The Justice Department is looking into how the New York Police Department handles cases involving people who do not speak English. The Justice Department, who says the investigation is routine and not sparked by a problem, wants to make sure the police are following all civil rights laws. The Department wants to find out if the language barrier affects the way police treat non-English speakers. The review will take about six months, and the federal government could reduce grants if the Department finds problems with the NYPD. The police department claims it has been trying to find ways to better the interactions with police and immigrants. They have many officers who speak foreign languages, and they have a “multilingual line” for callers who do not speak English.
In July of 2008, Mayor Bloomberg signed the language access plan that promises immigrants “a meaningful ability to take advantage of police services.” However, some groups will present cases in which the police officers did not take care of the needs of immigrants. These groups accuse officers of labeling non-English speakers as “uncooperative” because they do not understand the police. The NYPD does not agree with these accusations but still plans to improve its program as best it can.
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The language access plan gives police the ability to use either a Department interpreter or the Language Line for translation over the phone, which is the most efficient. The NYPD attempts to “provide timely and meaningful access” for non-English speakers. The language services are free and available upon request.
The police found Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Haitian Creole, Russian, and Italian to be the most widely spoken languages in New York City, so “essential public documents” are available in these languages, and these languages are the basis for the language access plan. Nevertheless, the Language Line is still available in all languages.
The NYPD considers its language services for crime victims to be the most important. Bilingual members in the community assist in these cases before an interpreter is found from the Volunteer Language Program, which has almost fourteen thousand members and can translate fifty languages.
Bilingual police applicants are given an advantage in the hiring process. All city agency websites are translated into the six most spoken languages. Signs that tell the public about the language services are translated into twenty-two languages. Chosen police forms are also translated into a variety of languages. The records of language services will be kept and reviewed every year to ensure proper cooperation with the language access plan.
I have always thought that the United States does not take adequate measures to preserve the native languages of its immigrants. As such a dominant and successful country in the global market, I also understand why people strive to learn English. However, an instance like the language access plan gives immigrants a chance to use their native languages in their every day lives. Above all, this plan ensures the safety of all people of New York City. I could not imagine not getting help from the police department because they could not understand the language I am speaking. In a time of an emergency, all people should have access to the help they need.
This is so interesting! I'm actually surprised that this issue is being addressed now for the first time. I wonder how non-English speakers ever used the police and emergency systems beforehand. I think the language barrier can play a major role in criminal court cases. Did you read anything about the statistics of how juries rule in such cases? I feel like translation can lead to ambiguity or misunderstandings which can make a huge difference in the outcome of court cases.
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