President Biden has challenged Congress to build “a fair economy that gives everybody a chance to succeed” and to “create the strongest, most resilient, innovative economy in the world.” And it looks like Congress has heeded his call.
But for deaf and hard of hearing Americans, the infrastructure challenge is even greater. We have a nationwide phone system today but it is one built almost entirely for the hearing. Emergency services can automatically locate you whenever you dial 911, but not if your language is American Sign Language (ASL). The phone gap for deaf Americans is both wide and unacceptable, including slower connections; much longer service sign-up delays – days not hours; and the inability to have one phone for calls and texting or to easily hop on Zoom for a job interview.
Simply put, communication access is a human right and not all Americans have the same access. America must do better.
Thirty years ago, President Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), promising a communications system for deaf and hard of hearing Americans that would be “functionally equivalent” to what most hearing people take for granted each and every day—the ability to talk with family, friends, business colleagues, teachers, and doctors and to do so with great ease and unquestioned quality.
Sherri Turpin believes It’s time to put the needs of the deaf community on equal footing. Photo credit: ZP Better Together, LLC
The ADA’s promise of functional equivalence is far from reality today for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in the United States. But, it won’t take an act of Congress to change this. Instead, it only requires the Federal Communications Commission to step up and choose to invest in the deaf community. The Commission has this very opportunity right now as part of its ongoing ratemaking proceedings continuing in the coming weeks.
Since the passage of the ADA, the Commission has run the Telecommunications Relay Service program. This program—funded by companies, not consumers—pays for sign language interpreters to relay conversations between deaf Americans and the hearing. Although once limited to slow and cumbersome telephone text TTY services, the Commission first opened the door to Video Relay Services (VRS) in 2000, allowing those who use ASL to make calls to hearing individuals seamlessly in their own language.
But the program has languished. In 2011, nine national deaf and hard of hearing consumer organizations called upon the FCC to meet the mandate of the ADA, pointing out that services like VRS did not offer deaf users the same emergency access, the same interoperability, the same technological advancements, and the same choices in equipment and software then available to hearing individuals.
ZVRS and Purple Communications have provided a video in American Sign Language interpreting this Opinion article authored by Sherri Turpin
A decade has now passed, and these goals have yet to be fulfilled. Provider rates have been slashed by 47 percent over the last decade, leaving us an industry with little competition, little consumer choice, and little provider incentive to innovate. Deaf and hard of hearing individuals have been left farther and farther behind in the digital economy. This impacts nearly every aspect of their lives: their connections with loved ones, their employment, their schooling, and their healthcare.
As my colleague Chris Wagner, our Chief Operations Officer for Customer Experience and who previously served as the President of the National Association for the Deaf (NAD), told me: “We must bridge these two worlds, the hearing world and the deaf world, providing equal communications access to all so that contributions from all American citizens, including deaf individuals, can be made and felt.”
It’s no wonder that the NAD and other consumer organizations have asked the Commission to seize the moment and “encourage innovation rather than stagnant levels of service.” That’s because they know that with proper investment, the video relay service can end the isolation of many people in the deaf community, open new doors to jobs and education, and allow full connectivity with family, friends, colleagues, and businesses—connectivity that is crucial for full independence and to unlock the vast contributions of millions of Americans.
Greg Hlibok, our Chief Legal Officer said: “I left the FCC to work in a truly blended and inclusive workforce—hearing and deaf. Our deaf workforce teaches our hearing colleagues what is needed to improve VRS so that it can become functionally equivalent, and our hearing colleagues work with us to bring to the table technology expertise and solutions that can modernize communications access for VRS users. Working together we can accomplish so much, but we need the FCC’s support to do more.”
I firmly believe the Commission views the deaf community as a worthwhile investment that will not only bring greater equity to telecommunications but also help drive economic growth for all Americans. Four years ago, the FCC helped small communications providers participate in VRS, increasing choice and competition. And last year, the FCC ensured uninterrupted relay services to the deaf community during the global pandemic, allowing more interpreters to handle VRS calls from their homes. These have been good steps but more change is needed.
Ensuring adequate compensation for VRS providers like ours is central to not only reversing this trend but most importantly delivering on the functional equivalency promise. Legacy rules, though, are denying compensation for providers to invest in 911 and other numbering technologies, denying compensation for providers to reach out to members of the deaf community who do not have service, and denying compensation for research and development to create new technologies for the deaf and hard of hearing. More broadly, these same rules do nothing to reward quality service and features—they only require providers to meet the bare minimum standard.
It’s more than time to make quality phone service for all a top priority. It’s time to put the needs of the deaf community on equal footing.
In talking about the need to invest in infrastructure, President Biden spoke of “ordinary Americans doing extraordinary things.” Having spent almost six years working day to day in a company where 70 percent of employees are deaf, I can tell you these are extraordinary Americans doing extraordinary things but it will take real investment in the community for all deaf individuals to unleash their potential.
