Advisory committee reports work on language access, outreach and community surveys

Chin Boyes, vice chair of the advisory committee on racial equity, inclusion and human rights, told the committee the group focused this quarter on three priorities: a potential language-access plan, better public communications, and expanded community outreach.

“We're beginning to work with the Bangor Police Department's language line interpretation service,” Boyes said, noting the committee has been collecting department-level feedback to determine which languages would be most impactful. The committee is developing a plan to expand interpretation and translation so residents can access municipal services regardless of primary language.

Boyes said the committee has added a public contact form on its website so residents who cannot attend meetings can submit comments. He described work to populate the committee’s web page with meeting dates, summaries and information about heritage and cultural observances to make the committee’s work more visible.

At a recent community outreach table at the Bridal event, the committee used a nine-question survey to gather views on inclusiveness. Boyes said the survey — not a representative sample — showed many respondents feel Bangor is inclusive “some of the time,” and that recurring concerns include accessible transportation, lack of awareness about events, and the financial cost of participation.

Looking ahead, Boyes said the committee will expand the number of city departments it consults for the language plan, support the city’s legislative committee by flagging state legislation that may affect Bangor, and seek partnerships with local organizations to provide training, cultural competency resources and other supports.

The update concluded without formal action; the committee thanked Boyes for the briefing.