ABOUT
LACC COALITION
MISSION & HISTORY.
Language rights protect the rights of individuals and groups to choose which language(s) they use in private as well as in public interactions, such as legal, health, educational or political access to information and services. Language rights are also a tool of identity and an important social determinant of health. Many nations, including Canada, may not deliberately discriminate against minority languages or those not deemed not to be the “official” ones, but if broader language access is not strategically enabled, organizations and individuals end up being excluded and discriminated against based on their language comprehension and fluency.
While advocacy for equality of access for ALL languages does not have a long history in Canada, worldwide efforts to promote universal linguistic rights while monitoring the state of minority and indigenous languages have been ongoing for fifty years (Minority and Indigenous Trends, 2019). The constantly changing and evolving views on “language access“, influenced by migration patterns and technology, have been developing against a historical trend of tying language to national identity and borders.
Here in Canada, the recently co-developed National First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Languages Act (Bill C-91) that recognized the rights of Indigenous languages not only expanded our national conversation around “official languages”, but also challenged the status quo to reimagine what access in all other languages carried by the waves of immigration to Canada since 18th century onward could be.
The idea of a Language Advocacy Day in Canada was largely inspired by the efforts of the Joint National Committee for Languages (JNCL), which has hosted National Language Day in Washington, DC for over 40 years.
The initative is currently supported solely by the MCIS Language Solutions’ Social Benefit Fund. The core team LACC team is grateful to a number of organizations, including early partners such as those listed below who have been providing a continuous support to this initiative.
ADVOCACY RESOURCES.
Alongside our local network of 30+ organizations and businesses that signed up to actively support the initiative, we work with a range of partners who, like us, are passionate about building a more inclusive and accessible Canada.
Through joint publishing, research and resource sharing, we look for ways to help our partners contribute to shared agendas.
Contact us to learn more about how to get involved.
NON-PROFITS/ NGOs/ SOCIAL ENTERPRISES
Access Alliance Language Services (AALS) is a social enterprise of Access Alliance Multicultural Health and Community Services, a non-profit charitable organization whose mission is to improve health outcomes for the most vulnerable immigrants, refugees, and their communities. Since 1990, AALS has delivered high quality language access services to Access Alliance and a diverse range of health, social, and public sector organizations.
The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic offers legal, counselling and interpretation services to marginalized and racialized populations of women who have survived violence
The Canadian Arab Institute (CAI) is a national non-partisan organization that focuses on issues and interests of the Canadian Arab community through research, policy, programming and community engagement. CAI celebrates and encourages Arab Canadians' participation in all social, political, cultural and economic aspects of Canadian society.
The Canadian Language Museum was established in 2011 to promote an appreciation of all of the languages used in Canada and of their role in the development of this nation. The Museum is located on Glendon College campus of York University in Toronto. Our exhibits have been displayed from coast to coast to coast!
Kids Help Phone is Canada’s only 24/7 e-mental health service offering free, confidential support to young people in English and French.
Our vision is that all people are supported and connected in communities that are thriving. Our mission is to strengthen communities by bringing people and services together.
Immigrant Women Services Ottawa (IWSO) exists to provide immigrant and racialized women and their families in the City of Ottawa and the surrounding area with the supports and tools to achieve their full potential as members of Canadian society and participate in the elimination of all forms of abuse against women and children.
John Howard Society of York Region offers a variety of prevention, intervention, educational and service programs for youth and individuals who are 18 or older.
MCIS Language Solutions is a non-profit that has evolved into a model social enterprise and has been relentlessly pursuing its goal to remove language barriers for over 25 years. With over 60 full time staff and engaging a roster of over 6,000 interpreters, translators, voice artists, and other language professionals, MCIS provides a full suite of language solutions and supports initiatives that promote language access.
We are committed to providing coordinated, culturally appropriate and safe care. We support individuals by providing essential health services to meet their needs while connecting them to ongoing services in the community as they settle in their new home.
To provide aid and assistance to refugees and immigrants in need that are victims of war, persecution, unfair discrimination, or natural disasters by operating a sponsorship program to Canada.
Refugees from around the world are building new lives in Ottawa. Refugee 613 is here to help you sponsor, learn, volunteer, donate and more.
The Rohingya Centre of Canada is a Rohingya-led inclusive, service-oriented community centre established in 2021 that strives to provide innovative, creative, quality services to make a positive impact on the region of Kitchener-Waterloo and beyond and to build ties with the wider community, in the proud spirit of Canadian multiculturalism.
We are heartbroken about the humanitarian crises occurring in India right now. South Asians in Canada are fighting two pandemics - one here in Canada and another in parallel in India where many of us have close family and friends. We have been asked many times how Canadians can help support India during this time.
The 519 is committed to the health, happiness and full participation of the 2SLGBTQ+ communities. A City of Toronto agency with an innovative model of Service, Space and Leadership, we strive to make a real difference in people’s lives, while working to promote inclusion, understanding and respect.
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MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZATIONS/ COALITIONS
We are the professional association for translators, interpreters and terminologists in the province of Ontario, supporting and protecting the collective status, dignity and integrity of the language professions. ATIO ensures that the public at large is well served. Through its professional standards and certification examination, it guarantees that its members’ clients and the public receive superior quality work.
