Thursday, October 16, 2014

Who Can't Hear God's Word? - Catholics with Hearing Loss: Captioning the Catholic Mass










                                       Who Can't Hear God's Word?




"Faith come by hearing how will they hear if there is no one to preach?" (Roman 10:14-17)
                                                                      ( Source: http://www.philvaz.com/apologetics/a3.htm)



Who Can't Hear God's Word? I often wonder if people are aware of just how many  deaf and hard of hearing people there are who do not have effective communication access to God's Word in their churches?  I wonder if they are aware of how diverse this population is as well?  Are they aware that 1 in 5 Americans can't hear God's Word?  Are they aware that over age 65 it is 1 in 3 who are unable to hear God's word?  Do people know how to 'best' accommodate the deaf and hard of hearing in Catholic churches?  How do you best accommodate these people?

One of the purposes for me writing this blog is to educate people on the diversity of those with hearing loss and the need for a more Universal Communication Access in place in order to make the church accessible to ALL those with hearing loss.  We need communication access that reflects the diverse hearing loss population in today's world.  Sign language, Captioning (real time verbatim like CART or remote CART) and audio loops is today's communication access that ADA supports as effective communication for the deaf and hard of hearing.  Yes, I know churches are exempt from ADA laws, but ADA does provide a model framework on what constitutes effective communication access for the deaf and hard of hearing.


For example, this Catholic link (http://www.adoremus.org/3-00-Tevington.html)   about the Deaf (Capital 'D') is certainly forthcoming in expressing the need to provide a more accessible church for the Deaf, and rightly so, but it also  assumes that the majority of the deaf use sign language as the effective communication access.


This is a persistent myth about those with hearing loss,  and often unintentionally very damaging.  Why?  Because it affects communication access. Often the Catholic  Deaf and Hard of Hearing ministries and Catholic church staff think sign language accommodates all the deaf and hard of hearing people.  In reality, only 10 percent of those with hearing loss use or know sign language.  


Hearing Loss (deaf and hard of hearing) demographics:   http://captioningthemass.blogspot.com/2014/08/hearing-loss-demographics-catholics.html


"The majority of people who are deaf and hard of hearing do not know sign language. According to a Johns Hopkins study, more than 48 million people in the United States are deaf or hard of hearing, or a fifth of all Americans. Of these, almost 99 percent lost their hearing or were raised orally–not using sign language–and rely on their residual hearing (aided by hearing aids or cochlear implants), speech reading, and the printed word for communication access. This group of people are greatly aided by text forms of access." (Source:  http://www.captionaccess.com/communication-access-101/?replytocom=41)


Certainly sign language is a must to have in churches, but it is missing the point here.  Deafness is diverse.  Deaf (as in capital 'D' ) is a social-linguistic-cultural defining word, meaning the person is part of Deaf culture  who uses American Sign Language in which their audiograms can show a range of hearing loss from mild to profound.   This is a very common misperception from the mainstream about those who are deaf and hard of hearing.  The mainstream often think 'Deaf' means can't hear at all and uses sign language.  In reality, Deaf as in capital D is a social-linguistic, and cultural worldview model  for those with a wide range of hearing loss in which American Sign Language is a unique way of life, culture, heritage,  and language.  While it is certainly a beautiful culture and language group, it is not accurately representing how to best accommodate all the deaf and hard of hearing so that ALL those with hearing loss can hear God's word. We are a diverse group with diverse social, linguistic,  and heritage backgrounds.




