Why Esperanto Is Different

Why Esperanto Is Different
by Norman Berdichevsky
New English Review, Dec. 2007
http://www.newenglishreview.org/custpage.cfm/frm/9560/sec_id/9560

This is a reaction to pejorative publicity. Okrent at the time of writing was one of the culprits, according to Beridichevsky, but her cited remark strictly pertains to the chances of Esperanto given English world domination, not to the value of Esperanto as a living language. Orwell didn't help either in his time, so it seems. But in making the historical case for Esperanto, the author cites more serious obstacles, such as the sabotage of Esperanto at the League of Nations by the French delegation, and the persecutions perpetrated by Hitler and Stalin. Okrent's cited article is:

Okrent, Arika. “Exploring Esperantoland,” The American Scholar, Winter, 2006, pp. 93-108.