APLI (Association of Professional Language Interpreters) is an organization for all qualified and trained interpreters in Canada, dedicated to the improvement of the profession for community interpreters, service users and service providers, creating a shared enviroment, to support and minimize work related issues.
The Canadian Language Industry Association (formerly AILIA) is the Canadian not-for-profit trade association whose mission is to promote and increase the competitiveness of the Canadian language industry nationally and globally through advocacy, accreditation, and information sharing.
Global Coalition for Language Rights - We work at the intersection of languages, digital and human rights.
A community-led non-profit focused on education and safe spaces.” They develop, implement and run programs specifically for and about “marginalized global south LGBTQIA2S+.
Ontario Council on Community Interpreting (OCCI) - Facilitating broad stakeholder collaboration to reach the common goal of professionalizing the community interpreting sector.
Envisioning a dynamic settlement network where all newcomers are welcomed with open hearts and minds, and supported to reach their highest potential for a stronger Canada.
BUSINESSES/ PRIVATE ENTERPRISES/ ETHNIC MEDIA
BriConnect organises learning opportunities for front-line workers to better service the Deaf community. We provide immersive multi-day workshops which are adaptable to your working environments. This is a unique opportunity to learn while immersed in a Deaf environment and to utilize your skills as you are learning them in the workshops.
Ethnic Channels Group (ECG), is the world's largest ethnic broadcaster that operates 100+ television channels from around the globe, serving the multicultural population in Canada, USA, MENA and Australia, across 20+ language groups. By selecting the best international channels and delivering them directly to viewers' homes via satellite, cable, IPTV and OTT providers, ECG provides exclusive sought-after programming to audiences worldwide.
As one of Canada’s leading multicultural marketing agencies, Ethnicity Matters helps companies engage, empower and acquire ethnic customers — both new immigrants and second-generation Canadian consumers.
Exacta is dedicated to making communication simple. We’ve been operating in Canada’s interpreting and translation industry for close to two decades. Our multi-industry reputation is for delivering fast results, along with superior standards for interpreting services. Our focus is to provide our customers with a turnkey solution that incorporates our services with knowledgeable experts to help with each step of the booking process.
Language. Culture. Identity. Community We are Building a Multilingual and Multicultural Future Together.
Multi-Languages Corporation is a high-quality certified translation and interpretation service provider founded October 15, 1997 with the vision to provide outstanding language services and improve the industry standards. More importantly, the Multi-Languages culture is about making the world a better place! We are a force for change, transforming the world one person at a time.
New Canadian Media provides nonpartisan news and views representing all Canadian immigrant communities. The views expressed on this site are those of the individual writers and commentators, and not necessarily those of New Canadian Media. Although we accept political advertising, we will never endorse any particular candidate or party. Any advertising that appears on our site has been vetted and reflects accepted community standards.
Language Coaching is a method of training a language to a person that is immediately useful within a particular society & culture, because “if you don’t use it, you lose it!”. Language Coaching takes a holistic approach, which encompasses body language, pronunciation, intonation, and fluency, and places effective communication & self-expression at its forefront.
We are small and personal enough to ensure language continuity, short communications channels, fast feedback and short production cycles - yet large enough to meet your needs with a team of passionate, experienced, professional in-house translators and project managers.
ACADEMIA/ RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS
The University of Alberta in Edmonton is one of the top teaching and research universities in Canada, with an international reputation for excellence across the humanities, sciences, creative arts, business, engineering and health sciences.
Gain a solid academic foundation and practical experience while building your network and kickstarting your career in Toronto, Canada’s economic and cultural engine. Want to immerse yourself into a multicultural and multilingual environment, that bolsters your passion for diversity? Glendon is the only bilingual university campus in Toronto, and a small-scale version of today’s society.
The Université de Moncton is a Canadian francophone university in New Brunswick. It includes campuses in Edmundston, Moncton, and Shippagan. The university was founded in 1963 following the recommendations of the royal commission on higher education in New Brunswick. Since then, the institution has been widely regarded as the heir to several Acadian institutions of higher learning such as the Collège Saint-Joseph.
SUPPORTERS and COLLABORATORS.
 Joint National Committee on Languages (JNCL)We speak language policy to power. Today, JNCL-NCLIS represents more than 300,000 professionals from nonprofits, companies, and research institutes, forming an all-inclusive network of all areas of the language field: exchanges, research, technology, translation, interpretation, localization, testing, and others. |  The National Film Board of CanadaThe National Film Board of Canada is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and alternative dramas. |  Knowledge Equity LabThe Knowledge Equity Lab is an inclusive, trans-disciplinary, experimental space. Based at the Centre for Critical Development Studies at UTSC, it is an incubator for a community of practitioners advancing knowledge equity, centering marginalised and under-represented knowledge-makers as a means of social justice and change. |
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 Battista Smith, Migration Law GroupOur Toronto-based immigration lawyers believe that migration is a fundamental freedom and that immigration barriers to Canada should exist only when necessary. Canadian diversity is our strength, and immigrants are welcomed to Canada. |
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