Deaf & Blind School Celebrates Birthday

The Colorado School For Deaf and Blind is celebrating its 145th birthday. KXRM-TV (Fox 21) in Colorado Springs has a video report.

Judge: Captioning Suit can go Forward

A judge has rejected an attempt by Harvard and MIT to dismiss a lawsuit over video captioning on their MOOC (massive open online courses) offerings and guest lecture videos hosted on the school's YouTube channels. The National Association of the Deaf filed the lawsuit in 2015, saying the captioning was so bad on these videos they were pretty much useless. The recent attempt to get a dismissal is the second time the schools have tried and the second time they've been turned down. Read the decision here.

The Stand-up Comic Bringing Deaf Culture to Hearing People

Greek-born but Edinburgh-based comedian Leah Kalaitzi uses British Sign Language (BSL) and an interpreter to spread Deaf Culture. In a video called Silent Laughs, the Scottish Documentary Institute follows Kalaitzi to the stage.

NTID marks Half a Century of Deaf Education

It's been 50 years since Rochester Institute of Technology welcomed its first class of 70 deaf students. It was 1965 when the National Technical Institute for the Deaf was born. President Lyndon Baines Johnson signed a bill into law that created a national advisory group which led to the creation of an institute of technical training for the deaf. In 1974 Lyndon Baines Johnson Hall was created as a main hub for NTID students. The first lady, Lady Bird Johnson, visited the school for the dedication and opening ceremonies. WROC-TV has a video report on the re-dedication of the Hall on Friday. You can read more about the event on the NTID website here.

Terp conference is sign only

Pennsylvania's Mount Aloysius college is holding an ASL interpreting conference this weekend. It's a silent conference because everyone attending has been asked to turn their voices off. WTAJ-TV has a video report (or read the story here).

Deaf People Answer Oddly Common Googled Questions

Minor League Baseball team to honor the Deaf community

The Rochester Red Wings will have a special day to honor ASL. The minor league team and Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, will wear special ASL jerseys on April 28 when the team plays the Pawtucket Red Sox. The Rochester jerseys will have "Red Wings" spelled out in ASL and the players will wear hats with the capital “R” in ASL. The game will also feature a "silent inning" with no announcements or music. Instead, sign language interpreters will be stationed throughout the park. Read more about it on the Red Wings website here.

Seattle may Require Captions at Bars and Restaurants

Seattle is considering a city law that would "require closed captioning to be activated on all TVs in public spaces." KUOW-TV reports that the "proposed legislation would require closed captioning be turned on during business hours in a range of settings where TVs are present, including places like waiting rooms, restaurants and bars." Read the full story here.

Some Cities Removing Online Documents over ADA lawsuits

The Orlando Sentinal is reporting that three cities in Florida have removed many public documents from the websites because city officials are worried about getting sued over ADA violations. Many officials say they were unaware that the federal law requires government agency accessibility also applies to the web. But since "Nearly 2,000 suits were filed in 2018 alleging website accessibility issues," it is an increasing concern. Read the full story here.

Sign-friendly restaurant opens in Arizona

Sign of the Thymes in Glendale, Arizona is sign-language friendly. Chris and Ann Colston own the restaurant. Ann Colston tells KTBS-TV, "My husband, whose sister is deaf, has been signing since he was six years old, and so we started putting some things together and talking about opening up a restaurant where deaf people can have a place to come and feel comfortable placing an order like everybody else." Read the full story and watch a video report (no captions) here.

Deaf parent Suit: No Terp at Meetings

The father of a middle schooler in San Antonio is suing the public school district. Cleto Rodriguez says in the suit "he requested sign language interpreters for multiple parent-teacher conferences but was never provided them as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act and other laws." The San Antonio Independent School District refused to comment on the lawsuit. Read the full story in the San Antonio Express here.

Let's visit Work & Woof

A freshman at the Texas School for the Deaf (with the help of his teacher) is learning how to help take care of dogs at a place called Work & Woof. Here's a video about Fabian Davenport and his teacher Alexis Roland.

Texas Hoops Team Undefeated During Season

image from tsdrangers.com

The girls' basketball team at the Texas School for the Deaf in Austin was undefeated through the end of their season. The team was 33-0 going into the semifinals. That's when the Lady Rangers suffered their first defeat. They lost to Houston Lutheran North by a score of 55-52. Lubbock Trinity Christian then beat the Houston Lutheran North for the 4A championship. Find out more about the team's effort from CBS-Austin here.

