BH-27 Correspondence – Joanna Diaz
From: Joanna Diaz <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, September 5, 2023 3:03 PM
To: Mayor <[email protected]>; Shawna Stevens <[email protected]>; Council District 1 <[email protected]>; Lynn Ward <[email protected]>; Council District 2 <[email protected]>; Rahul Sen <[email protected]>; Mimi Masher <[email protected]>; [email protected]; Council District 4 <[email protected]>; Isabel Arvea <[email protected]>; Council District 5 <[email protected]>; Council District 6 <[email protected]>; Chork Nim <[email protected]>; Annie Chean <[email protected]>; Council District 7 <[email protected]>; Sean Bernhoft <[email protected]>; Council District 8 <[email protected]>; Bryan Martinez <[email protected]>; Esther Ogunrinu <[email protected]>; Council District 9 <[email protected]>; Anjelica Vargas <[email protected]>; CityClerk <[email protected]>; Tom Modica <[email protected]>
Subject: *UPDATED* Language Justice Coalition Letter of Support for FY 24 Budget Demands
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Dear Mayor Richardson, City Council Members, and City Manager,
Please find attached the updated Language Justice Coalition's Letter of Support which includes sign ons from organizational, coalition, and community partners in our continued efforts to secure increased structural funds for Language Justice.
Below you will find our FY 2024 Budget Demands along with the names of some of our key partners who have signed on in support of our ongoing journey towards fully resourcing and implementing the City's Language Access Policy:
Language Justice City Budget Demands
Fiscal Year 2024 ($3,500,000)
• Dedicate a proper number of permanent staff (2 additional full-time Language Access Coordinators, 2 full-time Spanish interpreters, 2 full-time Khmer interpreters, 2 full-time Tagalog interpreters) to fully implement the City’s Language Access Policy.
• Permanently provide in-house language access resources for Spanish, Khmer, and Tagalog to ensure faster and higher quality interpretation and translation for Limited English Proficiency (LEP) residents.
• Provide Spanish and Khmer interpretation, and English Captioning and CART services at all City Council and all Commission meetings without having to make requests in advance.
• Dedicate resources for language needs not covered by in-house Language Access Specialists to ensure linguistic inclusion and equal access for all Long Beach community members. Increase the use of a qualified network of
contractors for all languages to meet current needs, this will include the cost of contracted vendors for language support in all requested languages beyond Spanish, Khmer, and Tagalog, as well as tasks in these languages that are beyond the capacity of the in-house Language Access Specialists. • Bilingual Skill Pay and proactive recruitment of bilingual staff in all languages and throughout all city departments to consistently and meaningfully strengthen the delivery of interpretation and translation throughout the city and finally create a culture of language justice.
• Provide community-based organizations who work with LEP residents ongoing stipends to conduct outreach about the Language Access Policy.
In Solidarity with the Language Justice Coalition:
AAPI Equity Alliance (AEA)
AOC7 Neighborhood Organization (AOC7)
Cambodia Town (CT)
Educated Men with Meaningful Messages (EM3)
Filipino Migrant Center (FMC)
Khmer Girls in Action (KGA)
Khmer Parent Association (KPA)
Little Tokyo Service Center (LTSC)
Long Beach for a Just Economy (LBJE)
Long Beach Forward (LBF)
Long Beach Residents Empowered (LiBRE)
Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy (LAANE)
Organizing Rooted in Abolition, Liberation, and Empowerment (ORALE) Pacific Asian Counseling Services (PACS)
Rose Park Neighborhood Association (RPNA)
Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)
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In Solidarity,
Joanna Diaz (She/Her/Ella)
Civic Engagement Program Manager
The Long Beach Forward team is practicing Summer hours across all of our schedules to prepare ourselves for the community building work ahead. We will be unavailable from 1:00pm to 5:00pm on Fridays from June 23rd to September 1st. Thank you for your patience and grace while we follow up with you.
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