Access is at the heart of what the Refugee Translation Project does. Access to justice, access to the immigration system, access to information that helps keep individuals, families, and communities safe. We were thrilled to hear NYC council member Carlos Menchaca celebrate the Refugee Translation Project at our Artist Spotlight event in December. Carlos is an indefatigable champion for NYC’s immigrant community, who funded a robust adult literacy services program as well as the country’s largest public defender program for undocumented immigrants, granting thousands of people access to justice and information. Carlos also authored the legislation for IDNYC, an ID card that enables all New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status, to access benefits and programs, open a bank account, take the high school equivalency exam, and enter their children’s schools.

“As an elected official and representative in a city like New York where immigrants are so imbedded into the fabric of the city,” Carlos told us at the event, “there are so many gaps that government leaves, and language access is one of them, that people, unless they go through it, don’t really understand it.” With the support of elected officials and activists like Carlos the Refugee Translation Project provides free translation services to people seeking asylum and other immigration relief. We also work closely with our partner organizations in New York City to translate vital information that help people better understand the immigration process, local and federal laws, and the services that are available to them.

As we enter 2022, we are excited to continue our efforts alongside our new Council Members to provide language access to New Yorkers.

With 2 more days left to make your tax-deductible donation, here is the Refugee Translation Project’s year in review.

In 2021 we:

-translated in 13 languages, two new (Russian and Chinese) in 2021
-translated 75 documents in 9 pro bono asylum cases
– had AT LEAST 2 SUCCESSFUL ASYLUM CASES!
-translated documents for 34 resettlement cases leading to AT LEAST 3 PERMANENT RESETTLEMENTS!
-translated over 150 pages of orientation materials to help bring Afghan families to safety
-collaborated with the Immigrant Defense Fund, Envision Freedom Fund, and Artistic Freedom Initiative
-joined the New York Immigration Coalition
-partnered with NYC Council Member Carlos Menchaca to host our first Artist Spotlight!!

And most personally for the project we continue to write letters to congress members, non-profit organizations and former colleagues in the military to bring our Afghan translator’s family to the US. His story of escaping Kabul reminds us of how much our clients have endured.

In 2022 the work continues and grows. Even during these holidays our professional translators are working on materials for people from Afghanistan, Palestine, Turkey, and elsewhere. And in 2022 we will increase our services to perform over-the-phone intake interviews!

We were able to help so many with the support of people like you! Thanks to the generous commitment of our anonymous donor to match dollar for dollar up to $10,000 now is the best time to donate. 

Thank you everyone for your support. We wish you all the best in the new year.

A young Pakistani man whom we provided free translation support to recently informed us that his asylum application was approved! Yahya, whose name we’ve changed, had to leave Pakistan due to religious persecution. Yahya, a Christian, had to leave Pakistan after receiving death threats for practicing his religion in public. He made it to France where he applied for asylum. We translated the documents proving he had been religiously persecuted into French. France evaluated this evidence and approved his asylum application. This year Yahya gets to spend Christmas in peace and safety. Read the full story here!

This asylum success story would not be possible without the generous support of our donors. Translation plays a crucial role in asylum applications because it is the only way by which an asylum seeker can convey their experiences accurately to a court or immigration officer. Consider making a donation this giving season!

Double Your Impact Today!

An extremely generous donor is matching each donation up to $10,000! Every donation made to the Refugee Translation Project through January 5th will now count twice! Now is a great opportunity to double your impact and help make 2022 a good year for someone! 

You can donate through our End of the Year Campaign with ioby or via Paypal or check to our fiscal sponsor. 

Translation plays a crucial role in an asylum application because it is the only mechanism by which a displaced person can convey their experiences accurately to a court or immigration officer. Without access to translation, a person’s application cannot be processed, or their case may be rejected – oftentimes with life or death consequences. Our generous donors allow the Refugee Translation Project to provide this access at no cost to our clients, which not only breaks down the language barrier, but also allows our clients to focus their resources on making a new home here.

Thank you for supporting the Refugee Translation Project!