Language Access Conference 2022
Unmasking injustice: language access and equity for all
- Product Number: 2220096P01
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CLE Credits, earn up to:
5 substantive credits, 0 ethics credits CLE Credit Note - Print Brochure
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Product Description
Product Description
Our state enjoys a vast, diverse immigrant and multilingual population. In fact, nearly 1 in 10 Massachusetts residents speaks a primary language other than English. Many, if not all, state agencies are legally obligated under federal and state law to provide language access to limited English proficient (LEP) individuals. The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the failure to adequately provide desperately needed information and public services to the LEP population of Massachusetts.Consideration must be given to many factors to provide equal access to state government and other necessary services to the growing LEP population in our state. The forum and context of the situation may require particular attention to the individual’s culture, norms and customs, whether it be responding to a call to police for help with domestic violence, participating in a court hearing for an eviction, or navigating an emergency room visit. Language access must include not only interpretation at an initial meeting, but ongoing communication as well as written translation of any associated documentation, completion of each component being required to ensure access to the service. Anything short of this leaves an LEP individual vulnerable to the potential loss of benefits, health care, immigration status, and police/court protection in an abusive situation, as well as the risk of eviction and an inability to access rights afforded to everyone, regardless of language preference.
Join this experienced panel to learn more about how we can all strive for language access and equity for all.
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Agenda
Agenda & Materials
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9:00 am - 9:02 am
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9:02 am - 9:35 am
Featured Speaker: The Importance of Language Access in Policy and Implementation
on demand video Add to CartTram T. Nguyen, Esq., Massachusetts Legislature , Boston
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9:35 am - 9:40 am
Break
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9:40 am - 10:13 am
Basics of Language Access Law
on demand video Add to CartIris E. Coloma-Gaines, Esq., MLRI , Boston
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10:13 am - 10:15 am
Break
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10:15 am - 11:22 am
Language Access Conference 2022: Language Justice: From Margin to Center
on demand video Add to CartCiting a line from late Black feminist author bell hooks, this workshop calls on the legal services community to shift language justice from the margins of our work to the center, prioritizing the voices of people who are directly impacted by oppression based on language. We will explore how to weave language justice principles into our organizations, including updating our language access plans with an equity lens, and making language rights a priority in our systemic advocacy. We will touch on how a language justice approach intersects with trauma-informed lawyering, as well as building multilingual collaborations through which we work together across language barriers toward a shared vision of justice.Joann Lee, Esq., Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA)
Alena Uliasz, California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc. (CRLA) , West Sacramento
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11:22 am - 11:35 am
Break
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11:35 am - 12:15 pm
Language Access Conference 2022: Best Practices for Working with Interpreters
on demand video Add to Cart -
12:15 pm - 1:00 pm
Lunch
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1:00 pm - 1:55 pm
Workshops
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Language Access Conference 2022: Roadmap to Getting your LEP Client through Court
on demand video Add to CartAndy J. Berasaluce, Office of Language Access , Boston
Narda Berrios, Trial Court Office of Language Access, Commonwealth of Massachusetts , Boston
Ana Cerveira, Office of Language Access , Boston
Sybil Martin, Massachusetts Trial Courts
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1:55 pm - 2:05 pm
Break
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2:05 pm - 3:00 pm
Rights of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
on demand video Add to CartCaitlin Parton, Esq., Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing , Boston
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3:00 pm - 3:05 pm
Break
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3:05 pm - 3:27 pm
Language Access Litigation Update
on demand video Add to CartTere Ramos, Esq., Ramos Law LLC , Wellesley Hills
Please Note
MCLE webcasts are delivered completely online, underscoring their convenience and appeal. There are no published print materials. All written materials are available electronically only. They are posted 24 hours prior to the program and can be accessed, downloaded, or printed from your computer.
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