Inclusivity for all:  See https://www.captionfirst.com/Universal_Design


Who Can't Hear God's Word?  The reality is that the majority of those deaf on an audiogram with severe and profound hearing losses  actually do not know sign language.  Why is that?  Because the rate of hearing loss increases each year in one's life from the day they are born (illness, trauma, progressive degenerative losses, disease, 'old age' etc).  The vast majority of the hearing loss population are the late hard of hearing and the late deaf and the vast majority of them are highly fluent, and established socially and linguistically in English and  do not know sign language.   There are three times more late deaf (profound hearing loss) then the born deaf population and they typically do not know sign language. Therefore they have fallen in the cracks  in Catholic Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries in terms of providing them effective communication access so they can hear God's word  if Captioning (CART or remote CART) and audio loops are not being provided in the churches to best represent their social, cultural and linguistic needs because they are fluent in English and part of that culture model.  They need speech to text 'translation' of the spoken word into real time verbatim of their own native language in the USA (usually English) or audio loops depending on where they are on the spectrum of hearing loss on an audiogram.  




“… people over 65, that is 80% of people over 65, that is your mothers, your fathers, your older friends, your older relatives, [have] some sort of hearing loss. Here is an important message to you and to them. Only 50% percent of them do something about it. The rest have kind of ignored [it]. This must not happen." ?- See more at: http://chchearing.org/blog/what-does-severe-hearing-loss-feel-like/#sthash.8dYXKEOm.dpuf


They are not the only deaf group who traditionally do not know sign language but they are the largest deaf group.  Other deaf groups who do not know sign language are those who grew up with the spoken language, often called oral deaf or severe hearing loss or profound hearing loss,  whichever they prefer to choose.  They often come from listening and spoken programs learning to use their hearing aids and cochlear implants, and use real time captioning (and some can use audio loops as well) in large gatherings (such as the Catholic Mass). 

Who are the deaf and hard of hearing who grew up with the spoken language?:




  • "In 1995: 40% chose spoken language options, compared to 60% who chose sign-language options
  • In 2005: 85% chose spoken language options, compared to 15% who chose sign-language options"


The late deaf/hard of hearing who grew up hearing but became deaf, or the deaf/hard of hearing who grew up with the spoken language are underserved at Catholic Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries because you rarely find real time captioning or audio loops available which are effective communication accommodations for these people for Mass or other parts of church life:  

Usually when a late deaf or late hard of hearing person who grew up hearing, or a deaf or hard of hearing person who grew up with the spoken language,  contacts the Deaf  Ministries at Catholic dioceses to see what accommodations are available for them, they will often find a lack of communication access  for those  who use CART (or remote CART) and audio loops because usually the de facto communication access at Catholic Deaf Ministries is sign language even though 90 percent of the deaf do not know sign language.   Captioning is very rare to find in churches in spite of the fact that there are three times more late deaf adults who do not know sign language then there are the born deaf who use it.   This indicates that they have been overlooked.  They will very quickly learn as well that the church is exempt from ADA laws.  




"(Catholics) who want to attend mass and be a part of ministries but do not find a willingness or desire for their inclusion. Often times this is do to ignorance and a lack of awareness." (Source:  http://www.disabilityawarenesstraining.com/component/content/article/3/40)

 Many of them are used to disability services in secular society providing more Universal communication access that is effective for them in business, education, and entertainment sectors,  because of ADA compliant laws and enforcement.  They are not used to having the church often only providing sign language, and often discover that  sign language is  the de facto communication access in Catholic churches for the deaf and hard of hearing in spite of the fact that 90 percent of the deaf and hard of hearing do not know it.  They have fallen in the cracks. They are underserved in Catholic Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries and Dioceses. Some of the Dioceses don't even have a Disability Ministry as well as if over 20 years post ADA is not long enough to establish one.   There are very few if any resources for the 90 percent of the deaf and hard of hearing who do not use or know sign language. Captioning Masses are very rare.  Audio loops, considering how huge the hard of hearing are (mild and moderate hearing loss) demographically speaking, should be in each and every church. Wheelchair access is almost in every church and yet very few deaf and hard of hearing people have access to the church even if they can walk  in the door.  