A Program for Deaf-Blind Independence

The Iowa School for the Deaf has a special programs to help deaf-blind students gain independence. A dozen students in the program have jobs and one "just completed a seasonal position." Read more in The Daily Nonpareil here.

CVS Pharmacy is getting out of the hearing aid business

CVS is going to shut down its 49 standalone audiology centers at the end of the month. The move comes ahead of FDA changes to hearing aid regulations. CVS is the largest pharmacy chain in the US but Costco dominates the hearing aid retail market. The website "Hearing & Health Technology Matters" quotes a CVS spokesman as saying, "The FDA is preparing to approve lower-cost, over-the-counter hearing devices in the near future, and new technology is emerging to enable self-serve hearing testing and care." Read more here.

Discrimination Lawsuit Settled with Parking Service

USA Parking Services is settling an EEOC lawsuit for "refusing to hire a deaf applicant for a valet attendant position based on the assumption that a deaf person could not perform the essential functions of the job rather than conduct an individualized assessment of his abilities." The valet and parking services company will pay $150,000 and recruit deaf and hearing-impaired applicants and make changes to its qualifications. Read the details in a EEOC press release here.

Living with Usher Syndrome

Shannon Reyenga explains a difficult decision in Huffington Post article titled, "Why I Didn’t Tell My Boyfriend I Was Going Blind Until I Absolutely Had To." She writes, "After I learned I had Usher syndrome, I thought I lost any chance of finding love. I struggled with the idea of finding someone willing to face this challenging diagnosis with me. I could hardly face it myself." Read her full story here.

Hospital accused of not providing interpreter as deaf patient died

Mary Davidson’s family says she went weeks at a time with no sign language interpreter at the Canadian hospital where she died, according to the Hamilton Spectator. Her sister-in-law, Catherine Soplet, is quoted as saying, "The hospital was relying on family members to be the translators despite repeated requests for the use of translation services." Read the full story here.

Wheel of Fortune appearance

Lori is deaf and Lorraine has been her friend and interpreter for more than 50 years. They appeared together recent on Wheel of Fortune—and won some money!

Controversy over Terp at Bball Game

The interpreter for a deaf basketball player in Culver, Indiana was ordered by a referee to not stand beside of the coach. It's something she has done during every other game. The IndyStar has the story here.

"Our sign language romance"

The BBC Arabic followed a deaf couple from Lebanon as they prepared for their wedding.

Implant just in time for Wedding

A Baltimore teacher got a cochlear implant to restore his hearing last week—just in time for his wedding. David Alianiello works with deaf students in Baltimore's public school system. He told People Magazine, "It was the first time I had ever heard clapping. It was fun to be able to experience the different sounds." Read the full story here or watch a video from WBAL-TV below.

Implant Stolen

A mother had part of her son's cochlear implant stolen. It was inside Kimberly Blodgett's purse when she dropped off her children at daycare. KFOR-TV has a video report.

Community Learns Sign for 2-year-old girl

A deaf toddler in Massachusetts got a wonderful gift from her community. CBS News has a video report. (CBS did not provide captions).

Deaf baristas: Starbucks discriminated against us

Two deaf baristas are suing Starbucks, claiming discrimination. They say the manager at the store in Seattle where they worked put them in positions for long hours that were especially difficult for deaf workers and that they were excluded from conversations with other employees, among other things. KIRO-TV has a video report below. There is a captioned video here.

City Council Drops Use of Terps at Meetings

If you live in Cleveland, your City Council meetings will not include sign-language interpreters anymore. The Council thinks it's too expensive, according to a letter one of the members sent to a man who is hard of hearing and had requested interpreters. The city provided them for a while, but the letter to Rico Dancy now offers him the use of headphones instead. Read the full story at Cleveland.com here.

Mom Remembers Daughter

A video posted on Facebook shows a deaf mom with dementia remembering her daughter. Watch it here.

Mother Gets ASL Lesson After Using the Wrong Signs

A mother wanted to teach her one-year-old child some sign language. She shares on Reddit how she accidentally taught her daughter some wrong signs. Fortunately, two deaf women saw them trying to sign in a restaurant and they graciously showed the mother the correct way to sign the words. Read the story here. (This is a corrected link. The originally posted link was broken) Some of the comments of other mistaken attempts at signing are pretty funny, causing the discussion thread to go viral.

How Murder Shattered a Quiet College Campus

A murder took place during the year 2000 at Gallaudet University in Washington, DC. An episode of People Magazine Investigates is dedicated to the crime. "The Sound of Silence" will air Monday at 10 pm, Eastern on Investigation Discovery. An article published by the magazine this weekend describes the crime that shook the campus. You can read it here.

