Holyoke City Council meetings will now be interpreted en español
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Holyoke City Hall, as seen from Holyoke Heritage State Park, on Wednesday, April 28, 2021. GAZETTE FILE PHOTO
Published: 8/2/2021 7:42:23 PM
HOLYOKE — When city residents tune into the City Council’s meeting on Tuesday, those watching on TV will have an option many say is long overdue: listening along in Spanish.
In a city where some 54% of the population identifies as Hispanic or Latino, according to census data, Holyoke’s municipal government meetings have long been inaccessible to the substantial portion of the city who have limited English-language proficiency. Beginning Tuesday, however, full meetings of the City Council will include the possibility of live Spanish-language interpretation via a secondary audio track for TV viewers.