The church is ADA exempt. It is my guess that access started with the culturally Deaf in the church who  have a strong force and presence, and very vocal in terms of getting access needs, and rightly so.  They have been successful in obtaining access to God's word at this point in time at most Catholic Dioceses within the USA,  which was not always the case in the past.   If I'm correct, I believe more then half of all Dioceses in the USA serve the 10 percent of the hearing loss population who are culturally Deaf, meaning they use sign language with a number of Masses available in sign language within the geographical boundaries of their dioceses .  It may even surpass the number of Disability ministries within  Dioceses in the USA. At least in my location they have a Deaf ministry (only sign language) but no Disability ministry.    However the majority of the deaf,  being the late deaf and hard of hearing often tend to hide their hearing loss making them a much less conspicuous group then their large demographic numbers suggests, and in contrast to the culturally Deaf with 'Deaf Pride',  are not vocal or strong about getting communication access.  There is no ministry that I  know of for Catholics with Hearing Loss in most dioceses  who do not use sign language and they have little or no access if captioning or audio loops are not provided.  I believe their low profile in making their communication access needs known to the church are also part of the problem besides the churches being ADA exempt with little pressure to provide effective communication access to allow equal access for all the deaf and hard of hearing. 


Unlike a stronger presence in secular society with ALDA and Hearing Loss Association of American, in which these groups provide advocacy in secular society for the unique needs of the late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing,   the deaf and hard of hearing Catholics do not have any kind of Catholic Hearing Loss Ministry to support their needs and access  in the church centering around their own unique communication needs, usually captioning (CART or remote CART) and audio loops.  Most of the Catholic Deaf ministries in Dioceses only provide support for the culturally Deaf who use sign language.  Most of them are even under leadership by those who are also in Deaf culture themselves, or parents of, or adult children of the culturally Deaf or sign language interpreters.  So what happens?  I strongly suspect the vast majority of the deaf who are not being provided effective communication access like captioning and audio loops do not go to church because they can not hear God's word IF their church or diocese does not provide them effective communication access like Captioning (CART or remote CART) and audio loops.  Various researches indicate only 4 to 10 percent of those with ANY form of hearing loss and deafness attend church and a few other sources indicate it is as low as 2 percent.  That means 90 + percent of the deaf and hard of hearing are NOT in church.  So if the church doesn't provide the access that is effective for them (whether it is sign language, captioning or audio loops) the drop out rates are high.

  It is my desire that all those with hearing loss and deafness have effective communication access in place for them in churches. Lets pray for that, and to raise awareness of this very large and underserved population in the church who have no effective communication access in the church.  The church needs Universal communication access in order for all the deaf and hard of hearing to hear God's word.  We need Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Loops and not just one type of communication access for the deaf and hard of hearing because we are diverse.




__________________________________________________________________________

"The key to deciding what aid or service is needed to communicate effectively is to consider the nature, length, complexity, and context of the communication as well as the person’s normal method(s) of communication." 




____________________________________________________________

"According to Johns Hopkins University, there are 48 million deaf and hard-of-hearing people in the United States. Only about 500,000 use American Sign Language as a main mode of communication and typically choose sign language interpreters for their communication access." (Source:  http://www.captionaccess.com/faq/)

__________________________________________________________
"CART {real time captioning} is classified as an assistive technology and is considered a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. It is a service provided in the academic setting for students with hearing impairment as well as in public settings such as conventions, churches, corporate meetings, funerals, police interrogations, etc. "  
______________________________________


Although many churches use sign language to convey a

 sermon to the deaf, others are using technology to 

translate each word so that it appears simultaneously on

 the big screen


________________________________________________________________



Demo of Real time Captioning (aka Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART):  

Go to: http://www.acscaptions.com/subpages/CART.asp  (scroll down to find demo video, 
click on CC)

__________________________________


"Catholics with disabilities are much

 more likely to be inactive Catholics

than their non-disabled counterparts."




________________________________________________



"Another set of statistics, however, shows that a full 98 percent of those who are deaf or hearing impaired rarely or never attend church. "  (Source: http://www.stenotype.edu/news/stenographer-goes-church/#sthash.T6dA2OpF.dpuf)




________________________________________________________________________________________





" No captions is like no ramp for people in wheelchairs or signs stating ‘people with disabilities are not welcome."  




