Deafweekly October 26, 2011

deafweekly

October 26, 2011
Vol. 8, No. 2

Editor: Tom Willard

Deafweekly is an independent news report for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community that is mailed to subscribers on Wednesdays and available to read at www.deafweekly.com. These are the actual headlines and portions of recent deaf-related news articles, with links to the full story. Minor editing is done when necessary. Deafweekly is copyrighted 2011 and any unauthorized use is prohibited. Please support our advertisers; they make it possible for you to receive Deafweekly.

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Last issue's most-read story: FLORIDA WOMAN SHOCKED BY $200,000 PHONE BILL / The Associated Press
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NATIONAL
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Surprise, AZ
DEAF MAN KILLED IN EARLY MORNING MOBILE HOME FIRE
A 22-year-old partially deaf man died in an early morning mobile home fire despite his father's frantic efforts to rescue him. The fire started at just before 4 a.m. last Thursday. Firefighters call the blaze a tragic accident, started by an appliance inside the home. Investigators said there was no sign of either standard smoke detectors or those with flashing lights that are designed specifically for the deaf. The name of the victim has not been released. / AZFamily

Las Vegas, NV
DEAF GIRL SUFFERS ALLEGED ABUSE AT HANDS OF TEACHER
A special education teacher has been pulled from the classroom following an incident at Red Rock Elementary School two weeks ago. The Clark County School District confirms the teacher is under investigation for abusing and neglecting one of her students, stemming from an incident on the campus playground October 12th. "What she did is inexcusable," says the child's mother. / KTNV

Louisville, KY
AX-BEATING DEATH SUSPECT ARRAIGNED
The man accused in a brutal slaying in the Hikes Point area appeared before a judge Tuesday morning. Louisville Metro Police said Roger Duvall, 62, entered a home on Deibel Way, off Taylorsville Road, early Monday and demanded money from one of the residents. On Tuesday morning, Duvall was arraigned on charges of murder, first-degree robbery and second-degree assault. The coroner identified the victim as Patrick Howard, 30, who died at University Hospital from blunt force trauma to the head. The crime happened inside the home of a hearing-impaired man. / WLKY

Northridge, CA
DEAF AND HARD-OF-HEARING STUDENTS FIND GLITCH IN SUSPECTED GUNMAN NOTIFICATIONS
Deaf and hard-of-hearing students found a slight glitch in the system when it came to getting the emergency notification regarding the suspected gunman on campus Sept. 27. “The emergency notification system worked well except that I didn’t get the emergency text,” said senior Kailyn Aaron-Lozano, referring to the text message she was supposed to have received instead of the phone call other students received. / Daily Sundial

Buena Vista, VA
LOCKDOWN LIFTED AT VA. COLLEGE AFTER BOMB THREAT
The lockdown at a small central Virginia college has been lifted after a bomb threat forced the evacuation of residence halls overnight. Southern Virginia University lifted the lockdown at 5:30 a.m. Monday after police and K-9 units cleared buildings at the school in Buena Vista. School spokesman Burke Olsen says a call came in through a deaf service around 10 p.m. Sunday. / The Associated Press

New York, NY
NY CENTER FOR LAW AND JUSTICE HELPS REUNITE DEAF WOMAN WITH CHILDREN
It’s difficult for anyone to find affordable housing these days, and for Grace Ihetu, it was especially hard. Ihetu is deaf, and instead of finding a beautiful new home, she ended up homeless, in a shelter, separated from her children, and unable to communicate because the city never gave her an interpreter. But thanks to the efforts of Bruce Gitlin’s New York Center for Law and Justice, which provides free legal services for the deaf, she finally has a place she and her family can call home. / CBS New York

Morganton, NC
CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED FOR DEAF RETIREMENT COMMUNITY
The North Carolina School for the Deaf Foundation at Morganton has launched a capital funding campaign in an effort to develop a retirement community for the deaf, hard of hearing, and deaf-blind adults. NCSD Foundation President Sandy Turner said the idea for the project originated years ago and has now “taken on a life of its own.” The plans are to build the retirement community in phases, Turner said. The first phase includes a community center and two buildings totaling 40 units. / The News Herald

