Miss-Delectable
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http://www.herald-review.com/articles/2005/09/06/news/editorials/1009917.txt
It's easy to understand the frustration of Harry "Bud" Jimison.
As told by reporter Bethany Carson in a recent Herald & Review story, Jimison is deaf. He recently attended an informational meeting about the 2006 Medicare prescription drug plans last month but walked away with no information. That's because there was no interpreter present at the meeting.
Jimison said he is fed up with having to fight for basic rights - such as finding access to pay phones with TTY capability, talking to the city of Decatur about an intersection that is not wheelchair accessible or attending community meetings with an interpreter.
Jimison gets a lot of help from his friends at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Decatur, but he believes more interpreters are needed. "I'm not the only one," he said. "I'm just trying to make things equal."
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, Jimison and others who are hearing impaired are entitled to an interpreter when accessing agencies or businesses that provide services to the public.
So, for example, if Jimison makes an appointment at a doctor's office and requested an interpreter, the doctor's office would be required to provide one.
Janet Lambert, assistant director of the Illinois Deaf and Hard of Hearing commission, says those sorts of needs often go unmet. "Everything is based upon sound language," she said. "So, the deaf community is excluded from a lot of information because it's all auditory-based."
Lambert said communities could benefit everyone by increasing awareness and offering visual and audio information.
No one would argue that assumption, and just because it's difficult is no reason to ignore the law.
But it can be difficult to find qualified interpreters. There are more than 800 certified or screened interpreters registered in Illinois. That's a small number when you compare it to an estimated 1 million Illinois residents who are deaf or hard of hearing.
It's not easy to become a certified interpreter. The certification requires 2,700 hours of classes, taken over three to five years. There are six certified interpreters in Macon County. Many interpreters work part-time, which puts even more pressure on the situation. In Decatur, for example, interpreters often have to be called in from Champaign, Peoria or Springfield to meet the demand.
Lambert is right that communities should provide services to the deaf and to others with disabilities. But it's not always as simple as just being willing.
It's also important that communities have access to resources that will help them provide those services. At the same time they are providing services, communities and the state need to encourage more people to get involved in becoming an interpreter.
It's easy to understand the frustration of Harry "Bud" Jimison.
As told by reporter Bethany Carson in a recent Herald & Review story, Jimison is deaf. He recently attended an informational meeting about the 2006 Medicare prescription drug plans last month but walked away with no information. That's because there was no interpreter present at the meeting.
Jimison said he is fed up with having to fight for basic rights - such as finding access to pay phones with TTY capability, talking to the city of Decatur about an intersection that is not wheelchair accessible or attending community meetings with an interpreter.
Jimison gets a lot of help from his friends at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Decatur, but he believes more interpreters are needed. "I'm not the only one," he said. "I'm just trying to make things equal."
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, Jimison and others who are hearing impaired are entitled to an interpreter when accessing agencies or businesses that provide services to the public.
So, for example, if Jimison makes an appointment at a doctor's office and requested an interpreter, the doctor's office would be required to provide one.
Janet Lambert, assistant director of the Illinois Deaf and Hard of Hearing commission, says those sorts of needs often go unmet. "Everything is based upon sound language," she said. "So, the deaf community is excluded from a lot of information because it's all auditory-based."
Lambert said communities could benefit everyone by increasing awareness and offering visual and audio information.
No one would argue that assumption, and just because it's difficult is no reason to ignore the law.
But it can be difficult to find qualified interpreters. There are more than 800 certified or screened interpreters registered in Illinois. That's a small number when you compare it to an estimated 1 million Illinois residents who are deaf or hard of hearing.
It's not easy to become a certified interpreter. The certification requires 2,700 hours of classes, taken over three to five years. There are six certified interpreters in Macon County. Many interpreters work part-time, which puts even more pressure on the situation. In Decatur, for example, interpreters often have to be called in from Champaign, Peoria or Springfield to meet the demand.
Lambert is right that communities should provide services to the deaf and to others with disabilities. But it's not always as simple as just being willing.
It's also important that communities have access to resources that will help them provide those services. At the same time they are providing services, communities and the state need to encourage more people to get involved in becoming an interpreter.