This applies just as well to real time captioning in churches as well, only the church is ADA exempt.  The ADA law does not apply to churches.  The church and any kind of worship place of any faith is allowed to discriminate and not provide real time captioning for church services.  90 percent of the those with hearing loss do not attend church because the church is not accessible to them.

_________________________________________________________________________


“There are all kinds of accommodations they make for
 other disabilities, but very few accommodations for
 hearing loss,” Charlie said."  (Source: http://lakerlutznews.com/lln/?p=18870)

_______________________________________________________


"…May the church be the place of God's mercy and love where everyone can feel themselves welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live according to the good life of the Gospel. And in order to make others feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged, the church must have open doors so that all might enter. And we must go out of those doors and proclaim the Gospel." -Pope Francis



__________________________________________________________________
Shouting Won't Help: Why I and 50


 Million Americans Can't Hear You:  


____________________________________



"A sobering thought for religious leaders is 

that 90% of those with a hearing impairment 

may not attend services due to an inability to 

hear and participate." (Source:  http://premiervisualvoice.com/index.php/blog/16-blog-8)

_________________________________________________________________________

"A general rule of thumb is to ask whether people are able to access the facility and, once in, is effective communication happening?"  (Source: https://hsdcstore.com/adasystems.htm)

__________________________________________________________________________


Captioning in church services: 




___________________________________________________





"Accessible meeting space allows 

everyone to participate." 



______________________________________________________________






"The key to deciding what aid or service is needed to communicate effectively is to consider the nature, length, complexity, and context of the communication as well as the person’s normal method(s) of communication." (Source:  http://www.ada.gov/effective-comm.htm)




____________________________________________




"The ADA gives civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities similar to those provided to individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion. It guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state and local government services, and telecommunications.(Source: http://adata.org/publication/americans-disabilities-act-faq)

__________________________________________________________

"Religious organizations and
        entities controlled by religious organizations have no
        obligations under the ADA. Even when a religious
        organization carries out activities that would
        otherwise make it a public accommodation, the religious
        organization is exempt from ADA coverage. "

(Source: http://www.justice.gov/crt/foia/readingroom/frequent_requests/ada_tal/tal057.txt)



__________________________________________________________________________________________________




The deaf and hard of hearing in other

 churches advocating for CART (aka real

 time captioning):  See http://xpressivehandz.blogspot.com/2014/04/ada-violation-at-upcoming-giant-center.html


A church event in a public place was offering sign language interpreter, spanish interpreter and almost didn't provide real time captioning (CART) which is translating spoken English into verbatim English  in real time like interpretation does that allows the majority of the deaf and hard of hearing to be able to PARTICIPATE like the others!  However, in the end, they were granted CART (real time captioning) that allows the same equal and effective communication access that ADA would support in secular society.



_____________________________________________________________________________________



"All of us are covered by the ADA. This is not about a preference, a personal choice, or the opinion of one over another or over a majority."  (Source:  http://network.crcna.org/disability-concerns/q-ada-church-and-americans-disabilities-act)

__________________________________________________________________________



Captioning at a Mass?  Why not Sign 

Language?:  http://captioningthemass.blogspot.com/2014/06/captioning-at-mass-not-sign-language.html

________________________________________________________________




Why is Captioning considered a Universal Design Communication Access?:  



______________________________________________________________________________



"The faithful are called to spread the

 word, and captioning makes that more






________________________________________________________________________________________

Catholic Diocese of Utah has real time captioning?! WOW!  " 

"Arrange for interpreter or real time captioning services



_________________________________________________________________________________________






Captioning, Sign Language and Audio loops are the three most common communication access used by the deaf and hard of hearing in secular business, education and entertainment settings.  It would be nice if it was also being provided in churches even though the church is ADA exempt.  The hearing loss and deafness population is diverse so all three most common communication   access needs to be in place.

