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Thread ID: 12823 | Posts: 1 | Started: 2004-03-21
2004-03-21 09:01 | User Profile
[url]http://news.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/03/21/nsign21.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/03/21/ixhome.html[/url]
Limp wrists and slant eyes must go as political correctness demands new signs for the deaf By Renee Mickelburgh and Rajeev Syal (Filed: 21/03/2004)
Political correctness has caught up with sign language for deaf people. Gestures used to depict ethnic and religious minorities and homosexuals are being dropped because they are now deemed offensive.
The abandoned signs include "Jewish", in which a hand mimes a hooked nose; the sign for "gay", a flick of a limp wrist; and "Chinese", in which the index fingertips pull the eyes into a slant. Another dropped sign is that for "Indian", which is a finger pointing to an imaginary spot in the middle of a forehead.
The signs have been declared off-limits by the makers of Vee-TV, Channel 4's programme for deaf people, for fear of being accused of racism and homophobia. Caroline O'Neill, a senior researcher at Vee-TV, explained: "We have a sign language monitor on the channel who checks that what we are doing is culturally appropriate."
Critics labelled the move as silly yesterday, saying that the producers were interfering with "deaf culture".
However, Ms O'Neill defended the move. She said that the programme, launching its fourth series today, used modern alternative signs that were not offensive.
"Before, [the sign for Jewish] was connected to a stereotypical Jewish nose, but now it's a hand sign that mimics the shape of the menorah [a ceremonial candlestick used in Judaism]," she said.
"Many signs that could be deemed as racist are still commonly in use, sometimes by the communities that we are trying so hard not to offend," said Mrs Davis, who has a deaf brother. "Sometimes deaf people feel that hearing professionals impose their own values on their culture. I would not drop any signs without consulting the deaf community."
Specialists in sign language have also pointed out that in China, the sign for a Westerner is a hand depicting a round eye, which has not sparked any criticism from deaf people in Britain.