City Council recognizes Deaf Awareness Week

During this week’s Council meeting, the Council adopted a resolution, offered by Councilors Flynn and Edwards, recognizing International Week of the Deaf.

International Week of the Deaf, also known as Deaf Awareness Week, is celebrated annually in the last full week of September. Initiated by the World Federation of the Deaf, Deaf Awareness Week not only celebrates the accomplishments of people who are deaf, but it promotes their rights.

The National Institute of Health estimates that 1 in 8 people in the United States are deaf or significantly hard of hearing. In 2019, the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing reported that 650,000 people have hearing disabilities in Massachusetts.

According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), hearing problems are by far the most common service-related disability among veterans. More than 2.7 million veterans currently receive disability benefits for hearing loss or tinnitus, a ringing and buzzing condition in the ears.

American Sign Language (ASL) is the primary language for those who have hearing impairment to communicate. In the City of Boston, the Disabilities Commission has made significant improvements in City Hall to provide language and communication access for those who are hard of hearing.

Horace Mann School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, located in Allston, provides education to students with hearing impairment. It is the oldest public school for those with hearing disabilities in the US, and provides a dual language program for individuals with hearing disabilities to be fluent in both ASL and English.

The Boston Public School Special Education Department also has a mainstream team for the deaf and hard of hearing to support students with hearing difficulties and their families with specialized and technological needs.