About 10 percent estimated of the hearing loss population benefit from sign language (3 percent are native/primary users and 7 percent estimate are acquired/bilingual for a total estimate of 10 percent ), about 40 to 60 percent estimated of the hearing loss population benefit from Captioning, and about 70 to 80 percent estimated  can benefit from Audio Loops (assuming they are wearing hearing aids and cochlear implants with T coils so this is more in theory). However in reality; 1 in 5 Americans with hearing loss who can benefit from a  hearing aid wear one.  1 in 4 deaf adult Americans who can benefit from a cochlear implant wear a cochlear implant. 25 percent of hearing aids do not have T coils in them.  Many people with more severe and profound hearing losses who do wear hearing aids and do have T coils in them often find the Audio Induction loops not reliable for them or 'strong' enough. Captioning can also cover all these groups and thereby provide effective communication  access.  Technically though any one who can read  (receptive) and speak (expressive) can benefit from Captioning so real time captioning can cover a wide user population within the spectrum of hearing loss.

Think those with mild and moderate hearing loss who most benefit from audio induction loops are wearing  hearing aids?  According to this:


"Only 14% of older adults with hearing loss use

 hearing aids, according to estimates from a 

nationwide survey.

The proportion dropped to fewer than 4% of people

 with mild hearing loss across all age decades and 

to fewer than 5% of adults ages 50 to 59,

 irrespective of the severity of hearing loss."

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

This {real time captioning} technology is primarily used by people who are late-deafened, oral deaf, hard-of-hearing,or have cochlear implants. Culturally deaf individuals also make use of CART in certain situations. " (Source: http://www.everyonecommunicates.org/methods/captioning.html)



______________________________________________________________


"A growing number of churches, synagogues 

and other places of worship are adopting 

closed captioning for hearing-impaired 

congregants." (Source:  http://www.stenotype.edu/news/stenographer-goes-church/#sthash.5tWSYgfx.dpuf)



________________________________________________________________________________________

What do the deaf and hard of hearing use for Communication Access?:


ASL (American Sign Language)  is used by the Culturally Deaf in the USA, CART (real time captioning) or its newer tech version called Remote CART is used by the late deaf, oral deaf and severe to profound hearing loss, ALD's (Assistive Listening Devices) are used by the hard of hearing (mild and moderate hearing loss).  Captioning (CART) can sometimes be used by the culturally Deaf but you need to ask them first.  The Hard of Hearing (mild and moderate) can also use captioning but they usually prefer Audio Loops.  Again, you need to ask them first. Yes, I know I keep saying this through out my blog. We are diverse you see.  We need to break the sound barriers for everyone so they can fully and actively participate and share the Joy of the Gospel to all. 




______________________________________________________________



"All of us are covered by the ADA. This is not about a preference, a personal choice, or the opinion of one over another or over a majority."  (Source:  http://network.crcna.org/disability-concerns/q-ada-church-and-americans-disabilities-act)

__________________________________________________________________________

"An interpreter/translator uses sign language to translate the spoken word for the hearing impaired.  However, late deafened or hard of hearing people {and oral deaf} would essentially need to learn a whole new language to comprehend the translation.  Other available avenues for communication would be via captioning or Communication Access Real-time Translation (CART). These are critical links in communication for the deaf and hard of hearing." 
My comments:  Not only that, it respects their own social-culture, linguistic framework and language, that being English (usually in the USA although Spanish is growing in popularity). It respects diversity and embraces multiculturalism by honoring the person's own native language and social-culture, linguistic framework in sharing the Joy of the Gospel in churches.  Captioning is the language of many deaf and hard of hearing people.  Sign language should be provided if that is one's language. But so should Captioning. Its not either/or, its both/and.  Its respecting and celebrating diversity and providing equal communication access for all.
____________________________________________________________

"Of all the barriers to full participation and inclusion, the barrier of unexamined attitudes is the most difficult to address," states Ginny Thornburgh, director of the American Association of People with Disabilities' Interfaith Initiative." 


