Different areas of the economy, education and government are becoming more aware of the urgent need for bilingual staff in order to improve their services and products and the performance in their activities. I’d like to share with you a couple of cases I found of situations that happen among all types of people and social level in the United States, because of this.

This year the police increased the recruitment of bilingual agents in the U.S., according to an article in the NY Associated Press (in Spanish).

Police departments in the United States increased their efforts to recruit agents who speak a second language other than English, and in some cases, offer higher pay and the opportunity to travel abroad as part of a language immersion programs.

The police chiefs are confident that the investment will result in better law enforcement in communities with large numbers of immigrants, and reduce the distrust that many immigrants feel towards police agents.

A third of the employees of the New York Police Department speak a second language. Of these, 785 have a language or translation certification into 63 languages.

In January in Charlotte, North Carolina, a school secretary of Hispanic origin sued the largest school system in this state because the campus director forbade her to speak Spanish with parents who had a low level of English. (Univision.com)

This Nicaraguan secretary filed a lawsuit because it was clearly a violation of her civil rights, as she was only trying to help the parents.

Companies across the board increasingly feel the need to hire a greater number of bilingual staff because of the growing population of mostly Spanish speaking immigrants. The Hispanic immigrant population is the largest in number and growth.

After so many years and so many new residents of Hispanic origin, among others, living in the U.S., Americans should ultimately adapt to the idea that the country is a melting pot composed of immigrants from everywhere, of all kinds and of all languages. This is how the country was formed in the first place, by immigrants.

It is better to work together and progress, rather than to stop advancing and lose so much of what we have accomplished just because people speak a different languages.

Hispanic Heritage Month honors people of Spanish-speaking backgrounds in the United States. It begins on September 15 because of its coincidence with Independence Day celebrations on September 15 in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, on September 16 in Mexico, and on September 18 in Chile . From September 15 to October 15, a number of special programs, events and exhibits celebrate the heritage, culture, spirit and extraordinary contributions of Hispanic Americans.

This year’s theme recognizes the strength and hard work of Hispanic Americans and pays tribute to the generations of Hispanic Americans who have positively influenced and enriched our nation and society. Mentioned among them is actress Rita Moreno, singer Celia Cruz, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, activist Cesar Chavez, Nobel prize-winning physicist Dr. Severo Ochoa, U.S. Navy Admiral David G. Farragut, singer Joan Baez and actor Desi Arnaz.

Hispanics are the fastest-growing minority group in the United States, according to the Census Bureau. It is estimated that the Hispanic population will triple, from almost 47 million to 133 million, from 2008 to 2050. This reflects an increase from 15 percent to 30 percent of the population.

Today, more than ever, Hispanic Americans play an integral role in positively influencing and enriching our nation and society. They serve as leaders in government, law, business, science, sports, the arts and many other occupations. The influence of Hispanic culture is reflected in every aspect of American life, from politics to education through music and television.

As immigrants settle in the United States, they also experience economical growth. Little by little, as they spend more time in their new country of residence, several have decided to start businesses and fully establish themselves in the field to progress and fight for a better future.

The Hispanic community in the U.S. grew by 3.1% in 2009, reaching 48.4 million people. This represents 15.8% of the U.S. population, making it the largest minority in an increasingly diverse country, according to the Census Bureau.

New data released in Washington show how minorities continue to grow and now represent 35% of the total population. Similarly it confirms the trend that, in a few decades, Hispanics could become a majority, according to an article in Dinero.com. These figures were revealed before the 2010 census provided the actual data, which will happen later this year.

The younger population is more and more diverse, as evidenced by the fact that 48.3% of children under five are minorities. By contrast, only a low 19.9% of the population aged 65 years or older belong to this groups. These transformations create an increasingly diverse landscape of the country, even more when you take into account that now more Americans define themselves as belonging to different races and ethnic groups.

Due to the variety and the need for diversity on both the demand and supply sides, new businesses and different services providers and products have emerged.

National food chains strive to attract Hispanic customers and offer them everything they need and prefer to buy and consume, opening shops targeted at the Hispanic audience, aimed exclusively at that market (elnuevodia.com).

There are Internet sites that provide help and advice for those seeking to start a business, according to the state where the person is located, where they can find information, create free ads, etc.

Some of these pages, available in Spanish, are:

• U.S. Hispanic Business

• Your Business Partner

• Chamber of Latin American Entrepreneurs

The word translation comes from the Latin translatio, which itself comes from trans- and fero and when combined mean to carry or bring across. By definition, translation is a written communication in a second language having the same meaning as the written communication in a first language. But is translation a science, an art or a skill?

The translator’s role is not a passive, mechanical one, and for such reason has been compared to that of an artist. Many may argue that literary translation is an art, not a science. Yet translators in other areas may consider their work to also be art. Such is the case of N. J. Lynn, a financial translator, who backs this up with strong arguments in Zen and the Art of Multilingual Financial Reporting.

Transcreation, a freer form of translation, which results in a text linguistically and culturally adapted for a specific country or region, can also be seen as an artistic form of translation. The difference between both concepts is explained in more detail in Translation vs. Transcreation in the Hispanic Market.

Yet in this new century, with the use of computer-assisted translation or machine translation, can we say that translation has become a science?  Or perhaps it has always been a science in the sense that it needs to follow principles and rules of syntax and grammar. For example, some universities offer a Masters of Science in Translation while others a Master of Arts in Translation.

Lastly, the argument that translation is a skill can also be made. It is certain that translation is more than just intuition and a six sense. Practical translation methods or processes can be taught and learned. Furthermore, this skill can be improved with experience.

The answer to this question will most likely depend on whom you ask.