Breaking Language Barriers
Philly Language Access
Philly Language Access is an initiative of The Immigrant Leadership Institute (ILI) participants dedicated to improving language accessibility for immigrant communities across the City of Philadelphia. We serve as a bridge between immigrant residents and the Philadelphia Office of Immigrant Affairs, helping ensure that language is not a barrier to accessing city information, services, and civic participation.
ILI is a Welcoming Center Program that works with immigrants to build leadership skills, engage in civic life, and make their voices heard in the community. Participants strengthen their advocacy, organizing, and intercultural skills as they connect with others and build a sense of belonging. Through hands-on training, ILI helps immigrants take an active role in shaping programs, policies, and the future of their city.
Our Mission
Our mission is to advance equitable access to Philadelphia city services by amplifying immigrant voices, strengthening language accessibility, and fostering meaningful collaboration between immigrant communities and city government.
We create unique opportunities for language accessibility
Through our multilingual website, community feedback tools, and public forums, we collect and elevate community experiences related to translated city content, interpretation services, and communication access. We share this feedback—both concerns and solutions—with city officials to support continuous improvements in language access across digital and in-person channels.
What we believe…
We Believe in Language Justice
Language justice is a social justice framework that affirms every person’s right to communicate, understand, and be understood in the language in which they are most confident and authentic. It goes beyond basic language access, addresses power imbalances, and intentionally dismantling language barriers to foster more inclusive and equitable communities.
Language Justice
Language is not only about access… It’s Justice!
