Deaf community and people with low literacy benefit from accessible video on discrimination

OTTAWA, July 30, 2013 /CNW/ - People who are Deaf or have low literacy now have a new tool to access information on human rights.

A new video, entitled "Your Guide to Understanding the Canadian Human Rights Act," provides information on human rights in American Sign Language (ASL), Québec Sign Language (LSQ), English and French captioning, and English and French voice-over. The video is available on the Canadian Human Rights Commission's website and the Canadian Association of the Deaf's website.

"This is about making information accessible to everyone," said Acting Chief Commissioner, David Langtry. "This video will make it easier for people who have trouble reading for any number of reasons."

The Canadian Association of the Deaf estimates that 350,000 Canadians identify as Deaf. Many of these people use sign languages, such as ASL and LSQ, as their first language. Many of them do not read English or French well.

People with low literacy will also benefit from the video's audio track. Nearly 3.1 million adult Canadians have serious problems dealing with written materials, such as the directions on a medicine bottle, according to the most recent Statistics Canada survey.

The accessible video project was led by Jim Roots, the Executive Director of the Canadian Association of the Deaf, which collaborated with the CHRC to produce it. "Our two organizations have both done a lot of work over the decades to explain human rights and discrimination to the Deaf community," said Mr. Roots. "Having a fully accessible step-by-step guide to filing a human rights complaint fills a real need."

SOURCE: Canadian Human Rights Commission

For more information or interviews:
Canadian Human Rights Commission
Media Relations 
[phone]
www.chrc-ccdp.gc.ca

For more information or interviews:
Canadian Association of the Deaf
General Inquiries
[email protected]
www.cad.ca

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