Monthly Newsletter - May 2024
Mixteco Afterschool Program in Santa Rita Elementary
Salinas, CA - Thanks to the collaboration with the City of Salinas and the support of Councilman Sandoval of District 5, CBDIO celebrated Mother's Day and purchased gifts for both the students and mothers in the Mixteco After School Program at Santa Rita Elementary School. The CBDIO team coordinated performances of traditional dances, poems, and a song in Mixteco. After months of practicing, the children performed for their parents at the celebration. It was a wonderful experience to see the way students were very engaged and eager to learn during their practices. The goal of CBDIO’s After School team is to teach students about the traditions of the Mixtec Region and to create a sense of belonging for students and their families.
The team began the celebratory event with a dance with students dressed in traditional clothings of their hometown. The dance was carried out with two traditional songs from the Mixtec Region. After this, the Kindergarten and First Grade children presented their poems. While it was a new experience for the students, many not being familiar with the dances or outfits, there was a lot of interest in wanting to know more about their culture. The children then finished their poetry recital and sang a song in Mixteco written by one of the instructors in their native language. This was very special for Mixteco parents who were very happy and proud to see their children express themselves in their native language through dance and poetry. At the end of their presentations, students went on stage to sing “Las Mañanitas'' and gave gifts to their mothers.
Language Justice
California - CBDIO’s language Justice program provides interpretation services in Indigenous languages of Oaxaca and Guerrero with more than 7 different languages available, and — variations of those languages. We provide services via Zoom, over the phone, and in person. The languages requested in May were Chatino, Mixteco, Triqui and Amuzgo. It is important for us that our Trilingual Interpreters are culturally sensitive and help bridge language differences to assist over 100 individuals every month. Through our services, families are able to communicate more effectively with medical providers, school teachers, lawyers, etc., trusting that interpreters are able to interpret information to both parties accurately. Currently, CBDIO has contracts with — institutions, which include clinics, schools and courts, to provide critical interpretation services.
In May, CBDIO held a meeting in the Greenfield office with the school board members from Greenfield Unified District to bring up urgent issues regarding interpretation in the school district for Indigenous parents. Interpretation at the schools would allow better communication with school staff since many parents do not fully understand the school system or important information regarding their children. Parents often felt excluded and discriminated against, because of their language. In this meeting, many families were able to express their concerns in languages such as Triqui and Mixteco, with more than 30 parents present.
Our language justice program also provides interpretation services to different school districts for student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) plans. Our trilingual interpreter helped break the language barrier between parents and teachers. The parents were able to express their desire for the wellbeing of their children and the importance of education. Ultimately, the family was able to receive benefits and accommodations their children needed that they did not have access to before. We also provided Interpretation service in the Central Valley to a family who was struggling to receive benefits.The Mixteco Interpreter was able to help the family understand their needs and through interpretation, get them the services that they needed. We also provided Triqui/Mixteco interpretation services during a labor rights presentation hosted by the Labor Commissioner's Office and other agencies in the state.
Storm Assistance for Immigrants (SAI)
Madera, CA - CBDIO is proud to announce that the Storm Assistance for Immigrants (SAI) program, launched in June 2023, has successfully ended on May 31, 2024. This program was funded by the California Department of Social Services to help provide financial assistance to residents living in counties that were affected by the severe storm that hit in December 2022 and lasted until April 2023.
Program Highlights
With the completion of the SAI program, CBDIO serviced a total of 4,338 adults and 149 children, and disbursed $6,582,069.00 to Indigenous and non-Indigenous farmworkers who were affected by the storm. This temporary support helped bridge the gap for our underserved communities who oftentimes do not recieve services because of issues with language access or the mistrust of agencies. Figures 1 and 2 show the range of Mexican states and languages we helped during the program. We also assisted community members from other countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.
Figure 1.0
Figure 2.0
We would like to thank the CBDIO team for their hard work and willingness to work around farmworkers' schedules. Our SAI team not only provided assistance with SAI applications but also provided direct services such as Medi-cal enrollment, Family Paid Leave, Disability and so much more. Their hardwork and dedication to serving our Indigenous communities were instrumental to the success of the Storm Assistance for Immigrants program.
Temporary Solution
The economic support provided through this program benefited a significant amount of people from the Indigenous communities, but it is not the solution. CBDIO sees all the struggles and barriers that the Indigenous low-income, immigrant communities face. Our communities continue to face socioeconomic challenges and difficulties accessing basic needs. This is the reason why need a permanent solution for the immigrant communities who are left out of state or federal benefits during catastrophic events such as storms, COVID-19, wildfire, etc.The solution would be to implement legislation that would include excluded workers from Unemployment benefits.
Farmworker Resource Center Recognition Ceremony
Salinas, CA - The County of Monterey Health Department hosted a Recognition Ceremony for CBDIO partners that formed the Farmworker Resource Center in Monterey County.
Community workers from CBDIO gave a heartfelt presentation on the impact that this Center had on our community during the project’s implementation period, highlighting CBDIO’s work with the Mixteco community of Prunedale affected by a flash flooding in March. CBDIO was able to support this community with interpretation with emergency response teams from the county, connect the families to other local resources, and provide the families with emergency monetary assistance funded by the Farmworker Resource Center. Though this program came to an end in May 2024, CBDIO continues its mission to support and uplift the Indigenous farmworker communities.
Statewide Reach
Updates
We welcome our new Interpreter Navigator
Rigoberto Hernandez joined CBDIO as an Interpreter Navigator for our Language Justice program.
“My name is Rigoberto Hernandez Martinez. I was born in the rural Triqui region of Oaxaca Mexico. My family and I migrated to the United States in 2006. As a young Indigenous kid speaking only my native language Triqui, not knowing a word of Spanish or English was extremely difficult, I felt out of place, and I couldn't express my needs to my teachers at school or comprehend the school system. These challenges only motivated me to educate myself to one day be able to speak English and Spanish. Growing up in Greenfield California, a town with a majority of Indigenous communities, I witnessed many obstacles and challenges the Indigenous community experienced such as discrimination, language barriers among others.. Even though there were resources available the Indigenous community did not have access to it due to language barriers. I was empowered by the struggle to make a difference within my Triqui community and began my journey as a self-employed Interpreter to dismantle language barriers. I'm currently in pursuit of a higher education at Hartnell Community College to set an example and empower the Indigenous youth to strive for better opportunities and contribute back to the community. My journey led me to CBDIO, a magical place with amazing human beings with one mission in mind which is to lift up and strengthen the Indigenous community by embracing the culture, values, and who strongly believe in language justice.”
Comments