Beverly, MA
TIERNEY VISITS STUDENTS AT LOCAL SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF IN BEVERLY
The children’s book Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed might not be a typical text for a congressman’s speech. But on Tuesday, October 18, that’s exactly what Congressman John Tierney chose as he read from an iPad to a class of preschoolers at the Children’s Center for Communication, also known as Beverly School for the Deaf. Tierney toured the local school and read to the children as an outreach to see what is happening in the districts he represents, and the improvements that have been made to the school. / Boston.com

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INTERNATIONAL
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Australia
THE DIVIDED CULTURE OF THE DEAF
Outrage in the deaf community over comments made by Dr Dimity Dornan, Queensland's Business Woman of the Year, has prompted Simon J. Green to dig a little deeper into deaf culture, and ask why not everyone wants their disability cured. "It [deafness] is a scourge in our world but it can be almost completely eradicated..." This was the quote read around the nation by disability writers, advocates and particularly the deaf community: but was it actually said, and what does it all mean? / ABC

South Africa
VICKI FOURIE TALKS MISS DEAF WORLD PAGEANT
Vicki Fourie may not have won the Miss Deaf World pageant, but she did well and made us proud! 1) Tell us about Prague and the Miss Deaf World pageant. Did you enjoy it? Have any opportunities arisen from it? I didn’t win a place at the Miss Deaf World pageant... BUT opportunities opened up as i was asked to star in a new movie! / Women24

Toronto, ON, Canada
HIRING BIAS IN CANADA A BARRIER TO SUCCESS
The level of unemployment among Canadians with disabilities is highly disproportionate to that of the general population and to a large degree attributable to a hiring bias that can and should be eliminated from Canadian corporations, according to BMO Financial Group. According to statistics, 16 per cent of the population lives with a disability; and 70 per cent of them are unemployed; versus 7.1 per cent of the general population. / MarketWatch

Ottawa, ON, Canada
UNDERSTANDING HEALTH INFO A CHALLENGE FOR THOSE BORN DEAF
If you've just been diagnosed with a new health condition or are trying to self-diagnose a new ache, where do you start? Most of us either call up our family doctors, or "page Dr. Google" by doing a Web search. But when you're deaf, it's often not that easy. Many Canadians who were born deaf have trouble communicating with medical providers, and while searching the Internet for answers might seem a good workaround, that can often be just as frustrating. / CTV News

Seguin Twp., ON, Canada
DEAF CAMP PUTS SITE PLAN BEFORE COUNCIL
The Ontario Camp for the Deaf owners have banned two township councillors from stepping onto the property. Councillors Alex Chidley and Rod Osborne told their council peers on Oct. 17 that they had banned from entering the property during a discussion about a proposed site plan submitted by the camp. Township council reserved its decision on the plan so council members could visit the site. That’s when council members pointed out they received letters telling them they weren’t welcome. / Cottage Country Now

Europe
WHY IS 112 NOT ACCESSIBLE FOR DEAF PEOPLE?
Lars Knudsen, with the Brussels-based organisation the European Union of the Deaf, poses the question: The European Directive 2009/136/EC on universal service should have been put into practice in all the EU countries by May 25 this year. Why then are the 112 emergency services not accessible for deaf people? Jonathan Todd, European Commission spokesman for the Digital Agenda, responds: / Euronews

South Gloucestershire, England
ARSONISTS TARGET WOODSIDE FAMILY CENTRE IN KINGSWOOD
A centre for blind and deaf people in South Gloucestershire has been targeted by arsonists. Sheds next to the Woodside family centre in Britannia Road, Kingswood, were set alight, and the fire spread to the main building. Part of the roof has melted, and some of the rooms have been flooded. The cost of repairs is estimated at £25,000 and the building will stay shut for two weeks while repairs are carried out. / BBC News

