Global Language Advocacy Days 2024
#GLAD24:
No Justice Without Language Rights
Welcome to Global Language Advocacy Days 2024 (#GLAD24)!
Building on the remarkable successes of #GLAD22 and #GLAD23, #GLAD24 will continue the Global Coalition for Language Rights’ vital mission of advocating for language rights and linguistic justice around the world.
#GLAD24 will be a global event, uniting language rights advocates, activists, and organizations in a coordinated effort to raise awareness and ignite meaningful conversations about the crucial importance of language rights. Our theme for this year is No Justice Without Language Rights, emphasizing the profound impact language rights have on our lives and communities.
Language rights are at the heart of a just and equitable society. They empower individuals and communities, preserve cultural heritage, and promote inclusivity. In a world where language is a fundamental part of our identity, denying language rights can have serious consequences. Our core message remains unchanged: Language Rights For All People!
Spread the Word:
Let's make #GLAD24 a global success! Share your support on social media using the hashtag #GLAD24 and join the conversation about language rights. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn to stay connected and informed.
We look forward to your active participation in Global Language Advocacy Day 2024. Let’s share our message that there is No Justice Without Language Rights, and work together for a world where everyone’s language rights are respected!
#GLAD24 Initiatives
*Graphic design by José Gregorio Amesquita Montilla
AFLC 2024 - African Languages: Challenges and Opportunities
The African Languages Conference (AFLC), a flagship event in linguistic and cultural preservation, is set to return in 2024. The conference serves as a pivotal platform for language activists, scholars, linguists, educators, and enthusiasts to converge, exchange ideas, and foster collaborations aimed at promoting the rich tapestry of African languages.
This year’s conference has over 20 sessions, most of which will be held in African languages including Wolof, Zulu, Twi, Yoruba, Kiswahili, Hausa, Sheng’, Igbo, Nigerian Pidgin English, French, English and more.
Join the online event.
Interpretation at the
Asylum Office
Hillary Mellinger, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Washington State University, explores language access challenges at the U.S. Asylum Office. Her research uncovers disparities in interpreter provision, shedding light on asylum interview dynamics. Pre-COVID-19 insights raise crucial questions about implementing legal statutes and intersectionality in the U.S. immigration system.
Read the blog post.
The Pursuit of Peace
Through the Evolution of Communication
We explore how language access and plain language can synergize to bring about language justice, reduce conflicts, and nurture a more peaceful and harmonious world. This talk promises to inspire actionable strategies and a renewed commitment to achieving peace through transformative communication.
The Impact of Global English on Higher Education and Beyond:
A Conversation with Scholars in the Open Society University Network
This webinar explores the English-language experiences of academics from diverse regions of the world, all teaching in institutions of the Open Society University Network. Discussion focuses on the impact of English dominance on scholarly work, students, and society more broadly. Panelists: Ahmad Ayyad, Al Quds U; Aishana Dzhumalieva, American U of Central Asia; Joseph Farquharson, U of the West Indies; Joseph Oduro-Frimpong, Ashesi U.
Watch the event recording.
#GLAD24 at somos:
Free Access for 15 Teachers of Minoritized Languages
To celebrate #GLAD24, somos is gifting 15 annual pro subscriptions (worth $240 each) to teachers of minoritized languages. Recipients will get access to our full product suite including commission-free 1:1 classes, Patreon-style communities for language learners and full rights to participate in our co-ownership scheme. Find out the full details and how to apply in our blog post.
Learn more about the campaign.
Linguistic profiling: An under-recognized force in the justice system and beyond
Shawna Shapiro, Associate Professor at Middlebury College, sheds light on linguistic profiling in the U.S. justice system, exploring biases tied to speech and writing. Drawing from real cases, she advocates for dismantling discriminatory practices through sociolinguistic education.
#LAD24
Language Advocacy Day Canada
You are invited to join us for a panel discussion,
LAD24: Language Keepers – Celebrating Newcomer Indigenous Language Revitalization and Preservation.
Join us for an online event on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024 at 9:30 AM (EST) as we celebrate the incredible efforts in Indigenous and newcomer language revitalization.
Register for the event.
Language rights
through the prism of
Indian linguistic diversity
The talk focuses on the celebration of Indian linguistic diversity that has originated due to constant contact, conflict and cohesion. The Indian subcontinent represents various mother tongues of different language families. Similarly, in this arena of multilingual scenario, a person needs to know his/her linguistic rights.
WLGC: Indigenous Voices For Us
Hosted by Women in Localization Global Community and moderated by Ludmila Golovine, Global Community Volunteer and CEO of MasterWord Services, the discussion aims to raise awareness about the importance of digitization for indigenous and underrepresented languages, discuss unique challenges and opportunities it presents for communities, and engage diverse perspectives.
Watch the event recording.
New York State
celebrates International
Mother Language Day!
The New York State Office of Language Access (OLA) has two goals for our International Mother Language (IML) Day 2024 campaign: (1) highlight and celebrate the linguistic diversity of New York, where 800+ languages are spoken in homes across the state, and (2) to make New Yorkers aware that they have the right to access state programs, benefits, and services, no matter what language they speak.
Language Rights in a Changing China: A National Overview and Zhuang Case Study
Digital Awal: Internet speaks Tamazight!
The Awal Digital project, a collaborative effort by CIEMEN, Casa Amaziga de Catalunya, and Col·lectivaT, addresses the digital needs of the Amazigh language, spoken by over 100,000 people in Catalonia. The project focuses on automatic translation and voice recognition, encouraging community participation through a linguistic marathon and gamification. Awal aims to preserve and promote the Amazigh language in the digital realm, fostering linguistic and cultural autonomy for its speakers.
