Community Translation and Service-Learning in Canada and the United States as a Means of Advancing Social Justice for Migrants from the Global South

Abstract

This article presents a case study in which two translation professors from the Université de Moncton and the University of Texas at Arlington, in collaboration with two non-profit organizations—New-Brunswick Refugee Clinic and Proyecto Inmigrante—developed community translation workshops to train volunteers. The article analyzes the implementation and outcomes of this initiative, which emerged as an attempt to address the urgent need for community translation and interpreting services to overcome the language barrier faced by migrants in the United States—specifically in Texas—and in Canada, particularly in the province of New Brunswick. Far from being a one-time issue, the lack of access to linguistic services remains a persistent challenge with no solution in sight. Although the study is not framed within the Global South or considers Spanish a minority language, it is worth noting that the majority of individuals affected by the lack of accessible and high-quality community translation and interpreting services in the United States and Canada are people from that context. Thus, training volunteers without professional qualifications—and, in the case of the project in the United States, involving students through a service-learning project—strengthens equity and promotes linguistic justice. This study contributes to existing research on community translation as a form of social engagement, highlighting its relevance in contexts where migrants are linguistically helpless. Initiatives like the workshops presented in this study help promote equity, social engagement at various levels, and access to fundamental rights for migrant communities from the Global South in the United States and Canada.