Interpreting and Social Justice

Despite the omnipresence of translation and interpretation in today's globalized world, we often forget that without the skilled work of translators and interpreters, many people would simply be left out. Interpreters and activists Brian J. Hoffman and Roberto Tijerina will share their experiences and explore some of the ways in which lack of access to interpretation services derails efforts toward social justice in the United States. Advocates for social justice hold that everyone deserves equal economic, political, and social rights and opportunities, and believe that the least advantaged and members of marginalized communities require protections to guarantee fair legal access.

In this conversation Hoffman and Tijerina will bear witness to the struggles that speakers of minority languages who are also members of other minority groups (among them immigrants, children, detained populations, the disabled, ethnic and racial minorities, and LGBTQ+ persons) face on a daily basis. They will also talk about the ways activists are working to ensure strides toward social justice in this country.

This event is organized by Joan Munné and Melissa Simmermeyer, Lecturers in the Department of Romance Studies, and has been made possible with the support of Forum for Scholars and Publics, the Mary D.B.T. and J.H. Semans International Exchange Fund, Story Lab at Duke, and Romance Studies.