The role of Euro-English as a new potential variety in the multilingual European institutions: a social and linguistic study

The spread of English has been considered as a means to connect people, but at the same time as a way of cultural and linguistic leveling.
On the one hand it might allow different people to exchange ideas and to relay their culture to other language speakers whose languages they do not know. On the other hand, the use of English as a language of wider communication has been seen as a major source of communication inequality because of its status as a powerful global language used for many purposes and under many circumstances.
Thus, the use of the English language in global contexts is not only considered disadvantageous for its L2 users but also a threat to linguistic diversity, not only a damage to local languages but also a force of disruption to cultures: in other words, a "killer" language.
Besides, some linguists warn us of the link between English and power. Discussions for or against the use of English first arose in postcolonial contexts where creative writers were struggling with the question about which language best expressed their condition.
During the 1990s the debate about the global use of English became extremely politicized, due to the spread of the concept of "linguistic imperialism" introduced by Robert Phillipson.