WHY DEAF CHILDREN MUST LEARN SIGN LANGUAGE?
Drisana, an Australian girl, was the first deaf user of Auslan (Australian Sign Language) to perform her duty as a juror, and she continually speaks of deafness from a positive point of view.
She is proud to be deaf and defends the concept of “gain of deafness” and not “hearing loss.” It inspires the Deaf Community and encourages society to accept diversity.
In the year 2015, Drisana was awarded with the Australian Young of the year Prize, which recognized her passion and dedication in defending the human rights of deaf people, raising awareness about Auslan, and the rights of deaf children in Australia to learn Auslan from birth.
ADOLESCENTS CREATE A VEST FOR DEAF PEOPLE
In Vigo (Galicia), students of 16 years of the institute of FP Montecastelo have created a special vest for deaf people who do not communicate by means of lip-reading. This smart vest contains sensors that vibrate when they pick up the sounds, so it should be placed under the clothes.
The person responsible for this project explains that, for example, deaf people could receive the horn signal from the car thanks to the engines of the vest would receive the sound and send a signal to the user.
The project, which is the first designed by such young people, is part of an investigation in which the institute works. Currently, they are in the second phase of recognition of sentences and words to improve the quality of life of deaf people.
CIVIL GUARDS PREPARE IN ALMUSSAFES TO BREAK THE COMMUNICATION BARRIERS WITH DEAF PEOPLE
On January 27th, Almussord President Jorge Fernández, accompanied by a Sign Language Interpreter, gave a talk at the Almussafes Civil Guard barracks. The objective of the conference was to sensitize agents to the serious communication barriers that deaf people have and, with the help of all social partners, can be eliminated. To do this, the attendees learned how to attend a deaf person during a possible crime or if he goes to the barracks or the police station to file a demand.
In addition, the talk, called “Hands that speak”, made a brief tour of history, culture and deaf community.
THE CITY COUNCIL REQUESTS THE INCLUSION OF THE SPANISH SIGN LANGUAGE IN THE STATUTE OF AUTONOMY OF THE CANARY ISLANDS
All the political groups supported in the ordinary plenary session an institutional declaration requesting the amendment of the Statute of Autonomy of the Canary Islands so that the Sign Language is recognized as a right.
For its part, the Federation of Associations of Deaf people of the Canary Islands (FASICAN) has been asking for recognition of the rights and duties of citizens and guaranteed the use of the Spanish Sign Language and the equality of deaf people of their communicate choice in this language, which must be taught, protected and respected.
This institutional statement also includes the need for the Canary Islands Statute to require the public authorities to guarantee the use of Sign Language, and to remove communication barriers between deaf people and public administrations.