Lauren Ray

This is a bi-weekly summary of translation and language justice news and events. What are you reading this week? Feel free to comment & share!

• A HUGE long-term goal of mine is to translate into English the writings of Spanish-speaking writers of African/black/Afro-Latinx descent. I see this as a contribution to the history and legacy of solidarity between African & diasporic communities. I’m excited to see more translations happening along such lines, such as recent works from writers from Equatorial Guinea. One such read is “Government Property” by Trifonia Melibea Obono (translated from Spanish by Jethro Soutar & Ruth Clarke). Luckily, my local library has La Bastarda available so I will dive into that next!
• If you want a punch to the gut this week, watch the New Yorker documentary, “In Flow of Words: Translating the Trauma of War.” This haunting short film shares the stories of three interpreters who worked for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. 
• In a recent episode of Smart Habits for Translators, Kelsey Frick offers some useful tips for developing and maintaining a social media presence for freelance translators. As with most things, there is no one-size-fits-all method, and Kelsey really emphasizes how important it is to identify what your goals are, who your audience is, what your voice sounds like, and where your clients are. A “successful” strategy will necessarily look different depending on how you define each of those categories.
• Texan Translation put out a very practical and relevant Translation for Teachers webinar earlier this year. They talk about their experiences as bilingual educators, as well as share concrete tips and skills that others can use if they are called upon to translate or interpret in an educational capacity.