Workshop Number Two
Jun. 3rd, 2009 04:16 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wheelieterpOn Friday evening, I am facilitating the first of what I hope to be many workshops/professional discussions of the issues facing Disabled interpreters. I’ll be honest: the real point is to have a discussion about Disability Paradigms 101 for the non-disabled, and less about the “issues” that the Disabled interpreter has to “face.” Those of us that are, in fact, Disabled interpreters have (at least every one that I have met has) already worked out the issues for ourselves. The same way we have worked out the issues in the grocery stores, sidewalks, office buildings, schools, buses, you name it. When these experiences aren't successful, it's normally not because of us. We are nothing if not resourceful.
I write it out as a speech just to order my thoughts, it will not be read and may not get delivered in anything even remotely resembling this….
The impetus for this workshop/discussion has its roots in my experiences as a person who had been an interpreter for more than fifteen years before becoming a Disabled interpreter. The sudden switch in perspective has led to some pretty big epiphanies and some even bigger realizations that have evolved over time. The most important of these was coming to understand the difference between something that is accessible, and something that accommodates my disability: an accommodation.
A space that is accessible to me—and it would be different for others, even others who may appear to have the same particular disability as mine—is flat, on the ground floor with either a long, easy ramp, or, preferably, flush to the ground. The doors swing both in and out freely and are light-weight, or they have power openers. The interior is hard-floored and open, the furniture placed with clearance for my chair on all sides, or against a wall. The bathroom is spacious with grab bars everywhere, and the sink, soap, and paper towels are all placed low enough for me to easily reach.
Most places are not built this way, so add-ons are installed to accommodate my needs. A short, steep plywood ramp with cheap metal railings may be tucked in an inconspicuous corner, or the door of the kitchen in the back of the building may be opened for me from the other side. I’ll be able to get through the space ok, as long as I ask several people to move (and no sir, I am sorry, you are actually going to have to stand up, just moving your legs to the side doesn’t even begin to give me enough room). The one stall in the bathroom will be JUST big enough to fit my chair in, but it’s the ONE stall, and I can’t use the 6 urinals unless I want to risk my legs going out from under me at the most inopportune time.
Yes, I’ll be able to use the space, but I can’t interact with it on a comfortable, intuitive level.
Oh.. And…It’s true… Ask anyone who uses a chair: some places’ idea of accommodation is having the bouncers lift the chair and rider together up a step. The last thing I need is to be dropped by someone who is not qualified to transport a person with a mobility device safely.
In short, accommodations work, but they are a second choice.
Now here’s where it impacts the interpreter. This is the message I so clearly understand now: I think most of us think that for Deaf, accessible means “ASL interpreted,” but “ASL interpreted” is the plywood ramp, it’s the accommodation. We work and practice and learn so at least we won’t be the bouncers doing heavy lifting, but we are still an accommodation… second best.
We Disabled folks have a lot to learn from the Deaf. They have been a cultured community long before we have, if we can even claim such standings yet. And I have always found the Deaf folks I know to be stalwart allies in our fight for access. And yet even in our community, in our gatherings, in our action planning sessions, in our rallies, we hire a couple of interpreters and call it inclusive.
Linguistic accommodation is accommodation only in the sense that there is an attempt to mitigate the impairment. It’s a solution only in the medical paradigm. In the socio-ecological paradigm {Note for the reader: The socio-ecological model recognizes the interwoven relationship that exists between the individual and their environment. This is made clear in the slide presentation} it falls devastatingly short of creating the space for participation that is comfortable and intuitive for the Deaf. No matter how good we are, it’s never as good as straight from the source. I knew this, but I don’t think I understood as many of its implications as I now do, and this new knowledge impacts who I am as an interpreter: it has made me a better interpreter than I was before the wheelchair.
Another thing I have learned in the Disability community is that no matter how diverse our own individual lives look, boy howdy do we have a lot of experiences in common. This means that I am probably late to the game: this is probably old news to some of you, Disabled or not.
And anyway, we are here to talk about Disabled interpreters. Who are we? What kinds of Disabilities do we represent? And most importantly, in what kind of space is our interpreter culture, education and profession taking place? An accessible place, or an accommodated one?
