken other measures that have generated tensions with Spain:
Spain’s confusion with BRICS and threat of tariffs
In January 2025, President Trump mistook Spain for a BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) member country and threatened to impose 100% tariffs on its business with the United States. This statement provoked criticism and was interpreted as a display of ignorance of international politics.
Pressure to increase defense spending
The Trump administration has repeatedly demanded that NATO member countries, including Spain, increase their military spending to 2% of their GDP. This pressure has generated diplomatic tensions, as Spain has been singled out for its allegedly low contribution to the alliance.
Imposition of tariffs on Spanish products
During his term, Trump imposed tariffs on Spanish products, such as black olives, alleging ‘dumping’ practices. Although the World Trade Organization later ruled against these tariffs, the measure negatively affected Spanish exporters.
These actions have contributed to a chill in U.S.-Spain relations during the Trump administration.
