project leader
Damian H
location
Statue of Liberty
(New York Metro Area)
latest update rss
No updates yet.

the project

The Refugee Translation Project provides free, professional translation services for refugees seeking asylum in the New York metro area and beyond.  We offer English translations of asylum statements, medical documents and other supporting documents originally written in Turkish, Arabic, and French. As the project picks up momentum, we will add more languages to our services.

Our clients have fled war and persecution in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, and other areas of unrest. Many of them are in need of medical attention, including small children. Those who make it to the New York area and wish to stay here must apply for asylum, which involves convincing the court that they are being persecuted in their home country and cannot be sent back for fear of further persecution, which includes the risk of imprisonment, torture or even death.

One of the most important factors for asylum seekers is that they can fully convey their stories to their lawyers and to the courts. These stories, written as statements, and the material evidence to back them up, are crucial to the refugees' success. Both the statements and the evidence, which could be anything from threatening letters, tax penalty notices, court documents, to bank statements and newspaper articles, need to be translated. Unfortunately, many of these people have lost almost everything they own and cannot afford to pay for the speedy translation of these important documents. To ease the burden, the Refugee Translation Project offers these professional translation services for free so that refugees can focus their limited resources on making a home here. 

In addition to providing translation support for people seeking asylum in the US, we also help refugees living in camps and other precarious situations abroad find resettlement.  Many of these people, including children, have serious medical needs.

So far we have helped over 180 families and individuals with less than $19,000 of funding. To date, at least 7 people we helped have successfully gained asylum in the US! The asylum process is a long, arduous process that can take up to a year or longer. We hope to receive more success stories as the project goes on. 

the steps

The Fall 2019 Fundraising Campaign has two goals totaling $12000. The first is to raise $4000 to go towards translating crucial documents related to relocation and asylum cases, as to relieve refugees from the financial burden of translation costs.

Translations costs depend on the word count and the source language. Turkish and French cost $.10 a word and Arabic $.11 a word. Asylum statements typically range from 1500 – 6000 words, costing anywhere from $150 to $600 to translate. Naturally some are longer and some are shorter. Supporting documents, including medical reports, legal documents, and identification papers, typically range from $15 to $60 per document, depending on difficulty and word count. Many cases also involve lengthy court documents that can cost hundreds of dollars to translate.

The cost per client varies depending on their translation needs. 

The second goal is to raise $8000 to go towards administrative development. Allocating money to administrative development will ensure the continued success of this project by allowing us to establish a more sustainable fundraising and operations model. This will cover the cost of the legwork to secure additional long-term funding and to explore the possibility of becoming our own 501(c)(3) organization, as well as the cost of other administrative tasks.

why we're doing it

Refugees who have arrived in the New York area seeking asylum are oftentimes in extreme financial straits. As newly arrived immigrants, their community networks and access to resources are limited. The costs of translating the statements and documents necessary to apply for asylum can be a huge financial burden. The Refugee Translation Project relieves this particular burden so that these people can concentrate their resources on planting roots in their new home. 

budget

DISBURSED BUDGET (01.08.2020)

The Fall 2019 Fundraising Campaign has two goals totaling $12,555.20. The first is to raise $4555.20 to go towards translating crucial documents related to relocation and asylum cases, as to relieve refugees from financial burden of translation costs. The project produces translations for refugees who have documents in Arabic, Turkish, and French. The costs of translations depend of on the word count and original language. At $.10 a word for Turkish and French and $.11 a word for Arabic, medical documents can cost anywhere from $15 to $60 each, whereas asylum letters range from 1500 – 6000 words, costing $150 to $660 to translate. Many cases involve lengthy court documents that can cost hundreds of dollars to translate.

The second goal is to raise $8000 to go towards administrative development. Allocating money to administrative development will ensure the continued success of this project by allowing us to establish a more sustainable fundraising and operations model. This will cover the cost of the legwork to secure additional long-term funding and to explore the possibility of becoming our own 501(c)(3) organization, as well as the cost of other administrative tasks.

 



TOTAL RAISED = $13,685.00
ioby Platform Fee $35.00
ioby Fiscal Sponsorship Fee (5%) $684.25
ioby Donation Processing Fee (3%) $410.55
TOTAL TO DISBURSE= $12,555.20

 

REVISED BUDGET (11.21.19)

The Fall 2019 Fundraising Campaign has two goals totalling $12000. The first is to raise $4000 to go towards translating crucial documents related to relocation and asylum cases, as to relieve refugees from financial burden of translation costs. The project produces translations for refugees who have documents in Arabic, Turkish, and French. The costs of translations depend of on the word count and original language. At $.10 a word for Turkish and French and $.11 a word for Arabic, medical documents can cost anywhere from $15 to $60 each, whereas asylum letters range from 1500 – 6000 words, costing $150 to $660 to translate. Many cases involve lengthy court documents that can cost hundreds of dollars to translate.

The second goal is to raise $8000 to go towards administrative development. Allocating money to administrative development will ensure the continued success of this project by allowing us to establish a more sustainable fundraising and operations model. This will cover the cost of the legwork to secure additional long-term funding and to explore the possibility of becoming our own 501(c)(3) organization, as well as the cost of other administrative tasks

 



PROJECT FUNDING NEEDED = $12,000
ioby Platform Fee $35
ioby Fiscal Sponsorship Fee (5%) $654
ioby Donation Processing Fee (3%) $392
TOTAL TO RAISE = $13,082

 

 

The fundraising goal is to create a fund that will pay for the translation of documents related to asylum cases, as to relieve refugees from financial burden of translation. The project produces translations for refugees who have documents in Turkish, Arabic, and French. We will use the $2000 we have raised to continue our work offering translation services to the people who need them. After this campaign we will evaluate the areas of need, expand the languages we translate from and the number of organizations we work with, and continue fundraising to meet identified needs.  

The costs of translations depend of on the word count and original language. At $.10 a word for Turkish and French, and $.11 a word for Arabic, medical documents can cost anywhere from $10 to $60 each, whereas asylum letters range from 1500 – 6000 words, costing $150 to $660 to translate. All funds raised goes towards these translation costs. All administrative and fundraising work is done on a volunteer basis by the project leaders.



PROJECT FUNDING NEEDED = $2,000
ioby Platform Fee $35
ioby Fiscal Sponsorship Fee (5%) $111
ioby Donation Processing Fee (3%) $66
TOTAL TO RAISE = $2,212

 

updates

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photos

This is where photos will go once we build flickr integration

donors

  • Anonymous
  • Peter Jaszi
  • Seth D Ullman
  • AW
  • Anne Patrone
  • INBAR KISHONI
  • Anonymous
  • cameron and Edith Harris-Hernandez
  • Alex Engel
  • Shawn Libman
  • Ned
  • Jennifer M.
  • Sofia b
  • Anonymous
  • Anonymous
  • Anonymous
  • Tim G.
  • Leslie F
  • Anonymous
  • Anonymous
  • Alex G.
  • Rachel Markey
  • Anonymous
  • Alice A Friedman
  • Jenny Mason
  • David Palmer