I grew from 1963 with no communication access til I was teenage and I saw communication access to try but not enough so I depend hearing people to call for me and hearing people always make face express to me. I want my own communication til video phone. I always thrill on my own to communication than try. Don’t let government put deaf community . I grew up from old fashion til today so I hope future deaf children get better communication.
Hello
I am deaf and hard hearing and having a hard time understanding
Trying to get better with hands sign
I only know a little bit of hands sign
I have the books and trying to get better with it
I need help with it
Thank you
You can hire an ASL Tutor: http://www.ASLmasterTutor.com
Hello,
I think it is most important for The Deaf People need commication with purple vrs Because we arent enough skill with english which we usally using american sign language when it is english can our misunderstanding so purple vrs help us wont any issue misunderstanding commerication at all. I am happy with purple vrs or Soreson vrs too. Also i can calling my family anytime too.Thank you Fcc
I agree with her she do right way about deaf communication
We,Deaf people need our communication for relay with hearing family, hearing employees and hearing friends for our business/our matters
How about using capital D in Deaf all the time in your articles? We are Deaf people in Deaf communities with Deaf identities and cultural values. All other groups get this respect to capitalize their names, please SEE CHANGE as one simple way to include Deaf Americans as global citizens.
We need our communication access with vrs to communicate with hearing people clear..
Thank you for sharing your feedback Stefani. We service a diverse group of individuals in the deaf community who use American Sign Language, but do not identify themselves as being a part of the Deaf community. We are sensitive in ensuring we respectfully acknowledge all members of the deaf community who deserve equal communication access.
I feel that it’s not just a “Language” barrier, but also a “Communications” barrier. Not every deaf, hearing impaired, or hard of hearing people use sign language and some are able to verbally speak either with or without speech impeidment and there also people who are mute who are not deaf and hearing impaired, but do have a communitive disorder due to autism or developemental disorders. The technology does help with videos and closed captions and subtitles do help greatly for those that don’t use sign language in communicating with other people who use sign language. I was born deaf and my family didn’t know that I was deaf until I was almost 4 years old. Sign language was frowned upon in the institution that my mother was told to send me to daily before i started preschool. It was frustrating and can be a struggle to not only be deaf living in a hearing family and going to school but also it was difficult with a speech impeidment with my deafness that so many people considered me dumb, mentally developementally disable and learning disabled and won’t take me seriously and tend to treat me like a child inside of a grown up body. My IQ is the level of above average to superior intellect, and many times in my life i’ve been mocked for not only deafness but also my voice and speech and it hurt the people with deafness, and other disorders/disabilities feelings.
Love this! And I absolutely Agree100%
This is so important. Long overdue!
Do you want to see Communication Access that is functionally equivalent for our deaf and hard of hearing community? Join us in asking the FCC to take action and choose to invest in the deaf community. Just go to https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filings/express to submit your comments and make sure to fill in “10-51” and “03-123” for the proceedings! #equalaccessnow (ASL instructions coming soon!)
This benefits ALL VRS companies! File your comments TODAY
Do you want to see Communication Access that is functionally equivalent for our deaf and hard of hearing community? Join us in asking the FCC to take action and choose to invest in the deaf community. Just go to https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filings/express to submit your comments and make sure to fill in “10-51” and “03-123” for the proceedings! #equalaccessnow
For Instructions in ASL please go to: bit.ly/FCC_Form
This benefits ALL VRS companies! File your comments TODAY
For Instructions in ASL on how to submit the FCC Form, please go here: bit.ly/FCC_how
I definitely agree 100% and will do support this 100% Keep pushing until I RISE!
Ohh I don’t know about this comment for FCC
You need to show visual guidelines in this website to show Deaf and HoH folks how to send an appropriate ECFS Express Comment. It’s so technical and not an everyday political language that everyday folks use/read/discuss.
Everything really good PVRS . I LOVE THIS PVRS .
Please set up E911 location from my mobil. Please use only one text number instead of two phones number from relay interpreter number.Thanks
It is long overdue and time now for the Deaf to have equal rights with the hearing people. Please FCC get the ball rolling!
We need equal access! FCC, this is number one priority for deaf/hh people!
Thank you.
Love the good work you do Sherri and ZP Team! This is this kind of critically Important investing that busy people overlook supporting until it hits home or affects them personally. This is worthy of a bit of everyone’s attention as part of loving and respecting your neighbor! Good for you all and good luck. Let me know how I can help!!
Please invest in creating equal opportunities for access for the deaf and hard of hearing community without this we remain at an unfair disadvantage in all aspects of life
I have noticed longer and longer waits for an interpreter to come on. This impacts my ability to reach others in urgent situations and even emergency situations. This impacts my hearing callers’ motivation to call me and resulting in missed opportunities for medical appointments, household needs, work needs, etc. It is exhausting and anxiety producing. Brings me back to the dark ages of unequal access and opportunities.