Linguistic Refoulement: Exploring the Intersection between Language and Asylum
Katie Becker's blog post explores the concept of "linguistic refoulement" in the U.S. asylum system, particularly affecting Indigenous-language speakers. Becker argues that the lack of language-access protections leads to the return of vulnerable individuals to dangerous situations, shedding light on systemic failures and the struggles faced by Indigenous asylum seekers.
Read the blog post.
Linguistic reconciliation
is key to transitional justice
in Sri Lanka
Language is a fundamental human right and needs to be recognised for its role in war and peacebuilding. Sri Lanka is a country where language has been pivotal in fuelling ethnic division and a 26-year-long civil war. Now, 15 years after the war has ended, it has been found that individual citizens are making their own paths towards linguistic reconciliation to redress the linguistic injustices of the past and present. Niru Perera is a sociolinguist and reports on these developments in a blog for The Diplomat which goes live on 22 February to mark #GLAD24.
We, maximia, have
(linguistic) rights!
A blog post with a version of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Romani Language. The action took place in the French language course and is part of a broader (auto)ethnographic research. The text focuses on the description of the action and teacher-researcher's thoughts through auto-ethnographic multimodal fieldnotes to highlight counternarratives about (linguistic) rights as a praxis of educational and social justice.
Read the blog post.
Pidgin Language has a Place on Earth's Space
My recent advocacy effort is to vulgarize the Cameroon Pidgin language, break down barriers and promote inclusivity by popularizing pidgin as a legitimate and recognized language. Connecting this activity therefore to the #GLAD24 (Global Language Advocacy Day 24) is to allow the initiative to tap into a global network of language rights advocates. GLAD can provide expertise and guidance.
5-minute Language Rights Activism: A Guide by the Global Coalition for Language Rights
Here are 10 simple ways you can promote language rights in 5 minutes.
Read the blog post.
Defensa de los derechos lingüísticos sin reservas
Spanish translation of Gerald Roche's 2022 article "Speaking up in defense of language rights" from ROAR magazine. Translated in the GCLR Spanish Pilot Initiative under the guidance of Irene Gotera.
Read the blog post.
Co-designing a World for Linguistic Justice
Summary of a bilingual Spanish-English conversation between Irene and Gerald about language rights and linguistic justice. Spanish version.
Read the blog post.
Codiseño de un mundo en pro de la justicia lingüística
Summary of a bilingual Spanish-English conversation between Irene and Gerald about language rights and linguistic justice. English version.
Drongo Partner Meeting
Drongo platform voor meertaligheid organiseert voor partners en nauw betrokkenen een partnerbijeenkomstop 29 februari 2024, ter gelegenheid van Internationale Moedertaaldag (UNESCO, 21 februari) en Global Language Advocacy Day (Global Coalition for Language Rights, 22 februari). Centraal thema is moedertaalonderwijs.
On the occasion of International Mother Language Day (UNESCO, 21 February) and Global Language Advocacy Day (Global Coalition for Language Rights, 22 February) Drongo platform for multilingualism holds a partner meeting on February 29. The meeting is open to partners and others closely involved in Drongo. The central theme of the meeting is mother tongue education.
Learn more about Drongo.
The Language Rights
Defenders Award
The first and only global award for language rights defenders. More information will be available on the Global Coalition for Language Rights website on March 1, 2024.
Discussing legal and political issues surrounding
language rights
An introductory speech about language rights and contemporary legal and political issues around them will be held at Université de Rouen Normandie, in France. During the speech, Juliana Chaves Almeida will review the most important international conventions surrounding cultural and language rights, and terms that are currently used in the field such as "endangered languages", "underrepresented languages", "dialects", "dead languages" and "extinct languages.
After the speech, the attendees, which include Political Science and Law students, will be able to use their academic background and experience to debate how States and citizens can act to promote language rights for all."
A Human Rights-Based Elicitation Tool for Linguists
This elicitation tool is based on the GCLR statement on understanding and defending language rights. It is intended for use by documentary linguists, but could also be used by sociolinguists and others. The tool aims to simultaneously elicit linguistic data while also enabling the linguist to obtain a systematic understanding of the local political context as it pertains to the use and transmission of languages.
Ad•voc•atio
Poetry and Language Rights - Justice for all
Poetry is an open and safe place for diversity, It can allow the preservation of indigenous, minority and endangered languages (people can use the language/s they feel comfortable with within their poems) through care and attention to words by poetically deconstructing them, and research on cultural traditions. This initiative is intended to restore multilingualism and particularism - poetry identifies not the nations but the cultures and personalities by collecting languages, traditions, ideas, music, and styles.
Join Désirée Russo on February 27 for a live presentation about her poem.
Qué son los derechos lingüísticos y cómo defenderlos: el proceso de desarrollo de la Declaración por parte de la Coalición Global por los Derechos Lingüísticos
Spanish translation of the GCLR blog post on how and why we wrote the GCLR statement on language rights. Translated in the GCLR Spanish Pilot Initiative under the guidance of Irene Gotera.
Language Matters - Indigenous Voices Series: From Frozen to Digital: The Lule Sámi Language Journey
Explore the journey of language preservation with Inga Mikkelsen, Head Engineer in the Divvun language technology team at the Arctic University of Norway, representing the Lule Sámi community. Learn about their successes, challenges from tech companies, and how technology bridges tradition and modernity in preserving indigenous languages.
Watch the recording.