Gothamist – Nonetheless, the mistakes prompted laughs in other corners of city government as well as criticisms from immigrant rights advocates who said the episode points to a bigger problem in language access for immigrant communities.

“This is hilarious,” said Councilmember Shahana Hanif. “Our communities don’t feel comfortable utilizing government resources, and one of those reasons is because official government documents and important notices, even if they’re translated, the quality of translation is incomprehensible.”

Last year, Hanif pushed for the creation of an Office of Translation and Interpretation within the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, designed to provide interpreters to various city agencies, but saw the effort stall.

“And because we don’t have that, this is what you get,” she said. [Read More]