And then comes the real part, the discussion... This is the part that you gotta attend to get, and this is where all the good stuff will happen.
Wanna attend? Visit: The Language Door's website and click on "Educational Opportunities."
I write it out as a speech just to order my thoughts, it will not be read and may not get delivered in anything even remotely resembling this….
The impetus for this workshop/discussion has its roots in my experiences as a person who had been an interpreter for more than fifteen years before becoming a Disabled interpreter. The sudden switch in perspective has led to some pretty big epiphanies and some even bigger realizations that have evolved over time. The most important of these was coming to understand the difference between something that is accessible, and something that accommodates my disability: an accommodation.
A space that is accessible to me—and it would be different for others, even others who may appear to have the same particular disability as mine—is flat, on the ground floor with either a long, easy ramp, or, preferably, flush to the ground. The doors swing both in and out freely and are light-weight, or they have power openers. The interior is hard-floored and open, the furniture placed with clearance for my chair on all sides, or against a wall. The bathroom is spacious with grab bars everywhere, and the sink, soap, and paper towels are all placed low enough for me to easily reach.
Most places are not built this way, so add-ons are installed to accommodate my needs. A short, steep plywood ramp with cheap metal railings may be tucked in an inconspicuous corner, or the door of the kitchen in the back of the building may be opened for me from the other side. I’ll be able to get through the space ok, as long as I ask several people to move (and no sir, I am sorry, you are actually going to have to stand up, just moving your legs to the side doesn’t even begin to give me enough room). The one stall in the bathroom will be JUST big enough to fit my chair in, but it’s the ONE stall, and I can’t use the 6 urinals unless I want to risk my legs going out from under me at the most inopportune time.
Yes, I’ll be able to use the space, but I can’t interact with it on a comfortable, intuitive level.
Oh.. And…It’s true… Ask anyone who uses a chair: some places’ idea of accommodation is having the bouncers lift the chair and rider together up a step. The last thing I need is to be dropped by someone who is not qualified to transport a person with a mobility device safely.
In short, accommodations work, but they are a second choice.
Now here’s where it impacts the interpreter. This is the message I so clearly understand now: I think most of us think that for Deaf, accessible means “ASL interpreted,” but “ASL interpreted” is the plywood ramp, it’s the accommodation. We work and practice and learn so at least we won’t be the bouncers doing heavy lifting, but we are still an accommodation… second best.
We Disabled folks have a lot to learn from the Deaf. They have been a cultured community long before we have, if we can even claim such standings yet. And I have always found the Deaf folks I know to be stalwart allies in our fight for access. And yet even in our community, in our gatherings, in our action planning sessions, in our rallies, we hire a couple of interpreters and call it inclusive.
Linguistic accommodation is accommodation only in the sense that there is an attempt to mitigate the impairment. It’s a solution only in the medical paradigm. In the socio-ecological paradigm {Note for the reader: The socio-ecological model recognizes the interwoven relationship that exists between the individual and their environment. This is made clear in the slide presentation} it falls devastatingly short of creating the space for participation that is comfortable and intuitive for the Deaf. No matter how good we are, it’s never as good as straight from the source. I knew this, but I don’t think I understood as many of its implications as I now do, and this new knowledge impacts who I am as an interpreter: it has made me a better interpreter than I was before the wheelchair.
Another thing I have learned in the Disability community is that no matter how diverse our own individual lives look, boy howdy do we have a lot of experiences in common. This means that I am probably late to the game: this is probably old news to some of you, Disabled or not.
And anyway, we are here to talk about Disabled interpreters. Who are we? What kinds of Disabilities do we represent? And most importantly, in what kind of space is our interpreter culture, education and profession taking place? An accessible place, or an accommodated one?
And then comes the real part, the discussion... This is the part that you gotta attend to get, and this is where all the good stuff will happen.
Wanna attend? Visit: The Language Door's website and click on "Educational Opportunities."
no subject
Date: 2009-06-06 07:58 am (UTC)Amy Wiley
www.sparrowsflight.net