{"id":14370,"date":"2011-05-16T20:56:01","date_gmt":"2011-05-17T01:56:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/?p=14370"},"modified":"2011-05-16T22:02:32","modified_gmt":"2011-05-17T03:02:32","slug":"new-billboard-targets-deaf-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2011\/05\/16\/new-billboard-targets-deaf-community\/","title":{"rendered":"New billboard targets deaf community"},"content":{"rendered":"

New billboard targets deaf community<\/strong><\/p>\n

Effort aims to improve deaf-hearing communication<\/p>\n

Published : Friday, 13 May 2011<\/p>\n

Jim Swift<\/p>\n

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Have you, as a hearing person, ever tried to make a phone
\ncall to a member of the deaf community? In the past, that was a real
\nchallenge.<\/p>\n

“Back in old time we used to have the TTY and it was a teletype
\ncommunication device,” said deaf entrepreneur Ed Bosson. “And it would take
\nforever for us to communicate with the hearing people. So now, with the
\nvideo relay service, like now it’s very fast.”<\/p>\n

Bosson is the chair of the board of directors for a company called ” Convo ”
\nwhich provides Video Relay Service for deaf telephone users. In fact, his
\nofficial bio calls him the “Father of Video Relay Service.” Not only did he
\npioneer the practice of using video screens and interpreters to facilitate
\nphone calls between the hearing and deaf worlds, he spent almost two decades
\ndirecting the Texas Public Utility Commission’s relay program.<\/p>\n

“It was a challenge, but I was able to convince them to have an aide who
\ncould be an interpreter and that really helped big time,” Bosson said.
\n“State regulators have a mindset about how things should be done. But
\nworking with the deaf and hard-of-hearing is a little different. You need a
\ndifferent approach and it was my responsibility to explain to them what’s
\nfunctional and what’s equal and what that means; not just to provide a basic
\nservice.”<\/p>\n

These days, Bosson shares ownership of Convo with four other deaf people.
\nNinety per cent of the employees are deaf and everyone involved with the
\ncompany is fluent in American Sign Language . But Bosson points out that
\nthere are at least eight other certified VRS companies out there to compete
\nwith and most of them have heavy corporate support. To meet that challenge,
\nConvo decided on a bold marketing strategy: a billboard located in the
\nmiddle of the nexus of Austin’s deaf community, two blocks from the Texas
\nSchool for the Deaf on South Congress Avenue.<\/p>\n

The billboard features a graceful arc of five separate ASL signs, bookended
\nby two larger gestures. More of an artistic statement than a literal
\nmessage, the sign attempts to draw the attention of the deaf community, yes,
\nbut of hearing people, as well.<\/p>\n

I hope that they will wonder about it: What is the sign about? I hope they
\nthink about it and process it. The opportunity is there, maybe to ask a deaf
\nperson that’s around, to see what the billboard’s about and maybe create
\nsome communication about it.”<\/p>\n

He means communication in a general sense. But the billboard pushes a
\ntechnology that allows for very specific communication, too. With VRS, a
\nhearing person can pick up the phone and dial a number. An interpreter
\nintercepts the call and routes it to the intended recipient. The deaf person
\ncan watch the interpreter translate the caller’s speech into ASL. Then the
\ndeaf person responds in sign language while the interpreter repeats the
\nmessage out loud for the hearing person. There is a short delay from time to
\ntime as the call unfolds, but it is a remarkably smooth process. And, of
\ncourse, it can also be used by a deaf person to call people in the hearing
\nworld.<\/p>\n

“It’s a huge role; it’s a very big role in our lives,” said 18 year-old
\nSchool for the Deaf student David Hornsby. It’s easier to communicate with
\nhearing people, communicate with a deaf person. It’s better than using text
\nmessages, using the video relay.”<\/p>\n

“In the past, maybe say, 50 years ago, deaf people really had to suffer,”
\nagreed TSD student Jamie Utzman, 16. “They did not have the technology; they
\nhad a really hard time communicating. So now we are so thankful with all the
\ntechnological advances. It’s about time.”<\/p>\n

But why a billboard? Well, eyeball visibility is part of it, sure. But
\nlayers of modern technology can multiply the effect.<\/p>\n

“By putting up a billboard, we can put that on Facebook; we can put it on
\nTwitter, emails, and it will be exposed,” Bosson said. “And that seems to
\nreally help spread the word.”<\/p>\n

And according to TSD student Tozzie Smith, 17, it is a word worth spreading.<\/p>\n

“I like it because I think it really shows the whole community,” Smith said.
\n\u201cObviously, it’s a big billboard for both deaf and hearing people to see. It
\nincreases that recognition of the deaf community through use of technology,
\nand I really appreciate that it’s there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pride is breaking out in the deaf community of Austin and it is a \u201csign of
\nthe times.\u201d<\/p>\n

Source:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.kxan.com\/dpp\/news\/local\/new-billboard-targets-deaf-community<\/a><\/p>\n

YouTube Video:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=U4tR__auUsM<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New billboard targets deaf community Effort aims to improve deaf-hearing communication Published : Friday, 13 May 2011 Jim Swift AUSTIN (KXAN) – Have you, as a hearing person, ever tried to make a phone call to a member of the…<\/p>\n

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