Are we simply a roll of the dice?
Tomorrow will decide my future in the United States of America. My application for US citizenship will depend on how well I do on the interview tomorrow. While I am feeling good about my civics knowledge, I am not feeling 100% about the interview for one reason: will the interpreter represent me accurately?
Every single day, I feel like I am at the mercy of a roll of the dice in a game of chance. Over and over again, like at a doctor’s appointment or an important job interview, I cross my fingers hoping that I get a good roll and a great interpreter is assigned.
I want my dice to have six on all sides.
I’m tired of someone else rolling the dice for me. I want my dice to have six on all sides, representing the best of the best and I want to be the one rolling the dice. This desire to feel confident going into places is the very reason why I decided to develop an interpreting platform that gives this basic right to the average Deaf person: The ability to choose our own interpreters and to provide feedback afterward.
I’m proud to be part of Linguabee, the only true platform, that allows the Deaf community to gain the confidence that every roll of the dice will return a six.
I challenge you to pause and think what it would mean for any of your future interpreting assignments: How would that experience change for you if you are always in control, always able to choose your own interpreters?
My ultimate goal with this new blog, Layperson Terps, is to provide the Deaf community with access to rich and complex topics on interpreting in layperson’s terms. It is also my goal to be able to take back what we have been missing out on: a place at the table in deciding what quality interpreting should be and being able to access it.
For our next story, we will reveal how the Deaf community have become like frogs in a boiling pot when it comes to interpreter assignments.