The missing sign from the Super Bowl

Did you see the national anthem signed by Aarron Loggins during the Super Bowl? You didn't if you were watching the CBS broadcast of the game. That's because the network only showed Loggins for a second at the end of America the Beautiful. A video posted by the National Association of the Deaf of Loggins from the Super Bowl has been viewed more than one-and-a-half million times on Facebook. Watch it yourself here. Loggins earned a degree from Gallaudet University. Below is a video of Loggins during his Atlanta visit.

Two New Apps Related to Hearing

Google has two new Android apps aimed at the deaf and hard of hearing. Live Transcribe is a speech-to-text app that works in real time and Sound Amplifier does what you would expect it to do based on the name—it makes sounds louder. The user with hearing loss puts on a set of headphones and can adjust the app's settings for voice clarity, decreasing the ambient noise, etc. Both apps will be available for free in the Google Play store. There are some limitations though. Sound Amplifier only works on phones with Android 9 Pie and requires an internet connection while Live Transcribe will only be installed on Google’s Pixel 3 smartphones.

Apple offers some help as well: VoiceOver is a free text reader built into iOS. Assistive Touch has vibrations and light flashes to alert users to incoming calls. Of course, FaceTime is used by many members of the deaf community.

 Accessibility advocates say the next step for these smartphone tools is to make them coordinate with features like location so that, when you set your phone to a certain ambient noise level at a particular location, the phone will automatically use those setting when you go there again.

Below is a video showing how Live Transcribe works. Read a review of the apps at The Verge here.

Security guard attacked by deaf Uber driver

A Houston security guard is recovering after being attacked by a deaf Uber driver. The confrontation was caught on camera. ABC-13 has a video report. For captioning, go here.

America's First Female Deaf Mayor

Amanda Folendorf became the mayor of Angels Camp, California just a year ago. The little town is located east of San Francisco. Amanda was born with a rare birth defect called diaphragmatic hernia. The medications she had to take as a baby ultimately damaged her hearing. Folendorf pick up some low-frequency noises and has some skill at reading lips. But the former Miss Deaf California says a team of sign language interpreters helps her execute her duties as mayor. “Hearing impaired and disability, I’m trying to throw that label out. We’re no different than anyone else; we just can’t hear," Folendorf told KOVR-TV (CBS-13) when she first came into office. Here's a video report from CBS-13 that aired a year ago when she first took office.

Gallaudet's Motion Light Lab

The PBS Newshour profiles Melissa Malzkuhn and her work at Gallaudet's Motion Light Lab in the video below. Malzkuhn says her "early access to sign language allowed her to connect with humanity."

Samantha Bee on Police and the Deaf community

Nyle DiMarco joined comedian Samantha Bee for a section of her show about the difficulties faced by the deaf when they encounter law enforcement.

City settles Captioning Lawsuit

Key West, Florida has agreed to add captioning to its meetings—and pay $10k to settled a lawsuit. Eddie Sierra, who is deaf, filed the suit, saying the failure to include captioning is an ADA violation. Read more on the story in the Miami Herald.

Deaf Couple has a Complaint against Delta

A deaf couple say they were discriminated against by Delta Air Lines while in Detroit and ended up missing their flight. In response to their claims Delta released a statement saying it takes "situations like these very seriously and as part of our culture of continuous improvement, we are using this as an opportunity to learn." Socorro Garcia and Melissa Yingst were in Detroit for the National LGBTQ Task Force's Create Change conference. Read more about what happened in a New York Post article here and the San Francisco Gate here. Below is the couple's explanation of what happened.

New Signing Science Apps

A new app provides a signing glossary for museum visits. Users can search among thousands of words related to science and an Avatar will sign it to them, along with its definition, among other things. The free apps work with iPhone and Android mobile devices. You'll find more information on the six new apps here.

Can 2 Deaf Strangers Fall in Love with 36 Questions?

Jubilee's "Tea for Two" video series is based on a column about 36 questions "that lead to love," written by psychologist Arthur Aron. There are questions like, "What is your most treasured memory?" or, "When did you last cry?" On season three, episode one, Jubilee brought together two deaf people: Ryssa Fleischer and Patrick McMullen. You can see how it turned out below. If you want to read the New York Times article, click here.

Deaf Ref Sues Athletic Assoc

Donald Jacobs is suing the Georgia High School Association for discrimination. The deaf basketball referee says that while the association requires refs to attend the Georgia High School Association referee camps for training and evaluation, it refuses to provide an interpreter, insisting he come up with his own. Read more about Jacobs plight in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution here.

