Denver City Council breaks some language barriers for Spanish speakers

Thanks to the approval of a budget expansion to address meaningful language access for residents, Spanish speakers have new access to their Denver City Council representative and more ways to participate in council deliberations. 

Last year, the council began simultaneous interpretation into Spanish the council's weekly meeting. There are also resources for translating written materials like newsletters or interpretation at community meetings. A recent community meeting about East Colfax Avenue featured interpreters in four languages. 

Also new, Spanish-speaking residents can find information about "speaking in public hearings, comment periods, or the weekly General Public Comment Session, where the council will provide a qualified interpreter."

"None of these tools for residents are useful if our staff is without tools to communicate back," said Robert Austin, a spokesperson for the council's central office, in a statement. "Each district office now has access to on-demand interpreters by phone and on-demand translation for email. Residents can feel confident that language is not a barrier to contacting and interacting with their elected representatives."   

With recent developments focusing on Spanish, the council hopes to develop tools for other common languages in the area.