International Week of the Deaf: September 25, 2020

Today’s theme: Equal Opportunities for All Deaf People

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We support full inclusion and equal opportunities for all deaf people through sign language interpreters in every area of life for equal access.

An inclusive employment environment in sign language is the cornerstone that enables deaf people to thrive and reach their full potential in order to maximize their participation and contribution to society. This inclusion and participation in society is underpinned by qualified and accredited sign languages interpreters. Therefore, sign language training programs need to be established and developed with the leadership of deaf people through their representative organizations.

Equal opportunities for all deaf people mean for all underrepresented groups of deaf people as well, including deaf women. Deaf women and girls are under-represented and are at risk of facing intersectional discrimination due to their gender, disability and linguistic minority status. Therefore, everyone – including representative organizations of deaf people – must pay attention to the specific situation of deaf women and implement precise measures to safeguard gender equality, diversity and equal participation in all decision-making processes in their society and within their organizations.

This year’s Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the dire lack of access of deaf people to life-saving public health information in their national sign languages. Furthermore, sexual and reproductive health care, as well as health prevention programmes including psychiatric care and psychotherapy must be accessible to deaf people in their national sign languages. Access to health services is not only about Deaf Communities. This access ensures the health of all communities.

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#DCARA #IWDeaf #SLEveryone #DeafAwareness

[ID: A flyer with dark background with wave textures with DCARA logo on top and International Week of the Deaf logo on the bottom with following content in teal and orange text:

Celebrate International Week of the Deaf

September 25, 2020

Today’s theme: Equal Opportunities for All Deaf People

“Sign Language is for Everyone”]