Ariana Grande's New Video

Ariana Grande just released her new video 7 Rings with captioning. The move comes after she failed to include captioning on her video thank u, next. Nyle DiMarco called her out for the mistake, saying, “466 million people with hearing loss” who would like to watch it." Below is the new video.

Actress Defers to a ‘Brilliant Deaf Woman’

image by aitchisons

One of the stars of The Good Place says she turned down a role to play a deaf woman because "it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to take that role and they should find a brilliant deaf woman to play that role.” Jameela Jamil was born partially deaf but revealed her decision at the Press Association this week. Read more in the Huffington Post here.

Insurers now must cover hearing aids for Idaho kids

Idaho lawmakers have changed state law so that insurance companies are required to cover hearing aids, speech therapy for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. You can read the official rule here. KTVB-TV has a video report:

Deaf Man Shot & Killed in Phoenix

A father and member of the deaf community was shot and killed outside of a Phoenix apartment complex this past Monday, reports KNXV-TV (ABC-15). Police are looking for the culprits even as friends of Gary Herrera try to raise money for his funeral by holding a car wash Saturday. Below is a video report. For captions, go directly to the TV station website here.

Deaf And Unemployed

"Amanda Koller is getting her second master's degree. She has applied for more than 1,100 jobs in the past year. She hasn't gotten any full-time, permanent job offers. She is also profoundly deaf." That's how an NPR story on the difficulties facing deaf people seeking jobs. Read the full story here.

Donald Trump in ASL

Ever wondered how to say ‘Donald Trump’ in American Sign Language? The Washington Post has a suggestion here, along with some other politicians.

Deaf-friendly Workout Classes

A San Diego gym is hosting free workshops that include sign language and other deaf-friendly options. CBS-8 has a video report.

CBS News 8 - San Diego, CA News Station - KFMB Channel 8

$450K Donated to the Deaf Bible Society

A Christian youth gathering has raised nearly $450,000 to create translations of New Testament Bible Stories into 16 sign languages. Donations from the 40,000 students at Passion 2019, which took place in Washington, DC, Dallas and Atlanta, will go to the Deaf Bible Society. Read more here.

Katie Irwin becomes the first deaf person to give UAA Commencement Speech

Katie Irwin delivered the commencement address to fellow students at the University of Alaska Anchorage in December. She becomes the first deaf person to give the commencement. KTVA-TV has a video report.

Video shows Taco Bell Refusing to Serve Deaf Man

Taco Bell fired an employee in Ohio after he refused to serve a deaf man. The employee even threatened to call the police if he did not leave. The man's mother posted a video of the encounter on Facebook, saying, "This is my Deaf son getting discriminated against in the Taco Bell drive thru on Dorothy Ln in Kettering. He was trying to show them his order and they told him it was against company policy to take his order that way. Really?? Pretty sure the ADA would say otherwise. Uneducated people." Taco Bell released a statement saying:

Taco Bell has a fundamental policy to respect all of our customers and employees, and we are committed to maintaining an environment free of discrimination or harassment. The franchise owner and operator of this location has investigated this situation and the team member no longer works for their organization. All team members at this restaurant are being re-trained by the franchise owner on their policies.

Watch the video here.

Accessibility in Tampa Bay

Deaf advocates in Tampa Bay applaud the inclusion of Text 911. But they also say there's still a lot to do to make the community accessible. Read more in the Tampa Bay Times here.

The Rise of DeafSpace

Hansel Bauman, the architect who established the DeafSpace Project at Gallaudet, "is adamant that DeafSpace is very different from ideas such as 'human-centred design' and 'universal design.' Architecture for the deaf community should go beyond the goal of producing a design that simply suits its users well, he says. Instead spaces built for the deaf should understand and promote their community’s culture, too." Read more in an Economist article about "the rise of buildings for the deaf and blind" here. Below is a TEDx video featuring Bauman.

On this date: Long-time Gally prof killed

A former Gallaudet professor was killed on this day (Dec. 18) in 2013 when she was hit by a car leaving a parking garage where she lived in Washington, DC. Peggie Parsons was 90 years old and had spent her life setting up schools around the world that would teach sign and voice and wrote several books. She taught art history and retired from Gallaudet in 1988.

How deaf researchers are reinventing science communication

Science jargon can be a barrier to deaf researchers when there isn't a good sign for an English word. In an attempt to avoid a ridiculous amount of fingerspelling, there is an effort "to help ASL catch up by inventing new signs." Verge Science visited graduate student Lorne Farovitch in his Rochester, New York lab to find out more.

