Introducing House Bill 561 to the Idaho Legislature, Ted Hill did not expect to stoke(激起，煽动) international controversy(争议). The law, which originally banned local governments from flying the flags of non-states, was intended to stop Boise from flying the gay-pride flag. Earlier this year the president of the Basque Country, an autonomous region in Spain, sent a letter expressing concern about the effect HB 561 might have on the flying of the Ikurrina(巴斯克族旗，巴斯克旗帜), the Basque flag, during Jaialdi(巴斯克文化节), the 40,000-person Basque festival the city hosts every five years. Worried about flagging(衰落的，减弱的) support for the bill, Representative Hill offered the Basques a carve-out(豁免条款，特殊例外) for the Ikurrina.
当泰德·希尔将众议院第561号法案提交至爱达荷州议会时，他并未预料到会引发国际争议。该法律最初禁止地方政府悬挂非国家旗帜，旨在阻止博伊西市悬挂同性恋骄傲旗。今年早些时候，巴斯克自治区（西班牙的一个自治地区）主席致信，表达了对该法案可能影响Jaialdi（该市每五年举办一次、有4万人参加的大型巴斯克节）期间悬挂巴斯克族旗Ikurrina的担忧。由于担心对该法案的支持减弱，希尔众议员为Ikurrina提供了一项豁免。
Speakers of the language first came during California’s gold rush(淘金热), then moved from mining to sheep herding. By 1900 chain migration(链式移民) saw nephews follow uncles as Basque shepherds spread across federal land. They carved(雕刻) 25,000 Basque-language messages into trees across the West. Some with Basque ancestry tried to shed it(摆脱它（指文化身份）). “My great-grandparents’ generation said, ‘Learn English, don’t speak Basque.’ But my mom’s generation worked to get Basque back,” says Olaia Urquidi Beals of Txantxangorriak(巴斯克音乐团体（意为“蝉”）), a musical group. On Tuesday nights they gather with trikis(巴斯克手风琴) (accordions) and panderos(铃鼓) (tambourines) and sing in Basque. Afterwards, some musicians visit Ansots Basque Chorizos & Catering(巴斯克香肠及餐饮店) around the corner. Just down the road is Boiseko Ikastola(博伊斯科伊卡斯特拉（巴斯克语幼儿园）), America’s only Basque-language pre-school(幼儿园，学前学校).
这种语言的使用者最初在加州淘金热期间到来，随后从采矿转向牧羊。到1900年，链式移民使得外甥跟随叔叔，巴斯克牧羊人遍布联邦土地。他们在西部的树木上刻下了25,000条巴斯克语信息。一些有巴斯克血统的人试图摆脱它。“我曾祖父母那一代说，‘学英语，别说巴斯克语。’但我妈妈这一代努力让巴斯克语回归，”音乐团体Txantxangorriak的Olaia Urquidi Beals说。每周二晚上，他们带着trikis（手风琴）和panderos（铃鼓）聚集，用巴斯克语唱歌。之后，一些音乐家会去拐角处的Ansots Basque Chorizos & Catering。街对面就是Boiseko Ikastola，美国唯一的巴斯克语幼儿园。
There was a time, in the late 1970s, when it looked as if the language and culture would fade away(逐渐消失), says Dave Bieter, a former mayor of Boise. Now when he plays Mus(巴斯克纸牌游戏), a Basque card game, he says a third of players speak Basque. There are about 40 Basque clubs in America, mostly in the West. Jainkoak Amerika bedeinka dezala!(愿上帝保佑美洲！)
前博伊西市长戴夫·比埃特说，在20世纪70年代末，曾有一段时间看起来这种语言和文化即将消失。如今，当他玩巴斯克纸牌游戏Mus时，他表示三分之一的玩家会说巴斯克语。美国大约有40个巴斯克俱乐部，大部分在西部。愿上帝保佑美洲！