A while back at People of the Eye – we posted about Audism in Canada
Several of the issues have now made progress
Good News #1:
The student protests at the Centre Jules-Leger, a multilingual (LSQ, French, & English school for the Deaf) were a success in showing that the hiring of a new principal was unjust due to her being unqualified for the job – the hiree did not know LSQ (Quebec Sign Language) nor Deaf culture (the hiree’s degree and experience was in special education).
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/life/Centre+Jules+L%C3%A9ger+review+finds+unqualified+unprofessional+staff/5007426/story.html
Civil disobedience & peaceful direct confrontation works!
Good News #2:
Deaf activities and allies succeeded in lobbying for a commitment to the re-opening of the Newfoundland School for the Deaf
(see past full page ads that the activities had run in major newspapers calling for an investigation into the schools closing https://handeyes.wordpress.com/2011/03/20/ad-calling-for-investigation-into-nsds-closing/)
From the Liberal Party of New Foundland’s People’s Program book (p. 49)
SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF
A New Liberal Government will re-open the School for the Deaf, over a two-year period, working closely with parents and related groups and organizations.
Hopefully the Liberal Party will win the fall election and then within 2 years NSD will re-open. Maybe it would even offer a course in Maritime Sign Language.
The reopening of the school is very important because the school was earmarked by a doctor as being one of the pillars of keeping Deaf culture and sign language alive and thus something to be done away with in the push to eradicate deafness –
see http://www.thetelegram.com/Education/2009-04-27/article-1436743/Eradicating-deafness/1
Also because Canadian data shows that while oral / aural is the big push for infants and youngsters by elementary school age the shift goes to signing programs (see chart bel0w)
Looking forward to the hiring of a QUALIFED and PROFESSIONAL principal for Centre Jules-Leger and the reopening of NSD.
PEOPLE OF TH HandEYE -…first, last, and all the time” – g. veditz 1910 