Getting Police up to speed with Terp App

Bellingham’s Hearing, Speech and Deaf Center in Washington State is working with the local police department to get officers access to live interpreters for the deaf. KIRO-TV has a video report.

‘Silent restaurant’ opens in Beijing

The Forgive Barbecue in Beijing, is, according to one of the employees, "A bridge to connect hearing-impaired people with other people." The entire staff is deaf. Read more in the Inquisitor here.

Brewery wants to make great beer — and serve the deaf community

Three Gallaudet University graduates opened a brewery this fall in a DC suburb just 4 miles from the school. Streetcar 82 in Hyattsville, Maryland gives "the deaf and hard of hearing a place to work and unwind." The Washington Post offers a profile here. Below is a video telling how they came up with the name.

Nursing Home Must Pay for Hanging up on Deaf Woman

New Jersey state officials are fining a nursing home $2500 after a worker repeatedly hung up on a deaf social worker. Nicole Perkins needed to discuss a client with Atrium Post Acute Care in Wayne, New Jersey. Attorney General Gurbir Grewal released a statement saying:

photo from Atrium Post Acute Care 

This case should serve as a message to healthcare facilities and other businesses around the state that we are serious about promoting and protecting the rights of persons with disabilities,” “This was a troubling case because there simply is no excuse for a nursing home – of all places – to repeatedly refuse to accept a telephone call from an operator calling on behalf of a deaf person. We are committed to enforcing the LAD, our nation’s oldest and most comprehensive civil rights law, and we are committed to holding accountable those who violate it. This was a troubling case because there simply is no excuse for a nursing home – of all places – to repeatedly refuse to accept a telephone call from an operator calling on behalf of a deaf person,” Grewal said in a statement.

The nursing home will lose $10,000 more if it fails to follow the Attorney General's requirements. Read more here.

Deaf HS Football Player in LA

A Los Angeles high school football player says being deaf hasn't held him back from contributing to his team. Desis Gonzales Jr. plays for San Gorgonio High School and NBC-4 has more on his story in this video report.

Wearable Tech to Listen to Live Music

A company called Not Impossible Labs says it has come up with a new wearable technology that "allows deaf and hearing users alike to experience musical vibrations through their skin for a true 'surround body' experience." The tech is called Music: Not Impossible and it works directly with a sound system. Read more details here.

Deaf students struggle with getting last minute interpreters

Students at one Texas school are having problems getting interpreters when they need them. The student paper at the University of Texas at Austin quotes a communication sciences and disorders major as saying, “A few weeks ago, my professor made last-minute office hours. On the same day, he said the review session would be moved back an hour. I can’t do anything about that. I knew that if I submitted a request, I would not get (an interpreter).” Read the full story here.

The Hoops Coach and his Viral ASL Video

A viral video of the basketball team for the Mississippi School for the Deaf has become an educational moment for those who don't know ASL.

The Downsides and Challenges of Cochlear Implants

An opinion piece in the New York Times takes on the issue of cochlear implants. Writing professor Sara Novic cautions:

Expecting an implant to cure deafness or magically generate speech is to await the moment the hammer will fly out of one’s hand and build a house on its own. The value of the tool lies only in the skill of its user, and for the cochlear implant user, that skill is learned with much effort. To suggest otherwise is to give a disingenuous prognosis to potential patients and their parents, and discounts the hard work successful C.I. users do to communicate in a way the hearing world deems acceptable.

Read her article here.

A Signed Bedtime Story Goes Viral

CBeebies Bedtime Story is a BBC show where a celebrity reads a children's bedtime story. A recent episode got extra attention because the celebrity, Catastrophe's Rob Delaney, signed in Makaton his story a week ago Friday. Delaney read aloud and signed Ten in a Bed by Penny Dale, becoming the first reader to do so. It caught the attention of six-year-old Tom McCartney. Watch Tom's reaction below in a video that went viral:



Delaney wanted to honor his son by telling bedtime story in Makaton, which is a variation of BSL (British Sign Language) combining signs and symbols Delaney learned Makaton in order to communication with his son, Henry, who couldn't speak and died last January at the age of two.

Pizza by the Deaf

San Francisco's Mozzeria restaurant is entirely owned and operated by people who are deaf. CBS News spoke with the owners, Melody and Russell Stein. They opened it in 2011.

