Deaf people are having a hard time communicating as masks make reading lips or expressions impossible
The new norms of the COVID-19 pandemic such as social distancing, wearing face masks, and holding conferences via online apps have definitely made life complicated for most Americans.
However, those that are deaf and hard of hearing are facing some of the biggest challenges in terms of communication, with their day-to-day tasks exposing a number of inequities in local health and government systems as well as problems they face in social life.
One of the biggest hurdles amid the pandemic is communicating through face-obscuring masks. They make it impossible for people to lip-read others or follow their facial expressions during essential trips to the supermarket or even to the doctor's office. It is important to note that facial expressions such as nose crinkles as well as mouth movements are listed as components of American Sign Language.
Cassandra Harris has "moderately severe hearing loss" in both ears -- like so many others in America. Speaking to the New York Post, she revealed how she dreaded her first trip to the grocery store after it became mandatory for essential workers to wear facial masks.
“The first time I was at Publix when all the employees were wearing masks, I immediately felt uncomfortable and sort of panicky,” the special education teacher from Spartanburg, SC, told the outlet.
Harris usually takes pleasure in being able to small talk with grocery clerks, but with the masks on it's impossible for her to talk to them.
“I gave them a quick smile and before I even thought about it was avoiding eye contact, in hopes that they wouldn’t try to strike up a conversation,” she continued. “Of course I had issues with my debit card and the cashier was trying to tell me what to do, and I definitely couldn’t understand her.”
The 33-year-old said the experience left her feeling “embarrassed and flustered" and she feared they would assume she was “rude or being snobby for not talking to them.”
Harris' story is relatable to tens of thousands of Americans who are either deaf or hard of hearing.
Carolyn Stern, assistant director of outreach and strategic initiatives for the Center for Hearing and Communication (CHC), told The Post that almost "everyone with hearing loss has developed some kind of strategy [to communicate]."
However, some of these crutches are no longer accessible or practical in several settings. According to Stern, the biggest concern is the psychological effect of such failed interactions.
There have been quite a few potential workarounds off late, especially in healthcare settings. One of these is ClearMask, a fully transparent surgical mask for doctors and nurses created by two Johns Hopkins graduates in 2018. However, due to the ongoing crisis, their production is currently prioritizing only hospitals, healthcare facilities, and essential workers.
And although there are several tutorials online on how to make masks with clear cutouts, Stern thinks they will not catch on anytime soon.
“It’s not realistic to expect everyone to get access to and use [these] masks,” she told the outlet. “People with hearing loss need solutions now — they can’t wait for these masks to be mass-produced and adapted.”
Furthermore, elastic bands used in these masks also interfere with the placement of hearing aids and cochlear implants. Putting them on or taking them off could thereby result in these expensive devices to get knocked off or lost.
Nonetheless, manufacturing companies and media outlets have been touting clear face masks as a straightforward fix to the problem over the past few weeks. What they don't realize is that this isn't a perfect solution, for a number of reasons. Most importantly, not all deaf people can lip-read.
Washington D.C. resident Brianne Burger, who is completely deaf, is able to read lips. However, her sister Kerry, who is also deaf but cannot lip-read, carries a pen and paper wherever she goes
"When I told her my frustration with the masks, she chided me for not bringing paper and pen with me," Brianne Burger wrote to NPR in an email. "Now I have to learn that approach instead of lip-reading."
Meanwhile, Robb Dooling, a deaf federal employee in Washington D.C. who advocates for the aurally impaired, fears that the narrative around clear face masks could propagate the myth that all deaf people read lips. He also noted to NPR how deaf and hard-of-hearing people may not be able to bring interpreters to their medical appointments owing to tightened restrictions amid the pandemic.
"In-person interpreters are better for clear communications, but I would rather not put the interpreter at risk of COVID-19," Dooling said, adding that he plans to use a video interpreting service on his smartphone if he needs to seek medical care.
Dooling also suggested that regular people should make it a point to initiate visual communication by making eye contact or waving. And if they want to go a step further, they could even learn just the alphabet in American Sign Language.
Burger also echoed the same idea.
"Knowing ASL would be so helpful," she told NPR. "Wish the whole world knew how to sign!"