"I used the tool anyway because I needed it."
Translation and necessity
What it argues
Words change when they cross languages. Those changes have consequences. In asylum interviews. In courtrooms. In keyboards. In the tools people use because they have no better choice.
The manifesto follows four moments: Google Translate when the tool is bad and still necessary; the asylum interview where "good enough" interpretation decides belief; the Singlish keyboard where autocorrect becomes a courthouse; and English as a global language, where connection has a cost.
Key teachings
"Good enough. That phrase is doing an enormous amount of work."
The asylum interview
"The keyboard is a courthouse."
Singlish and digital infrastructure
"Meaning is not in the words."
Translation, power, and interpretation