Ocasio-Cortez is Captioning Her Instagram Posts for You

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 

The youngest woman ever to be elected to the US Congress says she is captioning her Instagram stories for the Deaf community. “Advocates for the deaf community hit me up to connect me with tools (i.e. Clipomatic) to better serve all of us. I now caption all my IG stories so our deaf brothers and sisters can follow along too,” representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter.

Advocates for the deaf community hit me up to connect me with tools (i.e. Clipomatic) to better serve all of us.

Thanks to them, I now caption all my IG stories so our deaf brothers and sisters can follow along too. https://t.co/WhwNNgSeHy

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) November 16, 2018

Helen Keller reinstated into Texas school curriculum

We recently told you about possible changes to the Texas school curriculum—including dropping historical figures like Helen Keller. After an outcry, that plan has been dropped. The Texas State Board of Education "backed restoring disability rights advocate Helen Keller to the state's third-grade social studies curriculum standards." Read more about what happened in the Texas Tribune here.

Deaf Football Team tries something new

The Alabama School for the Deaf football team is trying something new—they are playing with the Alabama School for the Blind. WIAT-TV has a video report on the Silent Warriors.

Deaf State House candidate Loses Race

Chris Haulmark

A Ωlegislative candidate in Kansas lost his race. Republican John Toplikar beat out Chris Haulmark—who would have become the first deaf legislator in the U.S. But Haulmark lost party support when he was accused by multiple women of being emotionally abusive. Read more about the allegations here.

Researchers: Sign offers insights not provided by spoken language

Researchers say, "Sign languages can help reveal hidden aspects of the logical structure of spoken language, but they also highlight its limitations because speech lacks the rich iconic resources that sign language uses on top of its sophisticated grammar." The study comes out of New York University and France's National Center for Scientific Research. It's published in the journal Theoretical Linguistics. Read details on the study here.

Kitty O'Neil Dies

Professional stuntwoman Kitty O'Neil has died at the age of 72. Among other things, the deaf daredevil set a record for land speed by a female driver in 1976. It was in Oregon's Alvord Desert that Kitty hit 512 miles per hour.

Childhood diseases left her deaf and nearly killed her. She became a champion diver at a young age. Her work later as a Hollywood stuntwoman was featured in TV shows like Quincy, Baretta and The Bionic Woman along with movies like Smokey and the Bandit, The Blues Brothers and Airport '77. 

She set a record for the highest stunt fall by a woman (105 feet).  She has held as many as 22 speed records on land and water.

A movie was made about her life in 1979 titled Silent Victory: The Kitty O'Neil Story.  She died Nov. 2, 2018 from pneumonia. Read more about her amazing life in a Washington Post article here.

Below is a video report on Kitty from the Midco Sports Network put together in 2015.

NYT advocates for Implants in Health article

A controversial New York pediatric audiology consultant and speech-language pathologist is quoted in the New York Times as saying, “Children identified with hearing loss at birth and fitted with technology in the first weeks of life blend in so well with everyone else that people don’t realize there are so many deaf children." Jane R. Madell claims, “Eighty-five percent of such children are successfully mainstreamed.” That's a figure that many would dispute. She helped produce a documentary about it called “The Listening Project.” Read more of the New York Times article here. Don't miss the comment section. There are opinions from a wide variety of people including a professor of Deaf education at Boston University. He writes:

This article talks about cochlear implants as a panacea, without acknowledging the tremendous risk that a child will not learn a spoken language at all. I am disappointed that the Times would publish something so misleading.

But other commenters defend the article and Madell's perspective. Below is a trailer for the documentary.

World-renowned Deaf Actor Dies

He paved the way for deaf theater performers and became a founder of the National Theater of the Deaf in Connecticut. Bernard Bragg died Los Angeles this past Monday at the age of 90. Bragg was also a visiting professor Gallaudet University where he attended school. Read more at The New York Times here. A Los Angeles Times obituary called Bragg "the first professional deaf actor in the United States." Below is a tweet from Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin about her longtime friend and a video of Bragg from his 80th birthday.

ASL gets a Table at Yale

Students at Yale University are finally getting an opportunity to learn American Sign Language. A pilot ASL course was first offered last semester to go along with a club and a dining hall language table. Read more about it in Yale's student newspaper here.

soccer at Gally

There are three Markels on the Gallaudet University men's soccer team this season: Elan Markel, Alton Markel and AJ Markel. Elan and Alton are brothers while AJ is their cousin. Elan and Alton's mom is on staff at Gally as an interpreter and their dad teaches ASL at another college. Read more about the Markel's in a Baltimore Sun article here.

