Over the past number of years, Irish citizens have worked tirelessly for equality. From marriage equality to the current campaign to repeal the eighth amendment, it is evident that Irish people are calling for change by demanding equality and recognition from their government. It is certainly no different for the deaf community. The deaf community have been persistent in their demand for equality by pushing for the recognition of Irish Sign Language (ISL). This year Mark Daly, a Fianna Fáil senator, brought a bill before the Seanad entitled “an Act to provide for the recognition of Irish Sign Language”. On October 19th, the bill passed in the senate and it will now go forward to be scrutinised in the pre-legislative process. An assessment of the bill will then be made by the Oireachtas as the process continues to see if ISL will become officially recognised.
Less than a month later, after the bill passed in the Seanad, those lobbying for ISL recognition were making even more noise through the online video sensation “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” which they performed through ISL. Three Trinity students, Abbie O’Neill, Amy Durkin and Joanne O’Donnell, went viral with their rendition of the Christmas classic in late November and are still reeling from the acclaim that their college assessment received. Although the song was initially only an assignment, it appears to have started a national conversation about ISL and the recognition it lacks. Speaking to The University Times, O’Neill, a third-year interpreting student in the Centre for Deaf Studies, commented that while the academic discussion that surrounds ISL is important, they have realised from the success of the video that there is also the need to show that ISL is a living language. “I think having the balance of both having all the facts and figures and all the information, the shocking information, as well as showing that sign language and the recognition is going to actually create a wider range of fun stuff to do as well”, O’Neill says. She says that they had a revelation once the video went viral: “I think the other day we were just like ‘oh so to raise awareness we need to be adorable, alright’”.
What I’ve noticed is that people find the idea of sign language really interesting, but in general the people who are providing services are a little bit indifferent to it
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Speaking to The University Times, Durkin, a third-year general deaf studies student, emphasises the impact the video had among her friends from Mayo. She explains that the video made them think about ISL and the deaf community, saying that before this they “didn’t even know sign language wasn’t recognised”. Durkin believes that “if ISL became recognised, people would be more interested in learning the language”. O’Neill agrees, and explains that, because ISL is not recognised, it is not a major concern for the hearing population: “What I’ve noticed is that people find the idea of sign language really interesting, but in general the people who are providing services are a little bit indifferent to it”. Both Durkin and O’Neill have witnessed half-hearted attempts at providing services for the deaf community. For example, in the 5D cinema in Tayto Park, the safety announcements were provided only through audio and so O’Neil, then a first-year student, had to very quickly interpret and sign the safety announcements to the school children she was accompanying. Durkin recounts that the ads during specialised cinema screenings for the deaf community do not have subtitles and so are completely inaccessible to members of the deaf community.
Recognition of ISL would improve facilities in every area of Irish society and particularly in universities. Prof Lorraine Leeson, the Director of the Centre for Deaf Studies, explains that although Trinity is very understanding of deaf students and generally provides the accommodations a deaf student needs, outside the classroom this can be more difficult. Speaking to The University Times, Leeson points out that it is difficult for deaf students to get involved in societies: “At the moment while in college, deaf students have the right to interpreters for classes. They don’t have any funding in place for them to participate in the societies.” She recognises that the ongoing Trinity Education Project is encouraging students to be involved in every aspect of college life, but questions how deaf students will be facilitated: “One of the great things about [the Trinity Education Project] is recognising the importance of participating in the college society and college life. But, if you’re a deaf student, how is that going to be funded? How are we going to make sure that that’s in place? The Provost has been a wonderful supporter of the centre, so I’m sure that they’re building on those issues.” She points out that deaf students often experience difficulties when attending college counselling or even something as simple as going to the College Health Centre.
Privett believes that “it’s literally just the need for interpreters” that should be tackled in order to make societies accessible for deaf students
Even the Trinity Sign Language Society battles with a lack of funding for interpreters for their AGMS and other events they host. Speaking to The University Times, Kate Privett, a third-year interpreting student and ordinary committee member of the society, says that funding is the main issue for the society “because to get money for interpreters we need to apply for grants, and a lot of the time Trinity won’t give us those grants because they’re too expensive, and so even the Sign Soc has trouble getting interpreters for their events which is a bit ridiculous”. Privett believes that “it’s literally just the need for interpreters” that should be tackled in order to make societies accessible for deaf students.
If the bill passes in the Dáil, it will of course take time for interpreters to be provided for society events as, at the moment, even getting an interpreter for a hospital appointment for a deaf person is not regular practice. O’Neill explains that deaf studies students are told that there are many cases where “an interpreter wasn’t booked or the hospital didn’t know it was their responsibility”. This basic access is not provided and the deaf community is often socially isolated due to this lack of awareness and provision. Leeson believes that if ISL is given legal recognition there is a lot of preparation to be done: “So really it’s about, on the one hand, preparing interpreters to work in those areas in order to have a knock-on effect. But it’s also about doing the research that is required to document systemic barriers to participation and looking for ways in which we can engage with the key stakeholders to try and negotiate those, and where possible change those, so that there is a fairer footing in place for people to move forward with”.
Dr John Bosco Conama, the Acting Co-Director of the Centre for Deaf Studies, is one of the driving forces behind ISL recognition. Speaking to The University Times via email, Conama explains that “for me, first of all, ISL has to be recognised as a real language in its own right and should not be regarded as a communication or compensatory tool. Because, with this paradigmatic shift, people will see the language and its users in a different light”. If the bill passes in the Dáil, Conama believes that the Centre for Deaf Studies will have to adjust to some changes: if the demand for interpreters increases, so too will the demand for the undergraduate course. The centre would also probably face more scrutiny as “obtaining a degree from our centre would be regarded as a necessary minimum requirement for registration [as an ISL interpreter]”. Although Conama acts on behalf of the Irish Deaf Society when he is involved in the campaign, he does mention that Trinity has been very supportive of his involvement and are accommodating when it comes to “conferences and experts on sign language legislation nationally and internationally”.
The students in the centre, which was established in 2001 after years of lobbying by the deaf community, recognise the need for ISL recognition and it still baffles them that ISL is not a language recognised by the Irish state. O’Neill believes that “the big reason why it passed this year, which is insane, is because it is a minority government in at the moment so there are lots of independents”.
Working with those who are the driving forces and long-time campaigners for the legal recognition of ISL, those who are studying in the Centre find themselves being inspired and riled up time and time again. Although they did not expect a Christmas song to be their ultimate contribution to the cause, Leeson explains that the students “are absolutely fantastic in terms of the work they’ve done, but it’s brilliant that it’s just really captured everyone’s imagination. We are really, really proud of them”.
