Deaf Australian activists demands clear view of Auslan interpreters
ALEX:
Here is an interview with two deaf advocates for accessibility to emergency information in Australia — Shirley Liu and Colin Allen.
SHIRLEY LIU:
My name is Shirley Liu. This is my sign name. I’m from Sydney in the state of New South Wales.
COLIN ALLEN:
My sign name is this. Colin Allen. I’m here from Rochester, New York, in America.
ALEX:
Colin Allen, who is well-known in the Deaf community for his tenure as WFD President, tweeted in November that there were no Auslan interpreters provided for all news and emergency announcements when bushfires started to spread.
[Video tweet by Colin Allen]
ALEX:
That was then, and now the bushfire situation has become worse. Colin and Shirley said there is still a lack of Auslan interpreters on media platforms, that governments didn’t make sure to hire one for press conferences or briefings, or interpreters were cut off the screen.
Shirley worked with team to create a short video with two slogans: “Can you see the interpreter?” and “Interpreters Save Lives.” Here it is.
[Video of several Deaf people signing in Auslan, “Can you see an interpreter?” And “Interpreters save lives.” The video shows examples of broadcasts with and without an interpreter.]
ALEX:
The video reached many people on social media, including top Australian opposition politicians on both the state and federal level.
[Image of Penny Sharpe, MLC and her letter to the Prime Minister on visibility of interpreters]
[Tweet by Anthony Albanese, MP on making sure Auslan interpreters are included in live TV coverage of bushfire briefings]
ALEX:
They and the deaf community could see an impact because interpreters became more prominent after the activism.
Here is an interview with the two. I’ve edited it down for length.
SHIRLEY:
I hope media will learn from this mistake and make sure to include interpreters on the screen and set a good example. I hope this will be the same in the future for every major or emergency announcements. All of it.
COLIN:
Signed interpretation can be delivered on the same fast pace as spoken languages. The captions do lag behind or are prone to errors. This is an issue. Of course, sign language is our language, and is powerful and clear. Deaf people can completely understand the message.
ALEX:
I understand clearly. It’s the same in America, we do have problems with hurricane announcements. There may be no captions or interpreting, or even worse, a fake or unqualified interpreter! So it is good for us to see advocacy in Australia so we can do the same if it happens as we also need access.
COLIN:
Why should the Deaf Australian sign language community have to do so much activism? The WFD has already made an announcement about the CRPD, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Australian government have already ratified it. Article 21 is about access to information. All governments are obligated to provide sign language interpreters. So they “failed.” And this also leads to human rights violations by the Australian government. They argue that there is no legislation or rules in their framework, so we go back and forth. It is a human issue.
ALEX:
Thank you for your time and activism, Colin and Shirley.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/auslanmediaaccess/
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