Health

Deaf community faces social isolation and new barriers amid pandemic

Brussels, Nov 19 (EFE), (Camera: Leopoldo Rodríguez).- Social isolation, problems with teleworking due to the dependence on an interpreter or the inability to read lips to communicate. These are some of the challenges the deaf community is facing amid the coronavirus pandemic. For this reason, the municipality of Anderlecht in Brussels has launched an initiative to fabricate transparent masks. FOOTAGE OF THE WORKSHOP WHERE TRANSPARENT MASKS ARE MADE. SOUNDBITES OF:JÉRÉMIE DROUART, EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES COUNCILOR OF THE ANDERLECHT COMMUNE IN BRUSSELS. "The different Belgian governments, federal, regional and local, distributed masks for the entire population, but we realized that they did not do so for certain types of people, such as deaf people, who need to read lips. Therefore we had the idea of ??making masks so that these people could communicate with their environment.""It is a mixture of fabric and plastic, we have done an analysis to find the highest quality plastic which, at the same time, is not toxic for the people who use it. They had to meet sanitary conditions and be easy to use." "It is a social integration company, it helps workers to reintegrate into the world of work. It has a social perspective and is located in the Anderlecht neighborhood, so it can be said that it is made in Anderlecht."MARK WHEATLEY, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE EUROPEAN UNION OF THE DEAF.