__________________________________________________________
Captioning is the Way to Go!
Clear Captions; FREE captioning for your phone calls:  http://www.clearcaptions.com
_________________________________________________________

____




Come Pray the Rosary with others - together Online http://www.comepraytherosary.org

(text guided version offered to follow along)

_________________________________





Why I'm Catholic:  http://whyimcatholic.com





__________________________________________________________________


 Once a Catholic?



Former Roman Catholics:    See http://www.oncecatholic.org




_____________________________________________________________________



Catholic Reverts: 

see http://nineteensixty-four.blogspot.com/2012/06/reverts-catholics-who-left-and-came.html

____________________________________________________________




 Former Catholic for Jesus?


This is a wonderful resource for unity

 called Catholic Bridge.  


See http://www.catholicbridge.com

____________________________________


How can we make the Catholic church accessible to ALL the deaf and hard of hearing?:  



______________________________________________________________________


Without real time captioning as a valid accommodation for the late deaf, oral deaf and hard of hearing it is like saying to them at the church door:   'no ramp for the wheel chair users' , or 'no blacks allowed', or 'no Irish need to apply'.  
_________________________________________________________________

"An obvious benefit of closed captioning is to allow everyone to have an 
equal opportunity to participate in and enjoy the benefits of a service, program or activity." 
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Having no captions is equivalent to stating 'people with disabilities may 
not enter.'" - See more at: http://www.disabled-world.com/disability/legal/nad.php#sthash.6aKtVH0e.dpuf
_________________________________ Why Real Time Captioning?
  • "Sometimes referred to as oral deaf, they are not signing or "Big D" Deaf. They speak English, not American Sign Language because they’ve lost hearing late in life or, if the loss occurred in childhood, they’ve had speech training and wear hearing aids or a cochlear implant
  • Oral deafness is "the invisible disability."  (Source:  http://www.theopencaptioners.com/faqs.php)
____________________________________________
"CART {real time captioning} is classified as an assistive technology and is considered a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. It is a service provided in the academic setting for students with hearing impairment as well as in public settings such as conventions, churches, corporate meetings, funerals, police interrogations, etc. "  
______________________________________
"Accessible meeting space allows 
everyone to participate." 

__________________________________________

“What a gift this will be for them now to have 
the ability to follow along with the Scripture 
readings and Mass prayers right along with us. " 
_______________________________________________________________

"Of all the barriers to full participation and inclusion, the barrier of unexamined attitudes is the most difficult to address," states Ginny Thornburgh, director of the American Association of People with Disabilities' Interfaith Initiative." 
__________________________________________________________
"Having no captions is equivalent to stating 'people with disabilities may not enter.'" - See more at: http://www.disabled-world.com/disability/legal/nad.php#sthash.6aKtVH0e.dpuf
________________________________________
Same Language subtitles to help reading:  
_______________________________________________________
"People who learn English as a second language often understand English text better than speech". 
See more at:
____________________________________________________
US Bishop Statement:  
'It is essential that all forms of the liturgy be completely accessible to people with disabilities, since these forms are the essence of the spiritual tie that binds the Christian community together' 
(Source:  http://www.disabilityawarenesstraining.com/component/content/article/3/40)
_________________________________________________________________
The purpose of this blog is to raise  Diversity Awareness among those with hearing loss and deafness, and to raise  awareness that many  with hearing loss are being excluded from full participation at the Mass if the church does not have Captioning. Catholics with hearing loss deserve the fullness of their faith.   Does your Diocese/Archdiocese have at least one Mass service in Captioning at a church that one who benefits from it can reasonably travel to in order to fully and actively participate at the Mass? Contact your Diocese/Archdiocese - find it here:    http://www.usccb.org/about/bishops-and-dioceses/all-dioceses.cfm.)

Is your church or Diocese/Archdiocese  inclusive to all those with hearing loss and deafness by providing Real time Captioning, Sign Language and Audio Loops?   If not - Diversity and Inclusion Awareness is needed in order to share the joy of the gospel by applying Universal Communication Access.  It is very important to share the Word of God with everyone.  Let's pray for that!

CC-Caption Catholic








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