Volume 27 Quarterly The Northwest Linguist No. 4 Newsletter of Fall NOTIS and 2013 WITS WHEN TRANSLATIONS GO AWRY: WHAT CAN WE LEARN WHEN PUBLIC SECTOR TRANSLATION GOOF-UPS MAKE THE NEWS? By Joana Ramos During a single week in July 2013, translation made no mention of the erroneous weekend Inside this Issue: topics made headlines in Puget Sound for the information. According to Metro’s public kind of negative reasons that still remain too affairs representative, and as subsequently When Translations 1 common. The first report came from Seattle reported by Seattle general and Spanish- Go Awry Globalist (1) highlighting a problem with language TV news outlets, (3) the error Spanish text in the timetables of King County’s occurred due to lack of sufficient proof-reading NOTIS/WITS 2 transit agency. The bus schedules released in after pre-translated Spanish sentences were Information 3 June contained, for the first time ever, inserted into the original English document. Message from 4 segments written in Spanish. The inclusion of The agency, which prints some 2 million bus NOTIS President the translations is part of a comprehensive schedules each trimester, decided not to re- Language Access Plan (LAP) (2) developed by print them but instead to ensure that an accu- Message from 5 Metro in 2012, to help the agency better serve rate version is published in the next round, WITS President the transit-using public. Drawing from scheduled for September. The timetables extensive research into the King County issued for service changes that started on Tips to Ensure 8 demographics, Metro had identified a need to September 28, reflect the corrections. Good Translations offer multilingual user materials, starting with Spanish versions, the language for which there The very same week that the Metro issue Meet Nicole Y. 9 is the highest need. came to light, another agency shared the Chae-Lee spotlight for translation blunders. This time it International 11 There were, however, significant problems was the Washington Health Benefit Exchange Translation Day with the roll-out of rider information in (HBE), the operating body for the then- Spanish, which was presented in a bilingual forthcoming WA Healthplanfinder program Ethics Corner 13 format in specific sections of the text on each which will offer insurance plans under the printed bus schedule. For routes which Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare), that Calendar & 16 operate 7 days a week, the schedules stated in had a problem. In June, the HBE had proudly Announcements English that service on public holidays would announced that multilingual consumer fact follow the Sunday schedule, while the message sheets in the 8 threshold languages of WA’s in Spanish stated that there would be no Medicaid program: (4) were available on its service at all on holidays or weekends. After website, and in July, highlighted them on its riders and a bus driver called attention to the Facebook page (5). Advocates, who had long mistakes, Metro posted an alert notice on been actively working to ensure language buses apologizing for any mix-ups that may access be part of the HBE’s core services, have occurred over the 4th of July holiday, but were heartened by this development. It wasn't (Continued on Page 6) Page 2 The Northwest Linguist Northwest Translators and Interpreters Society (NOTIS) A Chapter of the American Translators Association OFFICERS NOTIS ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP FEES President: Kathryn German [email protected] Individual: $45.00 Vice-President: Toby Kawahigashi Student (without directory listing): $15.00 [email protected] Institutional: $50.00 Secretary: Manbir Kaur Corporate: $75.00 Treasurer: Toby Kawahigashi For membership information send an email to: [email protected] [email protected] or call NOTIS Voice Mail (206) 701-9183. COMMITTEES 1037 NE 65th Street, #107, Seattle WA 98115 Website: www.notisnet.org Membership: Naomi Uchida [email protected] NOTIS is a Chapter of the American Translators Kathryn German, Chair Association. Program: Cindy Roat, MedSIG Chair For information on the American Translators Association [email protected] Saori Sampa [email protected] (ATA), Contact: 225 Reinekers Lane, Suite 590 Christy Stanton Alexandria, VA 22314 ATA Liaison & Certification: Norma Candia Tel.: (703) 683-6100 Fax: (703) 683-6122 www.atanet.org Executive: Kathryn German Toby Kawahigashi Manbir Kaur Naomi Uchida NEW MEMBERS Webmistress: Katrin Rippel [email protected] Marie Alderman Japanese<>English Renata Akalin María Carr Spanish<>English Nominating: Naomi Uchida Olga Cuzmanov English<>Romanian Paul Natkin Adrian Florian English<>Romanian Dorizel Groth English>Spanish Marc Holbrook Spanish>English Outreach: Katrin Rippel Brazilian Portuguese>English Julie Wilchins John Lapham English<>Mandarin María Lupinek Brazilian Portuguese<>English Newsletter Calendar: Lindsay Taylor Spanish>English Student Liaison: Renata Akalin Wendy Volosin English>Spanish Claudia