U.S. Department
of Justice
Emergency Response
REACHING LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT COMMUNITIES IN EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, RESPONSE, AND RECOVERY
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Communicating information to the public is essential to emergency management. Limited English proficient (LEP) individuals will likely be present in any community faced with an emergency or disaster. LEP individuals are those who have difficulty speaking, understanding, reading, or writing English. If LEP individuals are not able to access disaster information in a language they can understand, the consequences can be deadly. When individuals do not evacuate, find shelter, or understand how to prevent getting a contagious disease, emergency response personnel, and resources are further strained to conduct rescue operations or otherwise remedy avoidable situations. To avoid such outcomes, planning for communication with LEP individuals should occur at all stages of disaster management—including preparedness, response, and recovery. Ensure language access is not only good practice: it is also the law. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI) prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin by recipients of federal financial assistance. The prohibition on national origin discrimination requires recipients to take reasonable steps to ensure that LEP persons have meaningful access to the same benefits, services, information, and any other vital aspect of the recipient’s programs or activities as everyone else. Although this information sheet focuses on disaster management, many agencies have a much broader mandate. Federally funded emergency, medical, social service, and other agencies that will be called upon to provide assistance during disasters should ensure they are providing meaningful access to their regular programs and services as well. Doing so before an emergency required by law, but will also make it much easier to provide meaningful access during times of crisis. |
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RESOURCES AND TOOLS FOR LOCAL PLANNERS |
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Common Language Access Questions, Technical Assistance, and Guidance for Federally Conducted and Federally Assisted Programs https://www.lep.gov/resources/081511_Language_Access_CAQ_TA_Guidance.pdf Language Assistance Self-Assessment and Planning Tool for Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance https://www.lep.gov/sites/lep/files/resources/2011_Language_Access_Assessment_and_Planning_Tool.pdf Language Access Assessment and Planning Tool for Federally Conducted and Federally Assisted Programs https://www.lep.gov/resources/2011_Language_Access_Assessment_and_Planning_Tool.pdf Executive Order 13166 Limited English Proficiency Resource Document: https://www.lep.gov/executive-order-13166 Identifying the Language groups in your area https://www.lep.gov/maps/ Using American Community Survey data, the Federal Coordination and Compliance Section of the Civil Rights Division in the Department of Justice (FCS) has created maps indicating the concentrations of LEP individuals by state, county, and judicial district. These maps also provide data about the numbers of individuals represented in the geographic area at issue. |
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GOOD QUALITY TRANSLATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL: PLAN AHEAD! |
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Accurate, culturally competent translations help ensure to communities understand the information you want to convey. Below are some resources that can help agencies understand the translation process, identify a translation vendor, and obtain good quality translations: Commonly Asked Questions and Answers Regarding Limited English Proficient (LEP) individuals, What is the difference between a bilingual staff person and an interpreter or translator? http://www.lep.gov/faqs/042511_Q&A_LEP_General.pdf What Does it Mean To be a Certified Linguist – TIPS to discovering vendor and linguist qualifications (DOJ FCS) available at: https://www.lep.gov/sites/lep/files/media/document/2020-03/TIPS_Trust_Me_Im_Certified.pdf Before You Hire – Ask Yourself: “What are my Project’s Language Needs?” – TIPS to make language service hiring decisions (DOJ FCS) https://www.lep.gov/sites/lep/files/media/document/2020-03/TIPS_Before_You_Hire.pdf Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service, Toolkit for Making Written Material Clear and Effective, Section 5: Detailed guidelines for translation, which includes produce culturally appropriate translations, (HHS) http://go.usa.gov/cp6xY Telephonic Interpretation Services can be an excellent resource for providing language assistance, for emergency- and disaster- related call centers, and for emergency management personnel in the field. To be effective, however, vendors need to provide high quality services, and personnel need to be properly trained to use the service. Below are some resources that address these issues: (1) TIPS on hiring the Right Telephonic Interpretation Vendor, (DOJ FCS), https://www.lep.gov/sites/lep/files/media/document/2020-03/TIPS_Telephone_Vendor_Selection.pdf(2) TIPS for Working with Telephonic Interpreters, (DOJ FCS), https://www.lep.gov/sites/lep/files/media/document/2020-03/TIPS_Telephone_Interpreters_0.pdf |
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U.S. ATTORNEY’S OFFICE AND FCS CONTACT INFORMATION |
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U.S. ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, DISTRICT OF SOUTH CAROLINA https://www.justice.gov/usao-sc/civil-rights Civil Rights Program U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division FEDERAL COORDINATION AND COMPLIANCE SECTION (FCS), NWB
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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (HHS) |
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Offices within HHS have created a number of tools and resources in order to assist emergency planners and responders to adequately assist diverse communities, including those with limited English proficiency. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website includes a search bar at the top right allowing users to search the entire website in the language of their choice: https://www.cdc.gov/ Spanish language translation of the CDC website is available here: http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/ The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, has published a Toolkit for Making Written Material Clear and Effective, Section 5: Detailed guidelines for translation, which includes guidelines to produce culturally appropriate translations, available here: http://go.usa.gov/cp6xY The Health Resources and Services Administration has developed an on- line training course entitled Culture, Language, and Health Literacy. The information included in this training site can assist healthcare professionals in improving patient communication skills; increasing awareness and knowledge of the three main factors that affect communication with patients, which include 1) health literacy, 2) cultural competency and limited English proficiency, and 3) implementing patient-centered communication practices that demonstrate cultural competency and appropriately address patients with limited health literacy and limited English proficiency: https://www.hrsa.gov/behavioral-health/tip-59-improving-cultural-competence The National Institute of Health’s HealthReach offers documents, audio and video information files on a variety of health related topics. Its resources are searchable by language: https://healthreach.nlm.nih.gov/AdvancedSearch.aspx |
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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (DHS) |
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www.Listo.gov is the Spanish language version of www.Ready.gov and provides tips for families on creating emergency preparedness kits, formulating family emergency plans, and learning about government emergency response. The site is also available in 11 other languages. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provides information in multiple languages on its website, including Spanish, here: https://www.fema.gov/ Tips for Effectively Communicating with Protected Populations During Preparedness, Response, and Recovery (DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, FEMA Office of Equal Rights, FEMA Office of Disability Integration and Coordination) provides information to state, local, and tribal governments on practices to help jurisdictions effectively communicate with individuals who are LEP and or who have other access and functional needs and is available here: https://www.dhs.gov/antidiscrimination-group |