Filmmaker Emmai Alaquiva, from Pittsburgh, wanted to talk to her 8-year-old daughter about racial climate in the US, but was concerned that at her age, she might not fully understand the issues.
“I told him the name ‘George Floyd’ and we talked about what Black Lives Matter means,” he says. “I gave him the Cliffs Notes version to give him some inspiration.”
However, his daughter surprised him and returned to him with a question: “She said, ‘Hi, Dad, how come there are no people doing sign language or ASL on your photos and videos?’ It was a great point, we weren’t. ”He says he and his daughter take ASL classes together, part of their mission to help her learn to express herself in different media.
Over the next few days, Alaquiva contacted deaf and hard-of-hearing professionals from the community, including freelance sign language interpreter Amy Crawford, Danielle Filip of Pittsburgh-area sign language interpreting professionals, and Greg Pollock, an officer of accessibility at a local bank. , to be consultants in the script for the video I wanted to make, with a message in American Sign Language.
“I wanted to make sure the message was clear, and that we were not taking anything from the community,” said Alaquiva.
The result is “Unspeakable,” a public service announcement with members of the deaf community: “Although we may be deaf, we can hear the world loud and clear,” the group signs.
“I hope ‘Unspeakable’ draws attention to the basic human right of access to communication as a thread that connects us all,” said Filip.
Alaquiva said the nuances of communicating in sign language were important for getting the video right: For example, the word “black” that refers to color can be signed with a pointed finger in the ASL 1 hand shape that moves horizontally through the forehead. But when referring to a black person, the sign uses four fingers pressed together in the ASL “b” hand shape that moves horizontally across the forehead, and is generally reserved for use by black people, Alaquiva said.
Participating in public demonstrations is often a challenge for deaf and hard of hearing people, especially in large crowds with many people wearing face masks covering their mouths. Activists have worked with the National Alliance of Multicultural Disability Advocates to drive #BlackDisabledLivesMatter’s efforts to highlight these challenges, such as Teen Vogue columnist Sarah Kim reported. They also seek to draw attention to the number of victims of police violence who had disabilities.
Alaquiva said he hopes the PSA will be an inspiration for others involved in protest movements to be more inclusive, not necessarily for deaf or hard of hearing people, but also for anyone with disabilities. “It is not our job to do something and then go about our business,” he said, adding that he and his production team created a website with additional resources.
“There is a photo I took at a protest in Oakland and the person’s sign read ‘Sorry, I’m late, I had a lot to learn.’ That can apply to any movement you want to be a part of. Whether it’s on time or late, you must show up. ”