Whitworth Brazilian Portuguese<>English SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS MedSIG [email protected] Cindy Roat Chinese SIG: Michelle LeSourd STUDENT MEMBERS [email protected] OFFICE MANAGER Michael He Naomi Uchida Arina Pocrass Bezawitt Tesfaye [email protected] NOTIS Julia Young 1037 NE 65th Street, #107 Seattle WA 98115 or call: NOTIS Voice Mail (206) 701-9183. Email: [email protected] Website: www.notisnet.org Volume 27, Number 4, Fall 2013 Page 3 Washington Interpreters and Translators Society (WITS) OFFICERS WITS ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP FEES President: Nancy Leveson [email protected] Individual & Institutional: $45.00 Vice President: Linda Noble Student: $15.00 [email protected] Individual NOTIS member discount: $40.00 Secretary: Milena Calderari-Waldron Corporate: $90.00 [email protected] Treasurer: Fumi Janssen [email protected] To join WITS, renew membership, or update your online Board Member: Alicia Lanzner directory listing, visit the WITS web page at www.witsnet.org [email protected] or write to: Board Member: Louise Morehead [email protected] WITS Board Member: David Neathery PO Box 1012 [email protected] Seattle, WA 98111-1012. COMMITTEE CHAIRS Advocacy Chair: Kenneth Barger [email protected] NEW MEMBERS Email Guru: Diana Meredith [email protected] Teresa Cronin Spanish Membership Chair: David Neathery Wendy Velosin Spanish [email protected] Programs Co-Chair: Alicia Lanzner [email protected] Programs Co-Chair: Louise Morehead STUDENT MEMBERS [email protected] Website Manager: Sheila Harrington [email protected] Tamar Osman Arabic, French, German, Spanish Outreach Chair: Christina Woelz [email protected] OFFICE MANAGER Jamal Jackson [email protected] WITS PO Box 1012 Seattle, WA 98111-1012 Website: www.witsnet.org Page 4 The Northwest Linguist A MESSAGE FROM THE NOTIS PRESIDENT By Kathryn German As my first year as president draws to a to support this merger, but the decision is close, I want to offer special thanks to all of now yours. The WITS membership vot- you who have helped make our events a ed in favor of the merger last month; now success! We have had more at-large your vote will be cast on November 23rd. members participating in our committees If you are out of the area, we are offering and they are such a positive influence on all you the opportunity to phone in and of us. They are our future, and they bring join the merger discussion and vote. This creative ideas and energy that will ultimate- momentous decision is in your hands and ly and hopefully lead them to positions of we want to hear your wish for the future. leadership in the future. Renata Akalin has been instrumental at recruiting student At the annual meeting, we are also very members and volunteers at Bellevue College, and we excited to have Dimitri Azadi speak to us appreciate her efforts. about American Sign Language interpreting. This is a profession closely linked to ours, with similarities and In the coming year my hope is that NOTIS will greatly differences that we are not all aware of, and this is our increase the number and variety of workshops and chance to learn more. Dimitri holds national certifica- trainings we offer and make them more affordable. In tion—a Certificate of Interpretation and Certificate of addition, we would like to expand our sites to other Transliteration—through the Registry of Interpreters areas of the Pacific Northwest and we have found a few for the Deaf. He has been interpreting for over 20 representatives for those areas, but we are struggling years and has been signing since he was eight years old. to find more. Our special interest group, MedSIG, He is also the Assistant Director and Deaf Services headed by Cindy Roat, is full of plans for next year. Manager at Bellevue College. This year we have encountered obstacles in all our efforts, and the main one has always been the lack of It is a pivotal year in terms of the proposed merger volunteers—too few people doing way too many and also because twenty-five years have passed since a things. As a result, we have decided to try again to handful of translators and interpreters had the vision merge our two local organizations: NOTIS and WITS. and energy to start NOTIS and WITS. They stressed For years we have put on events together, created a ethics and professionalism and over time fundamentally publication together, supported one another. This changed the face of translation and interpretation in the cooperation has been wonderful, but at times, we have Pacific Northwest (and ultimately in the entire United been duplicating efforts and it’s hard not to imagine States). I know we are all eternally grateful for their what we could accomplish if we were just one organi- efforts. They taught us that strength is in numbers and zation: more board members, more ideas, more that by giving back to the profession as volunteers we advocacy for translators and interpreters, and the ensure a quality future for our profession.