Reconciling Different Communities and their Specific Needs

By Roger Saint-Louis
Presentation in Quebec Sign Language (LSQ)

Let me introduce myself. I am Roger St-Louis, President of the Ontario association of the French-speaking Deaf, whose head office is in Sudbury Ontario.

I became profoundly deaf at seven as a result of meningitis.

I am married to Murielle Richer, who is also profoundly deaf. We have seven children.

My parents grew up with a deaf cousin who was unable to articulate and they quickly learned to follow the footsteps of a deaf person. They did not try to cure my deafness but gave me the tools to help me cope with it.

From my earliest childhood, I remember well having been cared for by deaf adults when my parents were asked to help them and act as interpreters or communication facilitators. I lived through my early childhood surrounded by deaf/hard-of-hearing people, and that allowed me to better understand how to become the advocate for the rights of deaf people and how to obtain various programs to help the Franco-Ontarian deaf population meet its needs. We have the right to a language; this is not a privilege, but a fundamental right that should be guaranteed for the survival of our Franco-Ontarian culture.

Deaf people of francophone origin were sent to Anglophone provincial schools, and thus became assimilated, and the majority lost their Franco-Ontarian culture.

Later, when they became adults, those persons were frustrated because they were unable to understand conversations in French with their parents and their loved ones who were francophone. They could not fully participate in family activities during the Holidays, so most deaf persons left their families to regroup in the deaf community and create their own heritage.

The education of the Deaf of Francophone origin is a file that has been ignored far too long. In the past, Francophone parents of deaf children were dependent on the wisdom of teachers from the clergy, public servants or doctors for selecting an educational program for their children.

Before 1970, three popular options were available: a French-language residential program in Quebec, an English-language residential program in Belleville or Milton, or keeping the children at home. Because provincial residential schools for the deaf provided only English-language education, many Deaf of French origin were assimilated and became strangers in their own families.

Services for deaf children of Franco-Ontarian origin became available in the early 1990's with the opening of the provincial French-language school, Centre Jules-Léger, in Ottawa, which was previously associated with the English-language Sir James Whitney School in Belleville, and under the umbrella of the University of Ottawa as a teaching establishment for children with learning disabilities. Later, the school became a provincial school with four programs, Deafness, Deaf Blindness, Blindness, and Learning Disabilities. This was the beginning of the programs in LSQ, so that children from francophone families could, at last, have their own school in LSQ-French.

There were no interpreting services in LSQ in Ontario, and it is only in the early 1990's that interpreter training services were created in Collège Boréal under the New Democratic government but, unfortunately, the program was cut by the Conservative government, as were the Francophone programs, which were similarly disposed of. We hope that the present Liberal government will reset the clocks to the current times by re-establishing the much needed programs we require to ensure a better future for our community.

The pursuit of these educational changes required the efforts of the Ontario Association of the Deaf (OAD), with the theme Deaf Ontario Now (DON) in the late 1980's, which advocated for Bill 4, making it possible to introduce educational programs in LSQ/ASL. Then, the Association Ontarienne des Sourd(e)s francophones was established to support French/LSQ programs.

Skilled interpreter services in LSQ are becoming less and less available since the one and only interpreter training program in Collège Boréal was eliminated a few years ago. We are therefore very vulnerable and major losers compared to the professional agency that is well known, and receives funds to provide us with services that are, unfortunately, geared to the English-speaking population. We are told to go to that agency to get services or funding, but since their services are only available in English, we are again deprived of equal services because we are not as well versed in the English language.

Most of the time we are assigned ASL interpreters, or we are asked to find volunteer interpreters, because service providers do not want to pay for the travel and accommodation expenses of interpreters who must be brought from another city or from Quebec. We are therefore very frustrated to see that the services of skilled LSQ interpreters are not accessible to us due to lack of funding. Agencies do not want to pay for the costs of interpreters who are not from the region.

At the present time, we suffer from a lack of interpreters, and the only interpreters that we have are overburdened and their health is at risk. This injustice is unacceptable. We have fought for years to get what we desperately need to become full-fledged citizens, citizens who are proud to be able to participate equally in our community. We must be able to say "the sun shines upon us, because we were in darkness before, without the support of interpreters". Unable to cope, many deaf persons of Francophone origin were committed to psychiatric asylums because they could not make themselves understood. (the same thing also happened to Anglophones) Without interpreters, we run the risk of seeing an increase in the number of deaf individuals who are committed for these same reasons.

In a society where funds are available for persons with a visible disability, the funds for Deaf disabled persons with an invisible disability are very limited; the funds are seldom available for Deaf associations and, particularly for the services of skilled LSQ interpreters. We can count them on the fingers of one hand and, too often, non-qualified ASL interpreters are called upon to interpret for us and we are unable to establish appropriate or accurate communication unless a volunteer skilled interpreter devotes his or her time. It is then necessary to call upon the Secretary of State of Canada to claim our rights, to submit to them the document from the Supreme Court of Canada that cites the Eldridge Case. Government agencies do not accept to pay for the related costs, unless there is an intervention by the Secretary of State, or reference to the Eldridge Case.

When a new Director is appointed in a Department or Agency, we must repeat the whole process again to make him aware, to inform and to educate him. This is a never ending process. Then, if we cannot voice, and if interpreter services are not available, we are again victims of discrimination. Since we have an invisible disability, it is difficult to make ourselves understood and, too often, the Department refuses to pay for the services of interpreters. They must be well aware of our needs if they are to respond to them but there are few influential persons who understand our needs. It often happens that agency employees do not know how to use a TTY or the BRS. They place voice calls directly to us although they are unable to talk to us. If we are fortunate enough to have a call identifier, we try to return the call through the BRS, always an endless process.

