The health crisis of coronavirus has led to gradually changing customs such as social estrangement and the use of masks. However, the measures that have been taken to the emergency are not necessarily compatible with all people or realities.
“My brother is deaf, he has complained several times. He went to the fair, he went to the supermarkets, he’s had a lot of difficulty. Some speak loudly and my brother does not understand,” the general secretary of the Chilean Deaf Association (Asoch), Alexis Estibill, told El Mostrador.
Estibill noted that there are no manufacturers of transparent masks in the country and adds that, in addition to their non-use in supermarkets, they are also not used in public services. “So far I’ve asked a lot of deaf people and haven’t seen masks with transparency so far,” he said.
Under pandemic context and widespread use of masks, many deaf people have had to deal with situations similar to that reported by Stibill. “Some people take off their mask for a moment, talk, and put it back on,” as Asoch’s secretary general said.
However, there is one preferable option to remove the mask momentarily: transparent masks. Its importance is that it allows some deaf people to read their lips. “For example if someone with a covered mouth says ‘you have to wait in line’, you don’t understand it, but if you say it with your mouth uncovered you get a little understood,” Estibill explained.
The problem arises when the small number of these implements hinders their widespread use. The asoch member says that there are no manufacturers of transparent masks in the country and adds that, in addition to their non-use in supermarkets, they are also not used in public services. “I’ve asked a lot of deaf people and we haven’t seen masks transparently so far,” he said.
American student Ashley Lawrence sherself made transparent masks
“In all public services there has to be one or two executives so they can serve all the deaf people, that’s the idea. And while everyone now wears masks and wears sign language, you still have transparency to read lips,” Alexis added.
According to WHO, there are 466 million people worldwide with disabling hearing loss; of these, 500 thousand live in Chile. Stylon nuances that not all deaf people are able to read lips and that efforts should also be geared towards general sign language learning.
“Authority has not been up to the task”
A few days ago, Deputy Jorge Alessandri (UDI) requested that the government provide transparent masks through the ministries of Health and Social Development.
“It is a great idea to be asked by the UDI legislator, which we fully support. However, we have to admit that these are isolated measures, which are not integrated into a health plan directly focused on people with disabilities,” said the president of the Chilean Disability Foundation (FChD), Matías Poblete.
Poblete is critical of government work during the pandemic. “It must be said clearly, authority has not lived up to it, and we are only considerate during the Telethon,” he said.
Some of the questions also point to the TV Educa Chile channel “which encourages teleduction but was not accessible from the start because it did not incorporate universal learning design (DUA)”, demanded the representative of the FChD.
“The authorities need to talk to us today that we are the experts who work with people with disabilities, we are open to working together to overcome this global pandemic,” Poblete said.
