Emergency
Interpreter Mobilization
Fighting Back Against Attacks on Migrants and Asylum Seekers:
THE CRISIS
The Trump administration is waging a full-on war against the entire asylum system, forcing people who deserve protection to face unspeakable human rights abuses such as arbitrary detention, deportation, and even death in U.S. custody.
There is now a “bring your own interpreter” policy, forcing asylum seekers to secure their own interpreter for their asylum interviews. These interviews can last 3–8 hours. These interviews determine whether they are granted protection or deported.
ICE is no longer even required to provide Spanish interpretation, let alone the hundreds of other languages spoken by asylum seekers. It is now legal to detain and deport someone even if they never had the chance to communicate their case in their language. This policy uses language to create a deliberate trap:
Language rights stripped away: Asylum seekers who cannot find their own interpreter face case dismissal, detention, or deportation.
Regional bottlenecks: In Mexico, 5x more asylum applications are submitted daily than under Biden because people are left no other choice. Trump slashed funding to the UNHCR which is where the Mexico asylum agency got its budget from. RCT is now mobilizing interpreters into Spanish across dozens of languages but there is no money available to sustain this effort due to Trump’s budget cuts.
No legal representation: Legal aid organizations across the country are at capacity, leaving the vast majority asylum seekers with no legal support and forcing them to represent themselves. This means that in countless cases RCT interpreters are the first and only line of defense.
Exploitation and scams: A predatory industry composed of scammers charging desperate migrants obscene fees for fake interpreters and lawyers has become emboldened amidst the panic and chaos forced upon migrants.
Respond Crisis Translation (RCT) is stepping in. We mobilize trained interpreters—often within hours—to accompany asylum seekers through their USCIS interviews and to support Mexico-based asylum cases. Our interpreters provide not only precise language support but also psychological safety and the presence of a witness trained to intervene in proceedings rife with rights violations such as unconstitutional arrests.
In the past three months alone, multiple asylum seekers have won their cases after RCT mobilized an interpreter at the last minute—many without attorneys. In one case, an asylum seeker in San Francisco learned just an hour before his interview that his interpreter was actually a scammer and not going to show up. RCT stepped in immediately, and thanks to the interpreter’s presence, he secured asylum. Without us, he likely would have been deported.
OUR INTERVENTIONS
Respond Crisis Translation (RCT) is stepping in. We mobilize trained interpreters—often within hours—to accompany asylum seekers through their USCIS interviews and to support Mexico-based asylum cases. Our interpreters provide not only precise language support but also psychological safety and the presence of a witness trained to intervene in proceedings rife with rights violations such as unconstitutional arrests.
DIRECT SERVICE
In the past three months alone, multiple asylum seekers have won their cases after RCT mobilized an interpreter at the last minute—many without attorneys. In one case, an asylum seeker in San Francisco learned just an hour before his interview that his interpreter was actually a scammer and not going to show up. RCT stepped in immediately, and thanks to the interpreter’s presence, he secured asylum. Without us, he likely would have been deported.
Caseload has quadrupled since Trump took office. Our interpreters—many of whom are immigrants themselves—take on immense personal risk doing these interviews. If our work remains unfunded it will be unsustainable. We urgently need support to:
Recruit, train, and sustain interpreter teams across key hubs in the U.S. and Mexico.
Compensate interpreters with dignified wages and cover transportation costs for emergency mobilization.
Build rapid-response infrastructure to meet emergencies at scale.
Provide trauma-informed care for interpreters working under life-and-death conditions.