Suit: No Terp for 5 Days in Jail

A deaf woman in California says she sat in jail for five days with no sign language interpreter. Jennifer Mello is now suing Kern County for not following ADA law when she was arrested in November of last year. Her complaint says deputies spoke to her, refused to provide an interpreter or even communicate to her in writing. After spending five days in jail without clearly understanding the charges, she says she was released. Read more about it at Bakersfield.com here.

Artist creates Mural: Doesn't Bother to get the Signs Right

A new mural in downtown Idaho Falls shows an incorrect use of ASL. The ACLU of Idaho commissioned artist Kelly Sheridan to create the work in partnership with the Idaho Falls Downtown Development Corporation. Read more about it from the Idaho State Journal here and KPVI-TV has a video report below.

Deaf man sues construction companies

A Deaf man is suing several construction companies in South Carolina after he was fired from a Mercedes Benz expansion project. WCSC-TV has a video report about Steven Kuhn's lawsuit here.

He was One of America's first Deaf Lawyers

He was born on this date, October 25, in 1880. Blinded by Scarlet fever at the age of nine, Roger Demosthenes O'Kelly began losing his hearing a few years later. The North Carolina African-American slowly regained his vision in one eye. While he wanted to attend Gallaudet University, his application was denied in 1898 based on the color of his skin. So instead, he earned a degree from North Carolina's Shaw University, graduating in 1908. O'Kelly was licensed to practice law in North Carolina, becoming one of America's first deaf lawyers. He later studied law at Yale University, becoming the second deaf person to graduate from the school in 1912. He returned to his home state where establised a lucrative law practice "serving white as well as black clients, particularly in real estate, domestic relations, and corporate issues" according to  Joe A. Mobley's book Raleigh: A Brief History.  O'Kelly died at the age of 82 on July 11, 1962. Below is a video from historian Kathleen Brockway about him:

The Signing Starbucks Opened Today!

Starbucks opened its first "Signing Store" today. It's in Washington D.C. less than a mile from Gallaudet University. Everyone working there is fluent in ASL and wears aprons that display the fingerspelling of "Starbucks." Here's a video report from Radio.com.

Deaf in Prison

"While I was in prison they had no American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters. None of the staff knew sign language, not the doctors or the nurses, the mental health department, the administration, the chaplain, the mail room. Nobody." Read about the lonely experiences of a deaf man in prison in a Marshall Project article called The Isolation of Being Deaf in Prison.

Are new laws designed to protect travelers "meaningless"?

New legislation allows for the development of an “Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights.” While some advocacy groups applaud the deal, signed by the President last week, others look at it differently. MIC quotes the CEO of Hearing Access & Innovations as saying "feel-good bills are a waste of time. I want bills that really work.” Read more here.

The Weather Channel Neglects Captioning During Hurricane

Oscar-winning deaf actress Marlee Matlin alerted the Weather Channel through a tweet that a video about Hurricane Michael was posted without captioning or a sign language interpreter. The storm was approaching the Gulf Coast of Florida at the time, making it critical to get emergency information to everyone—but the Weather Channel failed to respond.

A study on brain tumors and cochlear implants

Researchers in Sweden say they have found no evidence to support the idea that brain tumors are more likely in cochlear implant patients. That was a concern raised by a previous case but the scientists say in their study "The number of brain tumors observed was well within the numbers expected from national incidence figures." You can access the study here.

Gally Student Speaks at TEDxYouth Event

Here is a TEDx talk featuring Gallaudet University student Cheyenna Clearbrook. Born Deaf, she "addresses the divide between the hearing and Deaf worlds and discusses how sign language acquisition can impact both communities in a meaningful way."

Cops pepper spray deaf man

Prosecutors in Passaic County, New Jersey are looking into a video showing police officers using pepper-spray against a Raaeseon Adams who is deaf. Read more and see the video at NewJersey.com here.

Funding for Deaf Businesses

Communication Service for the Deaf (CSD) launched "the first-ever social impact fund and incubator for Deaf-owned and operated businesses" last year. The second round opens to applicants the coming Thursday (Oct. 4). Whoever gets selected for the Social Venture Fund will "have access to significant resources, including capital investment, mentoring and leadership training." For more information, click here.

Police: Sex Tape at Deaf School?

Illinois State Police are looking into whether a sex video was shot at the Illinois School for the Deaf in Jacksonville. It's reported to have happened in April. The video in questions was, until recently available on an adult website. Read more on the story from the State Journal-Register here.

DiMarco: ‘Pretending to Be Deaf Is Not Ok’

A Netflix original is getting heat from Dancing with the Stars champion Nyle DiMarco. The deaf model say a joke in the film about being deaf isn't appropriate.

