The White House will reportedly provide American Sign Language interpretation at President Joe Biden\u2019s address to Congress next week, something deaf activists said no previous presidential administration has done.\u00a0<\/p>\n
ABC News was the first to report the news.<\/p>\n
The National Association of the Deaf (NAD) praised the decision as an important step in the Biden administration\u2019s commitment to accessibility\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTo the best of our knowledge, this is a historical first for the White House to have an American Sign Language interpreter during a Presidential address to Congress,\u201d\u00a0NAD CEO Howard A. Rosenblum said in a statement to HuffPost. \u201cWe commend the White House for taking steps to ensure accessibility for all who are watching, including deaf and hard of hearing people.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the nonprofit Deaf Professional Arts Network (D-PAN) has provided ASL interpretation for congressional addresses and other major political events in recent years, the group told ABC News that this will be the first time the White House has proactively provided the service on its own.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The interpretation will appear on the White House\u2019s official livestream, but NAD is also pushing news outlets to make the interpretation visible on their broadcasts as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe urge all TV stations carrying the broadcast to properly display the interpreter in frame or via an appropriately sized picture-in-picture inset without obscuring graphics so that deaf and hard of hearing people can access what is being said,\u201d Rosenblum added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In January, White House press secretary Jen Psaki announced that Biden\u2019s administration would begin\u00a0providing ASL interpretations at all of its briefings.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe president is committed to building an America that is more inclusive, more just and is more accessible for every American, including Americans with disabilities and their families,\u201d she said at the time.<\/p>\n