Summary: Empowering The Deaf Community

The purpose of this paper is twofold: to discuss research on empowerment, preparedness, and engagement in affiliation to Deaf clients and how this affects the interpreting process and professional/client relationship. Research discussion in this paper will include methods that prove to empower Deaf clientele on an individual and communal level, which involve the use of interpreting teams and advocacy for better conditions for the Deaf community; in addition, post-graduate mentoring and self-assessment will be examined in relativity to preparedness. Lastly, to the effects of burnout and comfortability with certain settings will be considered as they fit with alertness and ability to accomplish an interpreting job effectively. To support these

In this paper, empowerment applies to an individual or the entirety of the Deaf community and their power to control their own lives. Tammy Cantrell and Timothy Owens explain how an important approach to empowering the Deaf community in regards to interpreting is working with a Certified Deaf Interpreter (CDI) as an interpreting team (2007). Cantrell and Owens (2007) explain, “By involving a CDI, not only does the CDI bring interpreting expertise but also alters the Deaf consumers perception by seeing an ‘ally’ and someone who is like him/her” (p. 38). A CDI is crucial to the interpreting process in any setting, including “legal, medical, performing arts, educational, vocational rehabilitation, social services, mental health, trainings, conferences, and interpreting for deaf-blind consumers” (Cantrell & Owens,

Interpreting is a practice profession, meaning it is ever-evolving and there is always something to be learned. Alexis Stein and Catherine Hamill (2011) explain, “The most frequently used community empowerment strategy (64% of community empowerment posts) involved disseminating information on issues of community concern, in the overarching category of ‘keeping the community informed’”. From this observation, it is evident that understanding the Deaf community’s perspective as well as keeping current on information that pertains to the distribution of opportunities within the community or state is vital to an interpreter’s relationship with their client and the Deaf community. Understanding one’s own privileges as a hearing interpreter in the Deaf community is important in the goal of advancing the Deaf community as well; in their research involving “416 Internet weblog posts authored by nine Deaf bloggers”, Stein and Hamill (2011) clarify, “Although the perspective of the Deaf community about deafness stands in stark contrast to that of the dominant culture, members of the Deaf community must negotiate their views and values within the larger dominant social narrative”. Stein and Hamill (2011) deduct that the “overlap between posts describing a cultural value of equality with