Letters to the Editor: City council: Give us a sign that you are listening

Flames projected on Cork City Hall to mark 100 years since The Burning of Cork. Picture: Larry Cummins

On Friday night last Cork City Council organised a special commemoration ceremony for the 100th anniversary of the Burning of Cork. However, no Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpreter was provided for the event, either on the online live stream or the television broadcast, which was shown on RTÉ News Now.

The Irish Sign Language Act, which recognises ISL as the language of the deaf community, was passed in December 2017 and commences this month, but in these three years, it feels as though nothing has changed. Access for deaf people at Friday night’s ceremony was the same as it would have been 100 years ago, ie none.