If we request funding, the government refers us to see a well-known agency, and it is difficult to get funds from the agency as it does not provide French language services. There are often conflicts between the groups soliciting funds in order to provide for the needs of their community. Then we are referred to an agency that operates interpreter services, and services for hard-of-hearing persons. This agency provides interpreter services in one city and refuses to pay the interpreter's travel expenses if the distance is more than 50 kilometers.

We are always the last to benefit from equity programs if sufficient funds are not available for interpreter services in the community where they are needed. Hearing persons get the prestigious positions that organize interpreter services. They take advantage of our deafness, because we cannot hear the dialogues and we are provided only with a short summary of what is happening.

Most influential people in government agencies say that they are comfortable with people with a handicap, provided that communication is not affected. Persons with a visible handicap and who can articulate voice speech are not affected, a person who is blind and hearing may well communicate with speech, whereas communication with a deaf or hard-of-hearing person is uncomfortable and problematic. Persons, those who are not aware of sign language communication or of the use of skilled interpreter services need to be informed, educated and sensitized to our needs.

All too often, persons with little knowledge of deafness speak too loudly in the hope that we will hear their voice, turn their backs on us and continue to speak loudly, not realizing that speech reading and facial expression are essential to communication with us.

This is all the more important for Deaf and hard-of-hearing persons, specially when there have mental health problems. Why? Because Deaf or hard-of-hearing people are the last to benefit from equity programs. There are no psychologists, psychiatrists, or professional mental health service providers who are able to communicate in LSQ sign language and provide the same services that are available to hearing persons.

The availability of captioning services to the Francophone deaf community is almost non-existent compared to the captioning services provided to the English. These services must be made more accessible to Deaf Francophones as well as the services of LSQ interpreters who speak English, French and LSQ, in order that Francophone Deaf persons receive equitable services in Ontario, without having to also hire an English-French interpreter to meet community needs (doctor, dentist, hospital, etc.) We are too often offered an ASL interpreter instead of LSQ. There are not enough LSQ interpreters and the agencies do not want to pay for the costs of travel, citing that it is too expensive; and we are the big losers. We must lodge complaints with the Human Rights Commission to get services in LSQ.

A deaf individual was sent to a mental hospital when his parents died, because the other members of his family wanted to take his belongings and so, they had him committed. He had lived with his parents and had invested his money into various possessions, a snowmobile, various devices, TV & VHS recorder, camera, video camera, household appliances and he had paid the maintenance fees all his life. Then, to get his assets, the members of his own family had him committed, because the poor soul was unable to speak and voice a defense, could not read and write well; so, without interpreters to support him, he was committed and the members of his family stole all of his belongings and left him without money. With the help of a Deaf person and the provincial chaplain, this man was discharged from the Sanatorium and found himself penniless on the streets. He was unable to do anything to retrieve his belongings. If there had been a designated place to help Deaf people, this man could have received the help he needed to get what was due to him.

At this time, the legislation on the Disabled and the Ministry of Civic Affairs and Immigration in Ontario has made progress, but there is still much left to do. LSQ interpreter training must be re-established in Ontario, because, in Ontario, interpreters can understand both English and French and provide simultaneous interpretation in LSQ. This will ensure that the needs and rights of Deaf people are met and that the services of psychologists, psychiatrists and other mental health professional, as well as legal services are met at all levels.

As for the ageing deaf population and those persons who are becoming hard-of-hearing as they age, are they not more susceptible to fraud and theft? They have needs, but they are not always understood. We must implement means to ensure their security and well-being. They have worked all their lives, and receive but a meager pension, insufficient to ensure quality of life and restrict quality services to which they are entitled.

Where in the world are the interpreter services to help them?

The most pressing service for French-born deaf people who live in Ontario is that of LSQ interpreters. There does not exist, in Canada, an adequate program to train LSQ interpreters; however this is the service that is the most important to meet the needs of the deaf community. We still depend on families and parents for this service which is essential to our full integration. Can you imagine not being able to communicate with the teachers of your children, with waiters in restaurants, with salespersons in stores, or even with your family physician? This is exactly what is happening to us every day. The greatest action to undertake will be to establish interpretation services for the French-born Deaf of Ontario.

The lack of interpreter services, of captioning and note taking, the lack of mental and physical health services are some of the priorities we must address immediately.

The Deaf and hard-of-hearing have different needs, because the Deaf prefer sign language and LSQ interpreters, whereas the hard-of-hearing have different needs, oral interpreter and hearing aids to better hear the sounds. Both benefit from captioning and note takers.

THE ILLITERATE

The illiterate of the past was one who had not learned to read or write; today's illiterate is the one who did not learn to learn; but the illiterate of tomorrow will be the person who did not learn to create by him/herself.

La revue des échanges afides, avril, 1986.

The child learns to read before his first years in school, but he reads to learn (for) the rest of his life.

Robert Orr.

The problem of deafness seems to have created an obstacle for the deaf child. With the oppression of his language he has been unable to overcome the obstacles of illiteracy, yet, having no pedagogical support, he has been unable to enrich him/herself and become autonomous.

Roger St-Louis

Literary works

Children have rights: they have a right to literary works; they have the right to be assisted and guided in learning letters. They ability to learn the language, spoken or written. It is up to us, because the children will be tomorrow's educators, to ensure that the conditions are set for sign language to develop and blossom. The responsibility is ours, the future is theirs, let us make the sign language for the Deaf become a literary work.

Roger St-Louis
Idea drawn from the article FAMILY LITERACY

Reading Begins at Birth

DAVID DOAKE