Read more here.

Horror Film Casting Blasted

Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin and model Nyle DiMarco are among those in the Deaf community criticizing a new horror film called The Silence. A hearing actress was cast in a deaf role. Director John Leonetti told The Hollywood Reporter that the hearing actress has “flawless” signing and an almost “innate sense of what it’s like being a deaf person.” The film comes out in December. Read more here.

Texas May Dump Helen Keller from Curriculum

Texas plans to remove Helen Keller from the state's social studies curriculum. Haben Girma, who is deaf-blind, makes a plea to keep her story a part of the in an opinion piece first published in the Washington Post. She writes:

Teaching students about disability through the stories of people such as Keller prepares them to be better citizens, better friends and better family members. Keller’s optimism, hard work and commitment to justice inspire them to the same virtues. Texas will make a final decision in November. We have time to educate the state’s Board of Education on the importance of keeping Keller in the curriculum. Keller herself would urge people to stay optimistic: “Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement; nothing can be done without hope.”

Read the full article here.

Study: Older Adults Show Poor brain function with Implants

A study out of Antwerp University in Belgium finds cochlear implant recipients over the age of 55 have "significantly poorer cognitive function than their normal-hearing counterparts." Researchers say this finding shows "cochlear implants cannot fully compensate for this deterioration in brain function" due to dementia or natural cognitive decline. Details of the study are in Publishing in Frontiers in Neuroscience. Read more in Science Daily here.

Copies of Silent Garden given out in Fresno

Deaf educators in Fresno passed out the latest version of a book called The Silent Garden: a parent's guide to raising a deaf child. The book was written by Fresno State professor Dr. Paul Ogden and he was on hand as well. ABC-30 has a video report below. There's a text version of the story here.

ICE wants deaf & disabled man deported after decades in U.S.

photo credit: Diane Newman

ICE said it was planning to deport Francis Anwana by today but has decided to delay his deportation after an outcry from immigration advocates. Anwana came to the US at the age of 13 on a student visa. Anwana "was deaf, couldn't talk, and had cognitive disabilities, enrolling at the Michigan School for the Deaf in Flint." He is now 48 years old. ICE gave him less than a week's notice that he would be sent back to a country to which he has no ties. The Michigan Immigrant Rights Center says the decision would be a death sentence for Anwana because of his severe disabilities. The group says Anwana doesn't understand what is happening to him. Read more about him from Michigan's NPR radio group
here.

Bison Decide What to Do During the National Anthem

The Gallaudet University football team has been wrestling with what to do when the national anthem is played before Bison games. Matthew Davis writes:

The team’s head coach, Chuck Goldstein, wanted his players to think about their protest. "These situations help us come together," he relayed in simultaneous communication, signing and speaking at the same time. 'You can understand each person on the team, because each person is different. You’re from different places—different people have different struggles in life. He encouraged his players to discuss why they protested and if they could find a way to protest “together.”

Read the full story at The New Yorker here.

Marlee Matlin talks about on her new show

Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin appeared on KTLA-TV this morning to talk about her special Deaf Out Loud. There are no captions and KTLA misspelled her last name in the "lower third" but she did talk about the premieres of the show, which is September 12 on A&E Network.

Marlee Matlin Produced Docu

Oscar-winning actress Marlee Matlin is an executive producer of a new documentary called "Deaf Out Loud." The A&E special premieres September 12. The film is about "three deaf families as they raise their children in a hearing world." Here's a preview.

Austin Deaf Club Robbed

Someone broke into the building where the Austin Deaf Club was storing equipment in south Austin and stole thousands of dollars worth of equipment. KXAN has a video report.

"Hearing Impaired" Law in NY

The state of New York will no longer use "hearing impaired" in state law. Governer Andrew Cuomo signed the legislation into law on Monday. The bill requires any reference in state law to "hearing impaired" to be changed to "deaf or hard of hearing." Utah and New Hampshire already have such a law on the books. The new law was sponsored by state senator Terrence Murphy of Yorktown and Assemblyman Steve Englebright of Suffolk County. Read the text of the bill here.

A First For Gallaudet Sports

It was a historic night in Danville, Kentucky. Last night was the first time a Gallaudet University sports team has played in the state—aside from the track-and-field teams playing at an independent championship event in Berea. But the soccer game between Gallaudet and Centre College did not go as planned: There was a wait of more than an hour-and-a-half over lightning concerns. When the game finally started, Centre College dominated, winning 5-0. Next up for Gally: Spalding University in Louisville on Sunday.