Buckinghamshire, England
DEAF TEENAGER SUFFERS PANIC ATTACK AFTER ATTACK
A profoundly deaf teenager is no longer confident walking by himself after being the victim of an unprovoked attack Friday, October 14. The 18-year-old victim was attacked by a man who punched him while another man filmed the incident on his mobile phone. The victim suffered red marks to the side of his face and a lump under and above his eyebrow. He later suffered a panic attack and needed hospital treatment. / MKNews

Lilongwe, Malawi
MANAD FIGHTS MYTH: SEX WITH DEAF PERSON DOESN'T CURE HIV/AIDS!
Juliana Mwase is a professional accountant at Malawi Against Polio. She is deaf. Outside of her day job, Mwase acts as chairperson of Malawi National Association of the Deaf (Manad). As Manad chairperson, she counsels and leads members in the fight against deaf stereotypes and myths. And out of ignorance, there’s a belief among some people, for example, that sleeping with a deaf woman cures a man of HIV and Aids! / Maravi Post

Zimbabwe
ZIMBABWE DICTIONARY UNIFIES RIVAL SIGN LANGUAGES
A new unified sign language dictionary has gone on sale in Zimbabwe to end the confusion sometimes caused by the country's various signing dialects. For example, the sign for "shoe" in the capital, Harare, means "pig" in the second city, Bulawayo. And in Bulawayo, you say "good" by giving two thumbs up, but in Harare the sign is putting four fingers on top of the thumb. Representatives from all of the country's provinces worked on the year-long project, bringing together the various dialects that have evolved. / BBC News

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LIFE & LEISURE
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Silver Spring, MD
NAD ANNOUNCES NEW AMBASSADOR FORMAT IN 2014
The National Association of the Deaf is pleased to announce that the NAD Miss Deaf America Ambassador Program (MDAAP) will unveil a new program at the 2012 NAD Conference in Louisville, Kentucky. The 2012 NAD Miss Deaf America Competition, also the 40th anniversary of the event, will mark our farewell to the competition as a pageant for young women. / NAD

Madison, WI
DEAF CHILDREN: STUDY SHOWS SIGNIFICANT LANGUAGE PROGRESS AFTER TWO COCHLEAR IMPLANTS
An ongoing study of 45 deaf children who had two cochlear implants finds that their language skills are within the normal range. Cochlear implants replace the eardrum by delivering an electric signal from a microphone to the auditory nerves located in the cochlea in the inner ear. The study, providing the first good evidence that a second implant helps with understanding speech, was conducted at the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and presented at a regional meeting of experts on cochlear implants held Oct. 21-22. / UWM News

New York, NY
LAWYER REFUSES TO PAY FOR DAUGHTER'S HEARING AIDS BUT BOUGHT FIANCEE DIAMOND RING
This guy must be tone deaf. A prominent Manhattan lawyer at a white-shoe firm bought his Playboy-bunny fiancée a $215,000 diamond engagement ring -- but refuses to pay for his teenage daughter’s $12,000 hearing aids, The Post has learned. / New York Post

Coshocton, OH
CHURCH TAKES DEAF OUTREACH TO NEXT LEVEL
Hearing impaired and deaf residents will have their own place of worship beginning Sunday. David and Victoria Carpenter have taken on the ministry of the Rolling Hills Chapel for the Deaf at Grace United Methodist Church. / Coshocton Tribune

Internet
HOW DO DEAF PEOPLE THINK?
AskScience

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WORKING WORLD
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Washington, DC
JOBS INCREASINGLY HARD TO FIND FOR DISABLED AMERICANS
Disabled Americans who want to work face the dimmest job prospects in recent memory. More competition from non-disabled workers, employment discrimination and a sheer lack of jobs have pushed the jobless rate for disabled Americans to more than 16 percent. And the portion who are working has fallen to 21 percent from about 35 percent in the early 1980s, said Richard Burkhauser, a professor of policy analysis and management at Cornell University. / McClatchy Newspapers

