Wash-CAP Advocates for Rights of HOH in Washington
State
by John Waldo
Editor: Tell me again why some public places in the US are not required
to provide communications access for people with hearing loss. If John
Waldo has his way, we'll soon all be pondering such issues. John is the
founder of the Washington Communication Access Project (Wash-CAP), a
not-for-profit that is encouraging public places to provide appropriate
communications access to people with hearing loss.
This article was originally published in Sound Waves, the publication
of HLA-WA (HLA's Washington State Association), and is published with the
kind permission of Sound Waves and John Waldo.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
May 2008
In the last Sound Waves, we introduced the Washington Communication
Access Project, or Wash-CAP. Wash-CAP is an organization dedicated to
enforcing the civil rights of the Hard of Hearing to understand what is
communicated by sound at Washington's public places, including theaters,
civic meetings, seminars, classrooms, arenas and the like. In focusing
specifically on securing existing rights, Wash-CAP complements but does
not duplicate the work of organizations like HLA-WA and a number of
national bodies.
Wash-CAP begins by pointing out that the aids and services provided to
the HOH are frequently ineffective, particularly for those of us who don't
achieve full comprehension with the use of Assistive Listening Devices,
but who don't use sign language. We ask that the proceedings be reduced to
text form, which creates instant access for the HOH, as captioned
television demonstrates. We provide information about how captioning can
be done. If the facility refuses without a good reason, then Wash-CAP may
go to court to ensure our rights.
We have enjoyed some successes. At our request, Key Arena captioned
Bruce Springsteen's March 29 concert. HLA-WA Board member Dean Olson and I
were given wireless hand-held devices that displayed a print-out of the
lyrics. While it wasn't a total success, the Springsteen concert was a
very difficult application of the technology. We have encouraged Seattle
Center to use the technology in other contexts, such as plays, when the
script can be entered once, and the text used for multiple performances.
The other entities we've contacted have been far less receptive. Both
the Paramount and the 5th Avenue theaters in Seattle have said captioning
either can't be done at all, or is too expensive. We've referred them to
other theaters in other cities that are providing some captioned
performances, and asked Paramount and 5th Avenue why they believe their
theaters can't do what other theaters in other cities have already
accomplished.
We asked Washington State Ferries to caption the announcements made on
board and at the terminals over the public-address systems. WSF declined,
saying its systems are not designed for captioning. That answer, we said,
was a perfect illustration of the problem - when the needs of the HOH are
not known or taken into account, then obviously, systems won't be designed
to meet those needs. We have asked WSF to stipulate legally that it will
incorporate the needs of the HOH into its future plans.
To make Wash-CAP more effective, we are organizing it as a non-profit
corporation. Membership will be free, and available upon request. Creating
a formal organization will allow Wash-CAP to work in the organization's
name on behalf of any one of its members for the benefit of the entire HOH
community, reducing the burden on any one individual and dramatically
multiplying the impact of advocacy efforts.
Within the next two weeks, we should have a functioning website with
much more information at www.Wash-CAP.com. Meanwhile, feel free to get in
touch with me at johnfwaldo@hotmail.com.
~~~~~
Wash-CAP founder John Waldo is a Bainbridge Island attorney with a
significant hearing loss who wants to apply his legal knowledge and
experience to benefit the HOH community. While a number of individuals
associated with HLA-WA are working with Waldo on Wash-CAP, there is no
connection between the two organizations.