Morgantown, WV
MARK LEEKOFF EXCELS AS SCHOOL OF MEDICINE'S FIRST DEAF STUDENT
Mark Leekoff has spent his life taking "leaps of faith." The 24-year-old from Annandale, Va., took a leap last year when he was accepted into the West Virginia University School of Medicine as the department's first deaf student. Born with a profound hearing loss, Leekoff knew medical school would be a struggle. But, with the help of supportive parents, he acquired big goals from a young age. / The Daily Athenaeum

Boston, MA
CITY WORKERS TO BE HONORED FOR GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND
Eight city employees will receive the Henry L. Shattuck Public Service Award on Thursday. Jeremiah Ford is a one of the recipients. He is the principal and headmaster at the Horace Mann School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. His mission is to provide students with the same opportunities as their peers. / The Boston Globe

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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Utica, NY
FILM BASED ON LIFE OF UFC FIGHTER MATT HAMILL PREMIERES WEDNESDAY IN UTICA
The premiere of the film "The Hammer" is slated for Wednesday, October 26 at the Uptown Theatre in Utica - one day before the rest of the country gets to see it. The movie takes the audience through the life of retired UFC fighter Matt "The Hammer" Hamill and the challenges he faced as a deaf athlete, from his childhood in Ohio to his time spent at RIT. / WKTV

See Also 'THE HAMMER' OFFICIAL TRAILER / Bloody Elbow

Washington, DC
QUIET CAMPUS: AN UNSEEN LOOK INSIDE DEAF CULTURE
Quiet Campus goes inside the lives of four young, deaf college students from Washington D.C.’s Gallaudet University, the leading institution for liberal education for deaf and hard of hearing students. From football games and gossip to classrooms and parties, these students give mtvU viewers a compelling, unseen look inside campus life and “deaf culture” at Gallaudet. Quiet Campus premieres on October 24 at 12pm ET. / mtvU

Minneapolis, MN
MINNEAPOLIS PLAY FESTIVAL EXPLORES DISABILITIES
The Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis will stage a festival of plays next month examining disabilities. The “Center of the Margins” festival showcases three plays with themes, central characters and roles for actors with disabilities. Two deaf actresses are paired in a reworking of Pulitzer-nominated Rajiv Joseph’s “Gruesome Playground Injuries.” The play uses American Sign Language as two women chart their longtime relationship through their scars. / St. Cloud Times

New York, NY
BRINGING ART DISCOURSE TO THE DEAF
A panel discussion held tonight at the Italian Cultural Institute of New York explores a new book that bridges the gap between visual art and sign language. The Dictionary of Contemporary Art in Italian Sign Language, edited by the Education Department of the Castello di Rivoli Museum of Contemporary Art and the Turin Institute of the Deaf, presents a collection of 80 signs created to guide the hearing-impaired through the contemporary art world. / The Art Newspaper

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SPORTS
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Indianapolis, IN
1ST TITLE FOR INDIANA SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF
Indiana School for the Deaf made history at its home Caskey Gymnasium on Saturday with a girls volleyball triumph that provided the school with its first sectional championship in any sport. The triumph was viewed as a special victory for the non-hearing community of Indianapolis and the state. "This proves that deaf people can do anything except hear," said Deaf Hoosiers senior TraciAnn Hoglind. / The Indianapolis Star

San Diego, CA
THE NFL CHEERLEADER WHO IS ALMOST DEAF
For most, dancing is solely hearing the rhythm of the beat, but for a hearing impaired National Football League cheerleader, sight is just as important, if not more. Melissa has been cheering for the San Diego Chargers for two seasons now, with a hearing loss of about 85 per cent in both ears. 'Before every group routine we do in the end zone I have one girl, depending on what routine it is, give me a tap on the side with her pom,' the Charger girl told Fox5 San Diego. / Daily Mail

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COMING EVENTS
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Las Vegas, NV
TAJ MAHAL TO HOST NATIONAL DEAF POKER CHAMPIONSHIP
The Trump Taj Mahal will once against play host to one of the most unique and interesting poker tournaments of the year, as it is set to host the National Deaf Poker Championships on November 4-5. This short tournament series is aimed directly at deaf Americans, with interpreters on hand to sign between the players and the dealers. / Internet-Poker.co.uk

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EMPLOYMENT
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